Year: 1878

REPORT OF THB HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMIT


The following is the report of the House
judiciary committee with reference to The tile
OF President Hayes, which was submitted to
the House yesterday:


THE Forty-fourth Congress selected COM
mie' ION to count the votes for President and
Wee President, reserving to itself the right to
ratlfy or reject such count in the way pre-
Scribed i'll the act creating shch commission.
BY the joint action of the two houses it
ratified the count made by the commission
and thus made it the expression of it's own
raj government, all the state governments in
their relations to the Federal authority, for
eign nations. the people of the United States
all the material interests and industries of the
country have acquiesced, and acted in accord
ance with the pronounced finding OF the Con-
gress. In the opinion of this committee the
present Congress has no power to undo the
work OF its predecessor in counting the vote
or to confer upon any judicial tribunal the
right to pass upon and perhaps set aside the
action OF that predecessor in reference to
purely political question, the decision of which
is cOntded by the Constitution in Congress-
But apart from these fundamental objections
to the bill under consideration, there are
features and proyisionsin in it which are entirely
impracicable. Your committee can find no
warrant of authority to summon the chief
Justices OF the supreme courts of the several
any case, however grave and weighty may be
its nature. The right to summon must carry
with it the power 10 enforce obedience to the
mandate, and the committee can see no means
by which the judicial officers of the state can
be compelledto assume the functions of jurors
in the Supreme Court of the United States.
Iheke are e other me objections to the practical
which we do not think it necessary to refer.
Itmay be true that the state OF Maryland has
Deen In the late election for President aud
ent vice resident @ deprived OF her just and full
py reason OF frauds perpetrated by returning
boards in some of the states It may also
e, De true that these fraudulent acts were
cOuntenanced. or encouraged, or participated
IN py some who are now enjoying high offices
as the fruit of such frauds. 1t Is due to the
present generation Of the people in this coun-
which the governments founded, that all eyi-
dence tending to establish the fact of such
fraudulent f practices should be calmly, care
1ulIy and vigorously examined"


The report closes with recommendation
that if the evidence shows guilt on the part of
t the officials they should be brought to trial in
the manner provided by law, and the follow
ing resolution is appended:


ReS0tred, That the two houses of the Forty
fourth Congress having counted the votes cast
States, and having declared Rutherford B.
Hayes and William A. Wheeler to be duly
elected President and Vice President, there is
no power in any subsequent Congress to re-
power be exercised by the courts of the United
States or any other tribunal that Congress can
create under the constitution.


Three republican members of the commit
tee (Frye, Conger and Lapham) add as fol-
lows:


We agree to the foregoing report so far as
it states the reasons of the resolution adopted
by the committee, but dissent from the con
Guiding portion as not pertinent to the inquiry
before us, and as giving an implied SANCTION
ordered by the majority vote of the House of
Representatives, to which we were aud are
opposed"


IT..


tion was unanimous, with the exception OF
MeSsrs Knott and Butler, and of Mr.. Lynde
(WlscOnsin) whose position is not ascertaIned.
The report and resolution were adOpied i'm
the House by vote of yeas 234. nays IA.