Evening star., 1924-09-14
THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.
No. /,

Every four years, at precisely !
O'Clock on the afternoon of the sec
ond Wednesday in February. the
Honorable, the Senate of the United
States, headed by its President and
in charge of its sergeant-at-afms.
presents itself to the bar of the Hon.
orable, the House of Representatives,.
The sergeant-at-arms of the House
of Representatives makes a formal
announcement Of that fact to the
Speaker. who. in the name of the
House, invites the Senate to enter.
Then the Speaker yields his chair
and his gavel to the President of the
Senate, takes another chair fnfnedi-
ately to the left, the Senator's are
seated on the right Of the presiding
officer. and all is in readiness to count
the votes of the electors, to deter
mine who has been chosen President
and Vice President of the United
States Of America.
Everything is done in strict ac-
cordance with the statute laws. even
to the requir ement that the Speaker
sit at the left Of the President Of the
Senate, when the two houses of Con-
gress meet in joint assembly to count
the votes Of the electors.
This whole business, comes down
from the fathers, even to the phrase
oIogy "the Honorable, the Senate"
The fathers were those wise men
who met after the American people
had won their independence from
King George and adopted a Consti-
tuition which would permit the peo-
pie to have as little to do with di-
rectly choosing the Chief Executive
as possible, a purpose declared in so
many words by its authors.
In the 6sth number of the Federal
ist, Alexander Hamilton said that a
small number of persons selected by
their fellow citizens from the general
mass would be liable to possess the
information and discernment neees-
sary to SO complicated an investiga-
ton. He said it was peculiarly de-
sirable to afford as little opportunity
as possible to tunult and disorder
Hamilton further said that the mode
of appointment Of the Chief Magis-
trate of the United States was al.
most the only part of the system
which escaped without censure, and
that even the opponents Of the great
document admissd that the selection
of the President was well guarded.
The fathers were afraid that the
people might interfere with the
/
fore, they provided that each state
should, in any manner suitable to
itself, appoint . certain number OF
electors equal to the whole number OF
tho particular States representation
in both houses Of Congress.
That was to insure that only men
in the better classes, responsible and
sober men Of soodfy property. should
have anything to say about the choice
Of the President.
Then the fatISrs went further and
wrote into the Constitution: The
Congress may determine the time OF
choosing the electors. and the day on
which they should give their votes,
which day shall be The safne through
cut the United States"
HaA to vste fse GessYe.
That was done 80 that the electors
in one State would have nc notion OF
whom the electors In other States
were considering for the JOB, all TO
the end that the sober second thought
ana f4ght judgment Of the men OF
high standing might be recorded.
Did the scheme WORK? Not once.
In the very FIRST election virginia
permitted the people to appoint the
electors in q popular election and
every e1ector in that ifst meeting
knew that 1t would be fatal not to
vote for George washington.
The second article Of the Constitu-
ttion provides that the Candidate re-
ceivifig tho largest number OF elec-
torai votes. II 1t be 4 majority, shall
SS President, and the person feceiv-
in9 thA second lAf6est NUMBER, Vice
President.
that this method was wrong wa