moved to lay the subject under consideration on the table, in order to resume the business which had been interrupted by theretirement of the Senate; which motion was adopted.

A message was sent to the Senate that the House was now ready to receive the Senate in the Chamber of the former, for the purpose of continuing the enumeration of the votes of the electors for President and Vice-President.

The Senate again appeared and took their seats in the House as before.

The President of the Senate, in the presence of both Houses, proceeded to open the certificate of the electors of the State of Missouri, which he delivered to the tellers, by whom it was read and who registered the same.

And the votes of all the States having been thus counted, registered, and the lists thereof compared, they were delivered to the President of the Senate, by whom they were read as already printed.

The President of the Senate then, in pursuance of the resolution adopted by the two Houses, proceeded to announce the state of the vote to the two Houses, of Congress, in joint meeting assembled, as follows:

"Were the votes of Missouri to be counted the result would be: For JAMES MONROE, of Virginia, for President of the United States, 231 votes; if not counted, for JAMES MONROE, of Virginia, 228 votes. For DANIEL D. TOMPKINS, of New York, for Vice-President of the United States, 218 votes; if not counted, for DANIEL D. TOMPKINS, of New York, for Vice-President of the United States, 215 votes. But, in either event, JAMES MONROE, of Virginia, has a majority of the votes. of the whole number of electors for President; and DANIEL D. TOMPKINS, of New York, has a majority of the votes of the whole number of electors for Vice-President of the United States."

The President of the Senate had proceeded thus far when Mr. Floyd, of Virginia, addressed the Chair, and inquired whether the votes of Missouri were or were not counted.

Cries of "Order!" "Order!" were so loud as to drown Mr. Floyd's voice.

Mr. Randolph rose, and was addressing the Chair when loud cries of "Order!" "Order!" resounded from many voices.

The Speaker pronounced Mr. Randolph to be out of order, and invited him to take his seat.

Mr. Brush demanded that Mr. Randolph should be allowed to proceed, and declared his determination to sustain his right to do so. Mr. Brush was also loudly called to order.

Mr. Floyd demanded of the Chair whether he was considered in order or not. The Speaker determined that he was not in order at this time, the only business being at that present time that presented by the rule of this morning.

There was considerable murmuring at this decision; but order was restored; when the President of the Senate concluded his annunciation, as follows:

"I therefore declare that JAMES MONROE, of Virginia, is duly elected President of the United States for four years, to commence on the fourth day of March, 1821; and that DANIEL D. TOMPKINS, of New York, is duly elected Vice-President of the United States for the like term of four years, to commence on the said fourth day of March, 1821.” As the President concluded,

Mr. Randolph addressed the Chair, but was required to take his seat.
The Senate retired to their Chamber.

The House being called to order,

Mr. Randolph said he had seen every election of President of the United States except that of the present Chief Magistrate, and he never before heard any other form of proclamation than that such was the whole number of votes given; that such a person A or B had so many, and was therefore elected President or Vice-President of the United States. He closed his remarks by offering resolutions that the election was illegal, as follow:

1. Resolved, That the electoral votes of the State of Missouri have this day been counted, and do constitute a part of the majority of two hundred and thirty-one votes given for President, and of two hundred and eighteen votes given for Vice-President. "2. Resolved, That the whole number of electors appointed, and of votes given for President and Vice-President, has not been announced by the presiding officer of the Senate and House of Representatives, agreeably to the provision of the Constitution of the United States, and that therefore the proceeding has been irregular and illegal.” While he was reducing his resolutions to writing, a motion was made to adjourn; which was carried-95 to 50.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS.

Resolutions amending the Constitution as to the manner of choosing electors and to prevent the election of President by the House of Representatives were presented in

both sessions of the Eighteenth Congress, as well as in previous sessions of Congress. Many were considered at length, but none of the speakers, as reported in the Annals of Congress, discussed the power of Congress over the electoral vote. The only one who referred to it directly was Senator Thomas H. Benton, of Missouri, who said: "Two questions of great delicacy now present themselves:

"1. If electors are not appointed according to the Constitution, can their votes be counted?

"2. If objected to, who shall judge them?

"It is the duty of the two houses of Congress to count the votes. Can they count anconstitutional votes? If they cannot, shall they not judge every vote before it is connted?"

He began the next paragraph by saying he would not debate these questions.

