The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1900-11-24

Z oASAAaSN "a AAS lNNiAN az NAS NNtSNNA
tions Of nearly all the states. giving tn,
governors the power OF appointing al
most every general and county ofticel
down to justices Of the peace. Tn,
states have nearly or quite entirely ef'
faced these old relics from their SUI
preme laws; but they remain in the ma
tional constitution. todnvite corruption
in national contests and to expose the
government to convulsive trial by ths
manipulation of electors or the concen-
tratiOn of debauchery in doubtful
states.
There is gross injustice to the peo-
pie in the electoral system ton the choice
Of president. The original theory OF the
electoral college was that intelligen,
and impartial electors should be chosen
to exercise eorsiderate judgment in the
choice Of a president: and the sover-
eighty Of the states. that planted the
seed in the constitution whose fruitlOn
was the blooiiest civil war in history.
had great weight in resolving doubts
in favor Of the electoral system. The
state sovereignty that was thus favored
has been obliterated by the arbltrament
Of the sword. and there is nothing now
TO prevent us from looking squarely in
the face the startling inequality OF the
people OF the several states in choosing
president.
There are six states in the union.
each Of which has but one representa-
tive in congress. Their combined pcpu-
latiOn does not much. If any. exceed
100000. or about one-sixth the popu-
Iation OF Pennsylvania. Those six
states cast eighteen electoral votes, and
If Pennsylvania had a relative number
Of votes in the electoral college. her
electoral vote would be los. or more
than treble the vote Pennsylvania now
has in the electoral college. This is
simply objectionable inequality. Ne
vada casts three electoral votes on 70
greater population than we have in any
one Of fifteen wards in Philadelphia.
Leaving out all other considerations.
the one question Of the inequality oc the
American people in choosing their pres
ident would be conclusive in favor Of
aboIishing the electoral college.
But there are other very strong lea-
sons which in themselves, independent
Of the inequality OF popular power,
should bring our government to the
election Of president and viee-president
5y d direct vote OF he people. In four
instances since the establishment Of the
republic, presidents have been chosen
by the electoral college who had been
defeated by the people. Jefferson seems
10 have had a larger popular vote than
Adams in 1896; Jackson had a larger
popular vote than John Quincy Adams
in 1924; Tilden had a larger vote than
Hayes in 1876. and Cleveland had nearly
10000 popular majority over Harrison
in 1858. In a government that is recog-
nized as government Of the people,
there should be no arbitrary machinery
to intervene and defeat the express
slons of the ballot box in the choice Of
the chief magistrate. The true way to
elect president is to trust the people
and let them vote directly for the can
didates Of their choice.
There have been convulslve disputes
over the election Of presidents, all re-
sultng from the electoral system. The
Jefferson and Burr contest Of 1901 vas
a sesthing fountain Of trickery and de-
bauchery; the Hayes-Tllden battle of
1877 stained the escutcheon Of the re-
public by the triumph of a colossal
fraud and crime. Is it not time in this
noOn-day Of progress, when the original
restraints put upon the sovereign power
Of the people have oeen removed in all
Of the states, for the national authori-
~ to make our system Of government
entirely harmonious by giving the peo-
pie the right to elect their president and
vice-president.
With all the many desperately fought
national contests, there has never been
dispute as to the popular majority. It
has always been ascertaIned and ac-