168 



CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



toral vote of the State of Florida, or entitling the 

 votes of said Yonge, Call, Hilton, and Bullock, or 

 either of them, to be counted in the election of Presi- 

 dent of the United States or of Vice-President of the 

 United States. 



S. B. CONOVER, 



A. A. SARGENT, 



JOHN SHERMAN, 



II. M. TELLER, 



WILLIAM WOOD3URN, 



MARK H. DUNNELL, 



JOHN A. KASSON, 



GEORGE W. McCRARY, 



Senators. 



) Members of the 

 House of 

 Representatives. 



Senator Sargent : " On the same behalf, I 

 present the further objection which I send to 

 the desk." 



The Secretary of the Senate read as follows : 

 An objection is interposed to the certificates, or 

 papers purporting to be certificates, of the electoral 

 votes of tlie State of Florida as Laving been cast by 

 J. E. Yonge, Wilkinson Call, Robert B. Hilton, and 

 Robert Bullock, upon the ground that by a certifi- 

 cate of the electoral vote of the State of Florida, in 

 all respects regular and valid and sufficient under 

 the Constitution and laws of the United States, and 

 duly authenticated as such, and duly transmitted to 

 and received by and opened by the President of the 

 Senate in the presence of the two Houses of Con- 

 gress, it appears that Frederick C. Humphries, 

 Charles II. Pearce, William H. Holden, and T. W. 

 Long, and each of them, and no other person or 

 persons, were duly appointed electors to cast the 

 electoral vote of the State of Florida, and that the 

 said above-named electors did duly cast the votes, 

 and did dulv certify and did transmit the said elec- 

 toral vote of the State of Florida to the President of 

 the Senate ; by reason whereof the said certificates 

 or papers purporting to be certifisates objected to 

 are not entitled to be received or read, nor are the 

 votes therein, or any of them, entitled to be counted 

 in the election of President of the United States or 

 of Vice-President of the United States. 



S. B. CONOVER, 



A. A. SARGENT, 



JOHN SHERMAN, 



H. M. TELLER, 



WM. WOODBURN, 



MARK H. DUNNELL, 



GEORGE W. McCRARY, f R l 



JOHN A. KASSON, J Representatives. 



The Presiding Officer : " Are there any far- 

 ther objections to the certificates from the 

 State of Florida?" 



Senator Jones, of Florida : " I send up, to be 

 read, a further objection." 



The Secretary of the Senate read as follows: 



The undersi?ned object to the counting of the 

 votes of F. C. Humphries as an elector for the State 

 of Florida, upQn the ground that the said Humphries 

 was appointed a shipping commissioner under the 

 Government of the United States atPensacola, Flor- 

 ida, heretofore on the 3d day of December, 1872, 

 and qualified as such thereafter on the 9th day of 

 December, 1872, and continued to hold tbe said office 

 continuously from the last-named day until and upon 

 the 7th day of November, 1876, and thereafter until 

 and upon the 6th day of December, 1876 ; wherefore 

 and by reason of the premises the said F. C. Hum- 

 phries held, at the time of his alleged appointment 

 as an elector of said State, and at the time of casting 

 his vote as an elector thereof, an office of trust and 

 profit under the United States, and could not be 

 oonstitutionstty~appointed an elector as aforesaid. 

 C. W. JONES, Senator. 

 C. G. THOMPSON, 

 Member of the House of Representatives. 



[ Senators. 



I Members of the 

 > House of 



The Presiding Officer : "Are there further 

 objections to the certificates from the State of 

 Florida?" 



Mr. Kasson, of Iowa : " I present a further 

 objection, duly signed by members of the 

 Senate and House of Representatives, to the 

 last paper purporting to be a certificate and 

 read at the Clerk's desk." 



The Clerk of the House read as follows : 



1. The undersigned object to the last paper read, 

 purporting to be a certificate of electors and of the 

 electoral votes of the State of Florida, and to the 

 counting of the votes named therein, because the same 

 is not certified as required by the Constitution and 

 laws of the United States, the certificate being by an 

 officer not holding the office of Governor, or any other 

 office in said State, with authority in the premises at 

 the time when the electors were appointed, nor at 

 the time when the functions of the electors were ex- 

 ercised, nor until the duties of electors had been 

 fully discharged by the lawful college of electors hav- 

 ing the certificates of the Governor of Florida at the 

 time of the action of said lawful college, and duly 

 transmitted to the President of the Senate as required 

 by law. 



2. Because the proceedings as recited therein as 

 certifying the qualifications of the persons therein 

 claiming to be electors are ex poat^ facto, and are not 

 competent under the law as certifying any right in 

 the said Call, Yonge, Hilton, and Bullock, to cast the 

 electoral vote of the said State of Florida. 



3. Because the said proceeding and certificates are 

 null and void of effect as retroactive proceedings. 



A. A. SARGENT. 

 JOHN SHERMAN, 



Senators. 



JOHN A. KASSON, 

 S. A. .HURLBUT, 

 Members of the House of Representatives* 



The Presiding Officer : " Are there further 

 objections to the certificates from the State of 

 Florida ? (After a pause.) If there are none, 

 the certificates and papers, together with other 

 papers accompanying the same, as well as the 

 objections presented, will now be transmitted 

 to the Electoral Commission for judgment and 

 decision. And the Senate will now withdraw 

 to its Chamber." 



Accordingly (at three o'clock and five min- 

 utes P. M.) the Senate withdrew. 



PKOCEEDIXGS OF THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION. 



The commission met for consultation on 

 February first, and, on motion of Mr. Justice 

 Clifford, the following-named gentlemen were 

 selected as officers of the commission : Secre- 

 tary, James H. McKenney. Assistant Secre- 

 taries, B. E. Cattin and George A. Howard. 

 Marshal, William H. Reardon. Deputy Mar- 

 shals, Albert S. Seely and J. C. Taliaferro. 

 Stenographer, D. F. Murphy. 



A communication from the two Houses of 

 Congress in joint session was presented by Mr. 

 Gorham, Secretary of the Senate, and read as 

 follows: 



HAIL OF THB HOUSE OP KEPRESKXTATIVBS, ) 

 February 1, 1877. f 



To the President of (he Commission ; More than 

 one return, or paper purporting to be a return, or cer- 

 tificate of electoral votes of the State of Florida hav- 

 ing been received and this day opened in. the pres- 



