New Britain herald., 1924-07-12

{tANf nlaffs on me pages or NlAthfs
 the paramount question of the day il
 whether the election Of the next pres
 ident Of the United States shall hs
 determined by the electoral college ol
 by the house of representatives al
 Washington,
 The situation is pregnant with un-
 certainty Although leaders of par
 ties may claim the election for their
 respective candidates, more eonserya-
 tive thinkers who have no axes to
 grind withhold expressing opinions
 because there is nothing on which
 opinions can be based.
 The electoral college consists of sal
 citizens chosen in the 4s states as presidential electors,
 At the constitutional convention in i7S7, the members considered two
 methods for the election of a presi- don't and president. One was their
 direct election by the people and the other their selection at the hands of special body of men. There was some sentiment in favor of allowing this duty 10 fall to congress but it was overwhelmed because the major i fly believed that president thus chosen and being in the debt Of cons gfess could not act independently. The project was also opposed because this method would concentrate too much power in the legislative branch of the government. Nevertheless. 1t was deemed practical to have q special body assigned to the task and the electoral college plan was adopted. Alexander Hamilton was unswervingly opposed to the election Of q president and e-president by the people be- cause he had no confidence In their Judgment. Another reason why the proponents of direct elections failed to carry their point was the lack of means of communication between diff ferent sections of the country which existed then and the belief that the voters could not be brought in con- tact with public men or become fa- miliar with their policies.
 The convention adopted the second clause of Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution as follows:
 Each state shall appoint, in
 such manner as the legislature
 thereof may direct. a number of
 electors, equal to the whole num-
 Der of senators and representa-
 lives to which the state may be
 entitled in the congress-; but no
 senator or representative, or per-
 son holding an office of trust or
 profit under the United States,
 shall be appointed an elector."
 Electors are chosen on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. As soon as all ballots have been counted, a certified copy of the result Is sent to the secretary of state of the United States by the respec- tive governors.
 On the second Monday of January following the November elections the of the electoral college of each state meet in their respective capitals and ballot for president and The electors may vote independently although it Is said that there has never been an instance of a vote being cast for any candidate other than expected because of the strong moral obligation placed on each elector to follow the preference of his constituents. Three copies of the electors decision are made. One Is filed in the office of the state sec retary, one is presented to the United 1 States district judge for the federal district in which the capital is located | and the third is given to a special | for delivery to the secre- tary of state of the United States.
 On the second Wednesday of the | February after the meeting of the electoral college, congress assemblies, | both bodies meeting in the hall of the | house of representatives with the president of the senate presiding. The | reports of the electoral college are received from the secretary of state and the seals are broken. The elec- ton is not formally and legally decid- ed until the official count is an- nounced.
 It is necessary for a candidate for president or vice president to have majority of the electoral college votes before he can be elected. Because of the situation this year, this point is of unusual interest. If no candi- date has a majority the house of rep must elect president and the senate must elect vics-president. Each state has single vote. Under this system the state of Nevada. with population of 77.407, has voice in the selection equal to that of New York, with a population of 1O,3S4144 The vote of each state is determined by the wish of the majority of It's in congress. For pres- dent, the choice must be made from he three men receiving the highest votes in the electoral college. In its election of a vice president, the sen- ,te must select from the two men re- ,eiving the highest votes in the elec- oral college.
 Tn order to be reelected president, yr, Coolidge must receive 266 votes In he electoral college. Close students ,f the political trend of the times are beginning to doubt whether he can 10 this and as far as they can see ,ow, which is not far at all, John w. Davis, candidate of the democratic ,arty, will not even approach that ,oint, If it were an out and out fight between President Coolidge and MT. Davis, speculation would be simple. But Mir. LaFollette enters to befuddle