ANOTHER BILL ON THE SUBJECT PASSES THE SENATE.

IN SENATE, December 16, 1823.

The following resolution was offered in the Senate by Mr. Eaton, of Tennessee: Resolved, That the Judiciary Committee inquire if any, and what, amendments are necessary to an act entitled "An act relative to the election of a President and VicePresident of the United States, and declaring the officer who shall act as President in case of vacancies in the offices of both President and Vice-President," passed the 1st of March, 1792.

This resolution was agreed to.

MARCH 4, 1824.

Mr. VAN BUREN, from the Committee on the Judiciary, to whom the subject was referred, reported the following bill, which was twice read by unanimous consent:

A BILL in addition to the act relative to the election of a President and Vice-President of the United States.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That before the houses shall assemble for the purpose of counting the votes, as directed by the act to which this is an addition, each house shall choose, by ballot, two members thereof as tellers, whose duty it shall be to receive the certificates of the electors from the President of the Senate, after they shall have been opened and read, and to note, in writing, the dates of the certificates, the names of the electors, the time of their election, and the time and place of their meeting, the number of votes given, and the names of the persons voted for, and also the substance of the certificate from the executive authority of each State accompanying the certificate of the electors; and the minutes thus made by the tellers shall be read in the presence of both houses, and a copy thereof entered on the Journals of each house. SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That on the day appointed for counting the votes for President and Vice-President, the Senate and House of Representatives shall meet at such place as may be agreed on for the purpose, the names of the several States shall then be written, under the inspection of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, on separate and similar pieces of paper, and folded up, as nearly alike as may be, and put into a ballot-box and shaken by a member of the House of Representatives, to be named by the Speaker thereof, out of which box shall be drawn the paper on which the names of the States are written, one at a time, by a member of the Senate, to be named by the President thereof; and so soon as one is drawn, the packet containing the certificates from the electors of that State shall be opened by the President of the Senate, and if no exceptious are taken thereto all the votes contained in such certificate shall be counted; but if any exception be taken, the person taking the same shall state it directly, and not argumentatively, and sign his name thereto; and if the exception be seconded by one member from the Senate and one member from the House of Representatives, and each of whom shall sign the said exception as having seconded the same, then each house shall immediately retire, without question or debate, to its own apartment, and shall take the question on the exception, without debate, by ayes and noes. So soon as the question shall be taken in either house, a message shall be sent to the other, informing them that the house sending the message is prepared to resume the count; and when such message shall have been received by both houses they shall again assemble in the same apartment as before, and the count shall be re sumed. And if the two houses have concurred in rejecting the vote or votes objected to, such vote or votes shall not be counted; but unless both houses concur, such vote or votes shall be counted. The vote of one State being thus counted, another ticket

shall in like manner be drawn from the ballot-box, and the certificate of the votes of the State, thus drawn, shall be proceeded on as is hereinbefore directed, and so on, one after another, until the whole of the votes shall be counted.

APRIL 12, 1824.

The bill, in addition to the act relative to the election of a President and VicePresident of the United States, being under consideration, Mr. Van Buren proposed the following as an amendment thereto :

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the time allowed by the second section of the act, to which this is an addition, for the delivery of the certificates of the votes of the respective States, for President and Vice-President of the United States, to the President of the Senate, be, and the same is hereby, extended from the first Wednesday in January to the first Wednesday in February next ensuing after the day when the same shall have been given; and if the certificates by that section directed to be sent by a special messenger be delivered to the President of the Senate, or the certificate therein directed to be sent through the post-office be received by him before the said first Wednesday in February, the votes contained in such certificate shall be counted in like manner as if the same had been received by the first Wednesday in January, as provided by that section.

SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That the person appointed by the electors to deliver the lists of votes to the President of the Senate shall be allowed, on the delivery of the said lists, twenty-five cents for every mile of the estimated distance, by the most usual roads from the place of meeting of the electors, to the seat of Government of the United States, going and returning.

SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That in all cases where the election of President and Vice-President of the United States shall have been made by the electors, the same shall be declared and communicated to the persons elected in such manner as the Senate shall direct. In every case in which the President shall be chosen by the House of Representatives the choice shall be declared and communicated to the person chosen in such manner as the House of Representatives shall direct; and in every case in which the Vice-President shall be chosen by the Senate, the choice shall be declared and communicated to the person chosen in such manner as the Senate shall direct.

