Year: 1877

south, the manipulation of votes by


Secretary Chandler, ETC., etc, which


he said demonstrated the existence o,


a widespread and dangerous conspir.


acy to attempt the inauguration oil


Hayes. He was convinced, and he


was strengthened in that conviction
by the debate in the Senate, that II


was the earnest wish of the republi.


can leaders, that there should be nc
agreement on any plan for counting


the electoral votes. If this plan were


rejected none will be agreed upon
and when the two Houses came to.
gethcr to count the electoral vote
there would be disagreement. In
that event the House Of Representa-
tives would have to elect the Presi.
dent, and there would have to be an
ignominious surrender or fight. He
asked whether the gentlemen on the
other side were prepared for the lat
ter alternative. CAN indistinct mur-
mer of yes.) Were they or the peo-
pie whom they represented ready for
conflict Of arms? Were they pre-
pared to ''cry havoc and let slip the
dogs of WARP" If they were not, then
he appealed to them by all memories
of the past and all hopes Of the fu-
ture, to pause before they entered on
the struggle,the end of which no man
could foresee.


| Mr.. Hoar advocated the bill. He
said that the dangerous period which
statesman had foreseen in American
history had arrived. In estimating
the danger he was not affected BY any
fear of civil war or by any means of
violence. Such, if made in spirit of
empty bluster deserved nothing but
contempt; if serious they deserved
the indignant scorn and condemna-
ton of the whole American people,
But the evil of civil war was not
greater than the evil of yielding one
jot of lawful authority. Nothing
could be more injurious to the whole
republic than that q man should be
put in the Presidential office whom at
least one-half the American people
would regard as usurper. He
couldn't see that our fore-fathers in
tended to give the power of counting
the vote to one man; but they vested
it as it was vested in England. He
didn't consider this compromise; it
was submission to a tribunal Of
question on which the parties honest
ly differed. To submit the question
to force compromised justice and
right. The act which we are about
to do will be the bravest in human
history unrivaled and rejoiced over
by our children. He closed with a
brilliant peroration which was greet
ed with enthusiastic applause on the
floor and in the galleries.


Mr.. Hale was glad no speaker had
discredited the honest objections
which remained in the minds of some
people concerning the bill. He would
not desire to be a great partisan, nor
an ObstrIctor of peaceful settlement
of this question:. Though the great
cities had sent petitions to have the
bill passed he wanted to hear from
the country. He has consistently op-
posed the bill because of its great
fundamental errors. 1t startled him
by boldly assuming that congress had
power and control over a presidential
election-a false opinion. Whatever
popular opinion might be just now,
the American people would not
eventually sustain this bill. 1t shat
tered the electoral college and substi-
tuted the power of congress, which
might any time thwart the will Of
the people. lie declared the fifth
Judge would virtually decide the
great question.


Mr.. Hewitt spoke of the vast inn
portance of the bill, his unshaken
belief in the election of Tilden, and
the usual method as one which would
have inaugurated Tilden. He had
been willing to desert that method.
To speak frankly, the main opposition
the democratic party had to meet was
the influence of the administration.
After the defeat of the republican
party in November, it still remained
intact, and claimed the election of its
candidate, and attempted to strength
EN- that claim by Returning Boards
and military interference, and by de-
claring that the Vice President had a
right to count the votes. The scheme
was thus completed for counting Til
den out and Hayes in. He was con-
fident that the project would be exc
cuted to the bitter end. The Presi-
dent of the Senate would count the
votes and declare the result, and the
President of the United States would
deliver up his high office to the person
declared SO elected, and by the use of
troops he would be duly inaugurated.
OF course the House would not be q
silent and passive spectator of that
programme and would insist on its
constitutional right to participate in
the count and would count the votes
of Florida and Louisiana for Tilden.
The result of such state of things
was civil war. The rights and prin-
ciples for which the democratic party
of the country struggled would have
Ierished ii the attempt to count in a
republican candidate for President
were acquiesced in, or if not being
acquiesced in war should result.
There was 10 escape from that posi-
ton except by an agreement between
the patriotic men of both parties,
who preferred the good of the coun-
try to the success of party. Partisan
as he was supposed to be, but patri-
otic as he hoped henceforth to be re-
garded, he had deemed it his bounden
duty to labor zcalously toward the
attainment of some just and constitu-
tional plan of settlement whereby
one President should be declared, by
title which all citizens would re-
spect, and which no considerable
number of votes should dispute. The
bill, even if not within the strict let
ter of the Constitution, was certainly
within its spirit. 1t substituted law
and order for strife and anarchy. 1t
meant supremacy of civil over mill
tary power. 1t meant preservation
of autonomy of the States. 1t meant
oblivion of all bitterness Of the past,
security for the present. and hope for
the future.


Mr.. Monroe, of Ohio, regretted that
he couldn't support the bill. He re-
viewed the Constitutional objections
to the bill.


Recess TIL Z 80.


EVENING SESSION.


Al