The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-08-21
lF THE @EGT0RQAl COLLEGE FAILS
WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IT. NO PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE HAD
\ MAJORITY.

easy. In the comparatively new state
of Oregon it was merely Il matter OF
the count.
Then anne the institution of tina,
body. the most extraordinary eve!
conceived in the government, and the
possibility of which was not suggested
IN h constitution. that of the cleo.
r commission. For the first tim,
Following h war a democratic hous,
OF representatives nae been elected
me senate was republican. A bill
passed both branches of congress
after a most threatening discussion
providing for tn" appointment of al
electoral commission to be composed
or five members of the senate, tivt
of the house and five of the supreme
court of the United States.
When 1t seemed that Tilden had
been elected. a democrat. all of the old
prejudice was revived, and republican
leaders declared that come what may
Iiiden, lacking by IL mere fraction of a
clear majority of the vote OF the cleo
toral college, should not be seated.
The Electoral Commission.
Thus came the law providing for it
and the appointment of the electoral
commission the democratic house be-
ing timid and acquiescing in an action
which deprived the democrats of the
presidency at the time.
The commission was constituted of
men most eminent in the public life of
the period. The senators were:
George +. Edmunds. Oliver p. Morton
and +. T. Frelinghuyscn, republicans
and Thomas f.. Bayard and Allen G.
Thurman, democrats, Francis Herman
being later substituted for Thurman.
The commissioners on the part of the
house We're: Gen. Eppa Hunton.
formerly "A confederate officer, Henry
Il. Payne. later a democratic senator's
and j. q. Abbott. democrats, and
James a. Garfield. later assassinated
when president OF the United States,
and George +. Hoar. later a SENATOR,
on the part of the republicans. OF the
associate justices of the supreme court,
those who had been appointed as re
publicans were: ]. Y. Bradley. s. +.
Miller. William Strong and appointed
as democrats. stephen j.. Field and
Nath"n Clifford, an apparent majority
OF one for the republicans, which led
to thu" concession of the position of
chairman of the commission to Assoc
ciate Justice Clifford, a democrat.
Non" living AT this time can conceive
of the tensity of the conditions. Lead
ing democrats openly threatened war
II Tlld"n were not seated. Henry Wat
terson. h"thead editor of the Louis
willie Courier Journal. declared in his
paper that he would lead 100, 900
lighters 10 Washington. March 4, to
cnSur" tn" seating of Tilden by the
shedding of heart blood if necessary.
Cordial responses came from many
other newspaper sources, usually quite
lorular, that each one of the editors
would raise an army of 200, 900 for
every 100 900 that could be mustered
by the doughty Colonel Watterson.
The country and the whole world
We're tired of the mere word of war.
and it was the verdict ever Of leading
democrats that it was better to give
rather than TO fight. 1t has always
been said that if Tilden had had
sand he would have been seated, but
Tildcn was an OLD bachelor Who pre-
ferrcd the quiet of his own hearth
ston" even to the most ordinary tur-
moil Of politics. and he would not lift
u finger 10 thwart the work of a really
unconstitutional commission which
had been devised ny the representa-
tivcs of the people as the best way Ii
of a critical condition.
Men We're selected from both par
ties to make investigation in the states
where twenty votes We're at stake.
every n of them necessary for the
election of Hayes. Matthew Stanley
Quay was one who was sent TO Florida.
Similar ambassadors We're sent by the
l " wv III LII statues " Il'It
the Vote was disputed. Reports from
the republican ambassadors We're sing
ularly harmonious and those reports
were accepted as the proper and legal
view of the solution of the threaten
ing complication by the extraordinarv
electoral commission, which cast the
vote of eight for Hayes. to seven for
Tlld"n. For years that Vote was used
as an expression of sarcasm by repuh-
licans as we'll as democrats and the
crime of IS" has been AN epithet
phrase with democratic orators.
Present Conditions.
Present conditions can only parallel
those Of 1877 in the possibility of dis
putc in regard to the legality under
election laws of the individual states
Of the choice of electors. In the HAYES
case the decision of the electoral COM
mission was accepted even by the
democratic house for the logical rca-
SON that ii could not reject the fiat of
a body created by itself in conjunc-
ton with the senate. In the event of
a dispute over the approaching cleo
ton will the complication be so easy
of solution
1t is not expected, however. by the
shr"wdest critics of the situation that
there will be any dispute as to legality.
Thai will probably all be Tended
against by perfect arrangements long
previous to The election. Eliminating
that the only possibility of serious
complication is III legitimate results in
choice Of electors which may not show
a majority of electors for any one AN
diIate. This can only arise from cap
iture of surh = number OF electors by
Roosevelt as would deprive either Will
son or Taft of Il constitutional MAORI
". That being the case the election
would deHolve on h house of repre-
sentatives in accord with the provision
of the constitution quoted.
Here, then, would be presented the
anomaly of an election 10y Il house Of
representatives elected more than two
years previous to the election Of a
president and vice president of the
United States. and possibly not repre-
senting even a plurality Of the popu-
lar vote or of the vote of the electors
chosen tho previous November. But
in the case Of election by the house
the constitution provides that the
representation from each state shall
have but one vote M that "a majori-
~ Of all the states shall be necessary
to a choice"
In h first place, then, the begin
ming of complication must be a failure
of any n of the candidates to Sc
cure a majority of the electors. That
each reader may have a clear under
standing of h possibilities and dc
his own guessing the following num-
Der of electors for each state is given.
Alabama. -: Arizona, ,; Arkansas.
9; California, 10: Colorado. 6; Con-
necticut, Z; Delaware, 3: Florida, 6;
Georgia, IA; Idaho. a; Illinois. 20: In
diana. Is; Iowa. l3; Kansas. 10; Ken