The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-05-15

ly4NAutAt AhFylhuu anu fHeAAiloi wv
even in New Hampshire and Mossaehu-
sets, after elections had been held az
ter O fashion, the legislatures of those
states finally chose the electors There
were next to no votes cast Ia PeHnsyi-
vanla, Maryland and Virginia, as there
were no contests, the election OF WASH
inEton being conceded by all; and what
ever votes were cast in the states have
never found their way into the political
statistics of the country. Rhode Island
and North Carolina had not ratified the
constitution, and did not choose cleo
tors, and In New York a bitter contest
arose in the legislature between the
friends and opponents Of the constitu-
ton, resulting In a disagreement be-
tween the senate and house that was
not adjusted in time for the legisla-
ture to choose electors. Thus, New
York, North Carolina and Rhode Island
gave no vote for President IN the elec-
toral college of 1ISs.'
The author then goes on to show that
there had been no formal nomination OF
Washington for President and Adams
for vice president. washington was
what politicians Of our time would call
the logical candidate" and to Massa-
chusetts was conceded the second place
on the ticket with him. There was no
regularly accepted Second place" how
ever. Each elector voted for two men
for President, and the candidate recelv-
Ing the next to the largest vote became
the vice president. Imagine the result
Of such an arrangement in the condi-
tons Of strong party demarkatIon. We
should now have Mr.. Mckinley as Pres
idsnt and Mr.. Bryan as vice PRESIDENT
Furthermore, 1t is not true, as is the
general impression, that there was no
opposition to the candidacy Of Wash
lngton. There was strong anti-Fed-
eral party, and it made several ineffsct-
ual efforts to defeat him. The electors
were not then pledged to vote for the
candidate chosen by the people. The
authors table Of the electoral vote
which resulted in the choice of Adams
as the second President, shows how This
plan worked. He says;
It will be seen by the foregoing table
that Pennsylvania, Maryland. Virginia
NhIblAAAeA GthnN AANAANA $3.50
toraI votes for the presidency between
Jefferson and Adams. In Pennsylvania
Adams received one electoral vote to
fourteen for Jefferson. In Virginia,
JefEerson's own state. Adams received
one to twenty for Jefferson, and In
North Carolina the vote was one Tor
Adams to eleven for Jefferson. In all
OF these states the electors were cho-
sen by popular vote and they were
doubtless selected with reference to
their character, and without pledges as
to how they should cast their ballots
in the electoral college. One OF the
Virginia electors exercised his admit
ted right to vote against Jefferson, who
had the largest popular following IN
the state. 1t was this Independent &C
ton Of few electors in 1895 that made
both parties draw their lines severely
in the selection of the candidates for
electors, and from that time until the
present all electoral tickets have been
made up of men who were accepted as
solemnly pledged to vote for their par
ty candidates in the electoral college.
In the election of 1900 the candidates
for President and vice president, though
not formally nominated, were clearly
indicated, and the Federals in the house
in secret caucus facility accepted the
names of the candidates. This congress
sIonal caucus made nominations for
many years and 1t became an accepted
institution in 1904, when Jefferson w2s
nominated for the second time. In his
comments on Jefrerson's first admins
tration in its relations to renomina-
tIon. Colonel Mcclure says some peril
nent things on the subject Of expansion:
The one act Of his administration that
was most violently assailed was his
purchase of Louisiana in 1903. 1t was
proclaimed by the Federalists as the
most fragrant usurpation Of authority,
as an utter overthrow OF the constltu-
ton, and as the beginning OF the end OF
the Union. There is not an argument
made to-day against the acquisition OF
the Philippines and Porto Rico that IL
not the echo Of the earnest arguments
made by the Federalists against the &C
QUESTION Of Louisiana. The nblest OF
the Federallsts proclaimed in the sen
ate and house that the Union was prac-
tically destroyed by the acquisition OF
a distant country, containing n people
with no sympathy with our interests or
institutions: who were generally stran-
gers to our language. and could never
be educated to the proper standard OF
American citizenship. But the coun-
try then, as now, believed in e%pan'
sion, and the acquisition Of Louisiana
stands out rs one of the grandest
achievements OF craftsmanship exhibit
cd by any administration, from Wash
ington to Mckinley.