294 



CO^GKESS, UNITED STATES. 



non, Caswell, Chalmers, Chittenden, Alvah A. Clark, 

 Converse, Cowgill, Cox, De La Matyr, Dick, Dickey, 

 Dwight, Einstein, Ellis, Evins, Ewing, Ford, For- 

 sythe, Fort, Gillette, Goode, Benjamin W. Harris, 

 Hazelton, Heilman, Henderson, Houk, House, Hub- 

 bell, Kurd, James, Jones, Jorgensen, Kelley, Ketch- 

 am, Kitchin, Knott, Ladd, Lapham, Lay, Le Fevre, 

 Lewis, Lindsey, Lounsbery, Lowe, Joseph J. Martin, 

 McCook, McKenzie, McLane, Miles, Miller, Mills, 



, , , . . . , 



Eobeson, Daniel L. Kussell, Shelley, J. W. Singleton, 

 Speer, Starin, Talbott, Amos Townsend, Tucker, 

 Thomas Turner, Tbbmas Updegraff, Van Voorhis, 

 Ward, Warner, Washburn, Weaver. White, Fernando 

 Wood, Walter A. Wood, Yocum, Casey Young 99. 



So the bill passed. 



In the Senate, on June 14th, the bill was 

 considered and amended, and passed by the 

 following vote : 



YEAS Bayard, Call, Cpckrell, Coke, Davis of West 

 Virginia, Davis of Illinois, Eaton, Garland, Groome, 

 Hampton, Harris. Hill of Georgia, Houston, Jonas, 

 Jones of Florida, Kernan, Lamar, McDonald, Maxey, 

 Morgan, Pendleton, Kansom, Slater, Vance, Vebt, 

 Walker, Wallace 27. 



NAYS Blaine, Bruce. Burnside, Cameron of Penn- 

 sylvania, Cameron of Wisconsin, Carpenter, Chandler, 

 Conkling, Dawes, Hill of Colorado, Ingalls, Logan, 

 Morrill, Eollins, Windom 15. 



ABSENT Allison, Anthony, Bailev, Beck, Bell, 

 Booth, Butler, Edmunds, Farley, Ferry, Gordon, 

 Grover, Hamlin, Hereford, Hoar, Johnston, Jones of 

 Nevada, Kellogg, Kirkwood, McMillan, McPherson, 

 Paddock, Platt, Plumb.Bandolph, Saulsbury, Saun- 

 ders. Sharon, Teller, Thumian, Voorhees, Whyte, 

 Williams, Withers 34. 



The House disagreed to the Senate's amend- 

 ments, and they were adjusted in a conference 

 and approved, and the bill sent to the Presi- 

 dent. He returned it with the following veto 



To the House of Representatives : 



After careful examination of the bill entitled " An 

 Act making appropriations for certain judicial ex- 

 penses," I return it herewith to the House of Ecpre- 

 sentatives, in which it originated, with the following 

 obiections to its approval : 



The general purpose of the bill is to provide for 

 certain judicial expenses of the Government for the 

 fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, for which the sum 

 of $2,690,000 is appropriated. These appropriations 

 are required to keep in operation the general functions 

 of the judicial department of the Government, and if 

 this part of the bill stood alone there would be no ob- 

 jection to its approval. It contains, however, other 

 provisions, to which I desire respectfully to ask your 

 attention. 



At the present session of Congress a majority of 

 both Houses, favoring a repeal of the Congressional 

 election laws embraced in title 26 of the Eevised Stat- 

 utes, passed a measure for that purpose, as part of a bill 

 entitled " An Act making appropriations for the legis- 

 lative, executive, and judicial expenses of the Govern- 

 ment for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1880, and for 

 other purposes." Unable to concur with Congress 

 in that measure, on the 29th of May last I returned 

 the bill to the House of Eepresentatives, in which it 

 originated, without my approval, for that further con- 

 sideration for which the Constitution provides. On 

 reconsideration the bill was approved by less than two 

 thirds of the House, and failed to become a law. The 

 election laws, therefore, remain valid enactments, and 

 the supreme law of the land, binding not only upon 

 all private citizens, but also alike ana equally binding 

 upon all who are charged with the duties and respon- 



sibilities of the legislative, the executive, and the judi- 

 cial departments of the Government. 



