Year: 1876

in the practical workings OF democratic government
without The teaching ef experience The present elect
oral system devised the best possible method OF
meeting this case Each State, great and small was
10 have equal representation in the senate-two
Senator'S 20 be elected by the Stale legislatures and
two electoral votes accordingly IN choosing
President Then in addition, tho people oil eacn
Tssep, .nem in t ,se Electoral College as they had
Representatives in the popular branch OF Congress-
This system has worked well In the main. although It's
defects have always been apparent 10 some of our
abest statesmen and Jursts, chiefly because II frc-
quently happens that while candidate has majority
ali the votes the Electoral College he has but
minority OF the popular vote by which that college
is elected.


Dr. Armitage then took up suppostious case That
II the Electoral College only TO act when the pop
ular vote did elect il would be the means OF
ing President Tor the majority OF the people The
But there better way, which TO give the
Vice Presidency the Presidential candidate receiving
the second highest number OF votes


CIVIL SERVICE REFORM


He suggested that the first hundred years OF his
tory has fully developed radical defect in whole
system OF civil service ITS connection with excessive
Preside ntial prcrogative. For = long time attempts
have been made with but little success reform the
civil service. The plans which have been devised
with that end in view have boon maturcd with
ton, and clearly pure motivcs but TO have
been entirely overlooked that the defect is
radical and constitutional, while in most
respects our form OF government is more demo-
than that Of any other Republic. We present
the anomaly clothing President with prerogatIves
which Constitutional monarchy earth has in
trusted to its sovereign Ha appoints nearly 10000
oHce-holuers. postmasteIs, AMBASSADORS, coiec-
tors, &c. and the amount OF patronage dis
iributed through all these channels will tall but


little, II short OF 500 900 900 annually Beside
these powers he is the ..Commander-in Chief OF tho
army aud navy has "power TO grant repricves and
pardons for offences against the United States and Is
required to commission all the officers OF the United
States" He submitted that there is reason, and
be Justification for clothing any man on earth with
such constitutional powers 1t IS scarcely worth while
TO compare The prcrogaves of our democratic Prcsi
dent with those OF an absolute monarch, autocrat
the emperor OF Russia, because in the case
nj sho
other they claimed hereditary. Our President
has too much power, and TOO much Tor one man
to do Shall we never learn anything from the am
btion OF executives, who can II they WILL and often
tho Presidential chair who the public service with
but secondary view 10 the public good and with
primary TO party endsy Is IL impossible for US TO
discover that the perpetual fever IN which nation
lives about sthe next President Is inimical to tho
public economy, stability and hcalthf We are per-
pcually dep0ring corruption" and as perpetualiy
demanding reorm, - and yet VIC stubbornly refuse 10
that very system renders II hard Tor man to
keep himself pure IL he tries his very best 10 do
The very offers premium to and fosters cor
ruption in all It's forms, and yet We bndiy ceave to
practical ogarchy and delude ourselves with the idea
that have reached the very pinnacle OF Tree and
popular government, from the people and Tor the peo
pie. anu by the people. Can 1t be supposed tor mo-
that tho President OF tho United States were
executive to enforce the laws, without the power
dispense patronage for political ends that 40 900
Of pcopesxoud be holding their breath to-day lest
somc unlucky spark should ignite magazine beneath
the Republic which may perchnnce, not only enoanger
its liberties but its life? Certainly not, nor is there
any need for bringing things to such pass as this.
Make the President an executive olicer OF
The Republic in fact, and nothing more. and
this absurd state OF things will cure itself,
by showing that the President is not the Republic.