Year: 1875

FOR Bay0rd ia Reply to Senator


,MorfSn. , im fhe Senate, Decem-


No, Mr.. President, the country
will see, and the Senate may see, that
this is revolutionary proposition. 1t
is but one further step in the march
toward consolidation of power, which
the people of this country must see,
and which, if they know their own
safety, they will sternly check and ar.
rest. 1t is the first time in the history
Of this country that the Senate of the
United States has sought to invade the
privileges of the other House of Con
gress, and to take testimony concern.
ing the proper election of it's members.
1t is not, however, the first time in the
history of reconstruction. We are
now witnessing an attempt to carry
out n threat of the honorable Senator
that four or five years ago was darkly
shadowed forth upon this floor. At
the time when he and his party friends
were seizing these communities at the
South, compelling them, in advance to
consent to changes in the Constitution
of the country which were to affect US
all, at time when they were bound,
helpless and bleeding, at the feet of
him and his party, we asked, as there
no time to come when these States
shall be rchabilitated and have coequal
existence as States within this Union?"
He was asked that question, although
he gave no decided answer, any more
than now he gives when he is asked
where is his power as Senator, obey
ing a written Constitution, to find
warrant for such action as this: and he
still sits silent, and is unable to give
it.


Suppose these States to have been
rehabilitated, ,suppose" Reconstruction"
20 have been complete, and that they
stand forth at last fashioned as your
| will hath made them, but at least with
Il confessed autonomy, you still claim
the right over them that you shall in.
quire into their local and domestic
affairs, and treat Mississippi, or Louisi-
ana, or Alabama differently from New
Jersey or New York, His answer
then was and still is that he claimed
the right to "dedL ,cith the States" Such
ambiguous phrase he then used; and
to day We have an illustration of what
he meant by dealing with State. E"
Now, Senators, see what is the effect
of his proposition, which is, that where
and election has been conducted in a
State, before the question of contest as
to membership of this body arises, be-
fore contest in regard to membership
of the other body arises, when no ap.
pllcation from the governor of the
State to the Executive, the Executive
being certainly in all respects favor
| able to his application, has been made
| to show that there was either durcss
or such intimidation as paralyzed the
| will of the people of that State and
made their election no free election,
and therefore no election at all, we
| have claim made that the Congress
of the United States, or even one branch
of Congress, shall, of It's own motion,
take up and examine these questions
| of contested election; because, of
course, this application for lnforma-
tion would be idle unless it is to be
followed by an exercise of power to
remedy the wrong that is said to have
| occurred. The Senator surely would
not take up the time or money of the
people of this country in an eXamina.
tlou that was to be empty and have no
fruits. On tho contrary, this is TO be
preliminary inquiry to an exercise of
power to remedy the wrongs which
the Senator suggests have occurred.
This is the claim ofpower. Let us cen.
template it. Let the people of this
country contemplate it. Elections nn


satisfactory TO the minority are very
apt to occur. Changes in public senti.
ment are very apt to occur Strong
indications of that have been felt in
the State which the honorable Senator
himself represents in part upon this
| floor. The presence of his colleague
is u proof to him and TO us that there
was avast change in the popular senti


ment of his State very short time
ago.


Mr.. MORTON. And that is very
| likely to occur in the Senator's State.


Mr.. BAYARD. 1t may occur in the
State that have the honor in part To
represent, but God forbid that when
my people shall express their opinion
against me and my party at the ballot
box | shall come here and ask Congress
to revolutionize my State government
for the sake of giving me party advan
tage. Manifestation of applause in
the galleries.


The PRESIDENT pro tcmpoye The
| Chair will take occasion to announce
to those persons occupying the CALLER
ies that if there is applause again he
will order the Sergeant-at-Arms TO
clear them.


Mr.. BAYARD. DID not cite the
case of the Senator's State with any
intent to do so small matter rs TO be
personally disrespectful to him,
merely did il for the purpose of show
ing that which every Senator knows is
one of the incidents of a popular
government, the ebb and flow OF
popular government, the ebb and flow
OF popular opinion, the ebb and flow
of political power. 1t is we'll for us
| it should be so. So long as that ebb
and flow can take place, SO long the
! freedom and liberty of this people
will remain and it is in the attempts
to put arbitrary congressional checks
upon that ebb and flow that | sec
/ great danger. Our hope is, and our