The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1924-07-17
LOWER HOUSE MAY
SELECT PRESIDENT
THREE TIMES IN NATIONS HIS.
TORY MINORITY CANDIDATE
HAS BEEN SELECTED
LAFOLLETTE A PROBLEM
POLITICAL EXPERTS CANNOT
GET LINE OF INFLUENCE HE
WILL WELD

washington, July 16-From now
until January 1925, there is one col.
lege which will engage the attention
of the United States, though it has
no faculty, student body, or campus
traditions. 1t has, however, received
the greatest of all charters, recogni.
ton in the Constitution of the Unit.
ed States. This noteworthy institu.
ton, which comes into existence ev.
cry four years, is the Electoral Col
lege. 1t is perhaps one of the most
potent factors of our political sys.
tenn, yet not one person in hundred
thousand is acquainted with its oper-
ations.
The average citizen is usually in.
different to the fact that the Elector.
al College holds the key to the ulti-
mate selection of the Pesident and
Vice President. There are a few who
know the power of the college,
With formidable candidates for the
lean people, the problem of captur-
ing sufficient electoral votes has be-
come an absorbing topic with politi-
cal leaders. All too frequently the
average voter regards the Electoral
College as a necessary body which
convenes quadrennially merely fo1
the purpose of ratifying the popular
vote. History tells another story.
The selection of John w. Davis, as
the Democratic standard bearer, and
Mr.. Coolidge as the leader of the Re-
publican party brings two conserva-
tive types into competition and
leaves Mr.. LaFollette as the leader of
the so-called liberal element, making
keen competition in every political
sector. 1t is necessary that the sue
cessful candidate should have 266
electoral votes, thus the full signifi-
canoe of the Electoral College be-
comes obvious. Twice in the history
of the country have there been pres
idential candidates threatening so to
divide the electoral votes as to pre-
vent any one of them from having a
majority.
The growing fear on the part of
the leaders of the two principal part
les is that the election will be
''thrown into Congress. Considering
the fact that the present Congress
was decidedly manageable, leaders
profess to see a dangerous situation
coming out of the possibility of hav-
ing the House decide the election. A
provision of the Twelfth amendment
to the Constitution limits the House
of Representative in its choice to
the three highest names on the list.
1t is said that the trainers of the Con-
stitution intended the electoral sys-
tenn as a potent defense against
fraud. For more than a century
there have been strong movements to
abolish the electoral system. But, it
has withstood all assaults with the
exception of some notifications dur
ing the latter part of the 10Th cen
fury. 1t still retains the relative in
f1uence that the Constitution assigns
to the States.
Unfortunately, the Importance OF
the electoral plan is not commonly
appreciated. 1t requires a great cri-
sis and disputed poular vote to
bring it to the front every four
years. The most disputed provision
of the electoral system covers the
question of count. According to
arguments advanced by eminent
the House of Representatives for
President is not per capita but by
states, introduces an additional ele-
ment of most confusing and unsat-
isfactory nature, for it results in Civ
ing the powerf to elect to a majority
of states representing minority OF
the population Of the country.
The Constitution is silent on many
questions as to the preogatives OF
the House, and the Senate. One of
the foremost authorities on the cleo
toral system has declared that cit is
not uncomfortable that, in some future
dispute over single or a double re-
turn, one or the other of the two
Houses may be tied so that no de-
cision shall be possible, or that a
deadlock between them may be pro-
longed, and the question would then
be presented whether the House OF
Representatives should not itself elect
tn President"
The famous document also pre-
scribes that lists of the votes OF
electors in the several states proper
Iy authenticated by the state execu-
tive officer shall be transmitted in
sealed packages to the President OF
the Senate and then opened by him
in the presence of the Senate and
House of Representatives and the
votes shall then be counted. There
has been considerable controversy as
to who shall count the votes as it is
claimed that the Constitution failed to
specifically designate the officer OF
officers.
( Authorities on constitutional law
seem to be in agreement that the
question has never been definitely
settled, although several attempts
have been made tos frame legislation
for this purpose. At present, the
counting Of electoral votes is more
than simple mathematical computa-
Mon. 1t is pointed out that the only