APRIL 13, 1824.

The following amendment was proposed by Mr. Eaton to the bill in addition to the act relative to the election of a President and Vice-President of the United States: SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the fourth section of an act passed the first of March, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-two, entitled "An act relative to the election of a President and Vice-President of the United States, and declaring the officer who shall act as President in case of vacancies in the offices both of President and Vice-President," be, and the same is hereby, repealed, and the Secretary of State shall dispatch a messenger for the vote of any State which may not have arrived at 'Washington City by the first Wednesday in January, provided, in his opinion, there be sufficient time for him to go and return by the second Wednesday in February, otherwise the messenger shall not be sent: Provided always, That the vote of any State which may be received before the count is closed shall be counted, subject, however, to any exception which may be taken to their legality or correctness.

FRIDAY, April 16, 1824.

Mr. NATHANIEL MACON, of North Carolina, objected to the general principles of the bill, on the ground that it was not necessary, and would, as he thought, have a tendency to create the very difficulties it proposed to remedy. He thought, too, that Congress had no power to legislate upon the subject.

This bill was read a third time and passed, as follows:

APRIL 19, 1824.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the electors shall meet and give their votes for President and Vice-President of the United States, in the manner prescribed by the Constitution, on the first Wednesday in December in every fourth year next succeeding the last election, at the place in each State directed by the legislature thereof; and the electors of each State shall make and sign five certificates of all the votes given by them, each of which certificates shall contain two distinct lists; one, of the votes given for President, and the other of the votes given for Vice-President; and shall seal up the same, certifying on each that lists of all the votes of said State given for President, and of all the votes given for Vice-President, are contained therein, and shall by writing under their hands, or under the hands of a majority of them, appoint a person to take charge of and deliver

to the President of the Senate, at the seat of Government, before the first Wednesday in January, then next ensning, one of the said certificates; and the said electors shall forthwith forward, by the post-office, to the President of the Senate, at the seat of Government, one other of the said certificates, and shall deposit two other of said certificates, directed as aforesaid, in the post-office, and it shall be the duty of the postmaster to forward the same, separately, in the two next successive mails after the departure of the first certificate; and the said electors shall forthwith cause the other of said certificates to be delivered to the judge of the district in which the said electors shall assemble; and, if either of the said certificates shall not be received by the President of the Senate before the second Wednesday in February, the votes contained therein shall be counted, subject, however, to the exceptions and objections hereinafter mentioned.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the executive authority of each State shall cause five lists of the names of the electors of such State to be made and certified, and to be delivered to the electors on or before the said first Wednesday in December; and the said electors shall annex one of the said lists to each of their said certificates of votes. SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That if any person appointed to deliver the votes of the electors to the President of the Senate shall, after accepting said appointment, neglect to perform the services thereby required, he shall forfeit to the United States a sum not exceeding three thousand dollars; and if any postmaster, or other person employed in the post-office, shall neglect to forward the certificates, as herein before directed, he shall forfeit to the United States the sum of three thousand dollars; and if any person or persons whatsoever shall, knowingly, destroy, suppress, hinder, delay, or prevent, the transmission of said certificates, or shall cause or procure the same to be done, or in any way aid or abet the same, he or they shall forfeit to the United States a sum not exceeding five thousand dollars, and be subject to imprisonment, at the discretion of the court, for a period not exceeding three years, nor less than six months; either or both of said punishments according to the aggravation of the offense.

SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That, before the Senate and House of Representatives shall assemble for the purpose of counting the votes, as hereinafter directed, each house shall choose, by ballot, two members thereof as tellers, whose duty it shall be to receive the certificates of the electors from the President of the Senate after they shall have been opened, and to read, and note in writing, the dates of the certificates, the names of the electors, the time of their election, and the time and place of their meeting, the number of votes given, and the names of the persons voted for, and, also, the substance of the certificate from the executive authority of each State accompanying the certificate of the electors; and the minutes thus made by the tellers shall be read in the presence of both houses and a copy thereof entered on the Journals of each house.

SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That, at twelve o'clock of the day appointed for counting the votes that may be given at the next election for President and Vice-President, the Senate and House of Representatives shall meet in the hall of the House of Representatives, and on all future occasions in the center room of the Capitol, at which meetings the President of the Senate shall be the presiding officer, but no debate shall be had nor question taken. The packet containing the certificates from the electors of each State shall then be opened by the President of the Senate, beginning with the State of New Hampshire and going through to Georgia, in the order in which the thirteen original States are enumerated in the Constitution, and afterwards through the other States in the order in which they were respectively admitted into the Union; and if no exceptions are taken thereto, all the votes contained in such certificate shall be counted; but, if any exceptions be taken, the person taking the same shall state it in writing, directly, and not argumentatively, and sign his name thereto; and if the exception be seconded by one member from the Senate and one member from the House of Representatives, and each of whom shall sign the said exception, as having seconded the same, the exception shall be read by the President of the Senate, and then each house shall immediately retire, without question or debate, to its own apartment, and shall take the question on the exception, without debate, by ayes and noes. So soon as the question shall be taken in either house, a message shall be sent to the other, informing them of the decision of the question and that the house sending the message is prepared to resume the count; and when such message shall have been received by both houses, they shall again meet in the same room as before, and the count shall be resumed. And if the two houses have concurred in rejecting the vote or votes objected to, such vote or votes shall not be counted; but unless both houses concur, such vote or votes shall be counted. The vote of one State being thus counted, another shall, in like manner, be called, and the certificates of the votes of the State thus called shall be proceeded on as is herein before directed; and so on, one after another, in the order above mentioned, until the count shall be completed.

SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That the person appointed by the electors, to deliver the lists of votes to the President of the Senate, shall be allowed, on the delivery of the

said lists, twenty-five cents for every mile of the estimated distance, by the most usual road, from the place of meeting of the electors, to the seat of Government of the United States, going and returning, to be paid out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated.

SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That, in all cases where the election of President and Vice-President of the United States shall have been made by the electors, the same shall be declared, and communicated to the persons elected, in such manner as the Senate shall direct. In every case in which the President shall be chosen by the House of Representatives, the choice shall be declared and communicated to the person chosen, in such manner as the House of Representatives shall direct; and in every case in which the Vice-President shall be chosen by the Senate, the choice shall be declared, and communicated to the person chosen, in such manner as the Senate shall direct.

SEC. 8. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State, as soon as may be, to transmit, by mail, a copy of this act to the Executive authority of each State, to be laid before the electors, at their meeting, on the said first Wednesday in December; and that all such parts of acts as are inconsistent with the provisions of this act, be, and the same hereby are, repealed. April 19, 1824-passed the Senate.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, April 21, 1876.

This bill was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. May 10, Mr. Webster reported it back without amendment, and it was committed to the Committee of the Whole House, where it was never considered.

RULES FOR ELECTION OF PRESIDENT BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTA

TIVES.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, January 26, 1825.

Mr. WRIGHT, from the select committee appointed to prepare rules to be observed in case the election of President and Vice-President shall devolve on this House, made a report.

The rules recommended in the report were similar to those adopted by the House in 1801, when the House elected Mr. Jefferson President of the United States. A long discussion, lasting several days, was had on the proposition in the third rule, to exclude persons from the galleries at the request of the delegation from any one State. The rules were adopted substantially as recommended by the committee.

ELECTION FOR THE TENTH TERM-1825.

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, President.
JOHN C. CALHOUN, Vice-President.

IN SENATE, February 1, 1825.

Resolved, That a committee be appointed, to join such committee as may be appointed by the House of Representatives, to ascertain and report a mode of examining the votes for President and Vice-President of the United States, and of notifying the persons elected of their election.

Mr. Tazewell, Mr. Van Dyke, and Mr. King, of Alabama, were appointed of the said committee on the part of the Senate.

IN THE HOUSE of RepresentATIVES, February 2, 1825.

The above resolution of the Senate proposing the appointment of a joint committee, was taken up, read, and concurred in.

Mr. Taylor, Mr. Archer, and Mr. Thompson, of Pennsylvania, were appointed of the said joint committee on the part of the House.

IN SENATE, February 7, 1825.

Mr. TAZEWELL, from the committee, reported, in part, the agreement of the joint committee to the following resolution:

Resolved, That the two houses shall assemble in the chamber of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, the 9th day of February, 1825, at 12 o'clock; that one person be appointed teller on the part of the Senate, and two persons be appointed tellers on