It is not sought by the bill before me to repeal the 

 election laws. Its object is to defeat their enforcement. 

 The last clause of the first section is as follows : 



" And no part of the money hereby appropriated is appro- 

 priated to pay any salaries, compensation, tees, or expenses 

 under or in virtue of title 26 of the Kevised Statutes, or of 

 any provision of said title." 



Title 26 of the Eevised Statutes, referred to in the 

 foregoing clause, relates to the elective franchise, and 

 contains the laws now in force regulating the Con- 

 gressional elections. 



The second section of the bill reaches much further. 

 It is as follows : 



SRC. 2. That the sums appropriated in this act for the per- 

 sons and public service embraced in its provisions are in lull 

 for such persons and public service for the fiscal year ending 

 June 80, 1880, and no department or officer of the Govern- 

 ment shall, during said fiscal year, make any contract or incur 

 any liability lor the future payment of money under any of 

 the provisions of title 26 of the Revised Statutes of the United 

 States authorizing the appointment or payment of general or 

 special deputy marshals for service in connection with elec- 

 tions or on election day, until an appropriation sufficient to 

 meet such contract or pay such liability shall have first been 

 made by law. 



This section of the bill is intended to make an ex- 

 tensive and essential change in the existing laws. 

 The following are the provisions of the statutes on the 

 same subject which are now in force : 



SEC. 8679. No department of the Government shall expend, 

 in any one fiscal year, any sum in excess of appropriations 

 made by Congress for that fiscal year, or involve the Govern- 

 ment in any contract for the future payment (5f money in ex- 

 cess of such appropriations. 



SEC. 8732. No contract or purchase on behalf of the United 

 States shall be made unless the same is authorized by law or 

 is under an appropriation adequate to its fulfillment, except 

 in the War and Navy Departments, for clothing, subsistence, 

 forage, fuel, quarters, or transportation, which, however, shall 

 not exceed the necessities of the current year. 



The object of these sections of the Eevised Statutes 

 is plain. It is, first, to prevent any money from being 

 expended unless appropriations have been made there- 

 for; and, second, to prevent the Government from 

 being bound by any contract not previously author- 

 ized oy law, except for certain necessary purposes in 

 the War and Navy Departments. 



Under the existing laws the failure of Congress to 

 make the appropriations required for the execution of 

 the provisions of the election laws would not prevent 

 their enforcement. The right and duty to appoint the 

 general and special deputy marshals which they pro- 

 vide for would still remain, and the Executive Depart- 

 ment of the Government would also be empowered to 

 incur the requisite liability^ for their compensation. 

 But the second section of this bill contains a prohibi- 

 tion not found in any previous legislation. Its design 

 is to render the election laws inoperative and a dead 

 letter during the next fiscal year. It is sought to ac- 

 complish tliis by omitting to appropriate money for 

 their enforcement and by expressly prohibiting any 

 department or officer of the Government from incur- 

 ring any liability under any of the provisions of title 

 26 of the Eevised Statutes authorizing the appoint- 

 ment or payment of general or special deputy marshals 

 for service on election days until an appropriation 

 sufficient to pay such liability shall have first been 

 made. 



The President is called upon to give his affirmative 

 approval to positive enactments which in effect de- 

 prive him of the ordinary and necessary means of 

 executing laws still left in the statute-book, and em- 

 braced within his constitutional duty to see that the 

 laws are executed. If he approves the bill and thus 

 gives to such positive enactments the authority of 

 law, he participates in the curtailment of his means 

 of seeing that the law is faithfully executed while the 

 obligation of the law and of his constitutional duty 

 remains unimpaired. 



The appointment of special deputy marshals is not 



