LIBRARY' ESS. J } unite: REPLY S Hon. Foster Blodgett Memorial of Six Members of the Georgia Legislature, REMONSTRATING AGAINST His admission into the United States Senate, Wf> ~Ls tr A document styled "Memorial of members of the late General Assembly of the State of Georgia, remonstrating against the admission of Foster Blodgett to a seat in the Senate," signed by six members of the Legislature of Geor- gia, who are active and ardent, and perhaps I might say bitter and unrelenting political enemies to me and to the party with which I am allied, has been laid before the Sen- ate, and by that body referred to your committee. It is but fair to state that I have information which I con- sider entirely reliable to the effect that this so-called memo- rial has been presented to a large number of the members of said Georgia Legislature, both Democrats and Republicans, and but six of the former and none of t\\e latter could be induced to sign it. It is not at all astonishing that my political opponents should desire that the seat to which I have been elected should remain vacant uutil next November, when a Demo- cratic Legislature will convene to enable them to get. one of their own party into the Senate. It is, however, worthy of note, that so few of that powerful party in Georgia have united in this rather unusual but bold scheme to secure po- litical power. It argues that their ablest lawyers and shrewdest politicians have but little confidence in the sound- ness of their positions, as none of their names appear to this paper. The " Memorial " is before the Senate, and it is a duty I owe to the State which elected me, and which is entitled to be represented in the councils of the nation, that I notice the charges made against me in this document, in order that the matter may be settled, and if I am found to be entitled, that I may be admitted to my seat, and if I am not entitled, that some one may be appointed or elected who can take his seat, and the State remain no longer without her constitu- tional representation in Congress. The first position assumed by these six memorialists is "that the election was not held in accordance -with the law of Congress approved July 26, 1866, in that 'the Legisla- ture was not the body " chosen " next preceding the expira- tion of the time for which said Blodgett was elected to rep- resent said State in Congress.' I insist that this charge is untrue, and that I was elected in accordance with the act of Congress of 26th July, 1866. The Legislature by which I was elected was, at the time of my election, and is at the present time, the only legally and constitutionally constituted Legislature in existence in the State of Georgia, because, by the constitution of that State (Art. Ill, Sec. 1, par. 2) it is provided that the mem- bers of the Legislature shall hold until their successors are elected and qualified. No "successors" to those composing the Legislature which elected me have been elected and qualified ; therefore, unless the constitution will yield to these six memorialists, or there can be two Legislatures in exist- ence at the same time in Georgia, the body by which I was elected was the Legislature " chosen next preceding the ex- piration of the time for which I was elected." 2. The term Legislature as used in said act of Congress has a plain legal meaning, such as Bouvier defines to be a body authorized to legislate, to make laws, to elect a sena- tor. Unless it is thus constituted and empowered, it is not a " Legislature." The persons elected in December, 1870, to compose a Legislature to convene and organize in Novem- ber, 1871, has no organization, has no power or capacity to legislate, to enact laws, or to elect a senator. They have not been declared elected in any legal or constitutional man- ner. Their qualifications as members of a legislative body have not been passed upon according to law. They have not been qualified or sworn according to the requirements of the constitution of the State. They have not been elected and qualified as the constitution provides, and their prede- cessors are still in office. If these positions are correct, (and no one will controvert them,) the conclusion must be irresistible that the only legislative body in existence at the time I was elected, and on the 4th of March, 1871, in the State of Georgia, was the body by which I was elected. And there is as little chance for escape from the conviction that the persons purporting to be elected in December, 1870, as members to compose a body to convene in November, 1871, do not and cannot by any means be " a Legislature." If they are not " a Legis- lature,'' if they have never organized and qualified accord- ing to the constitution and laws of the State of Georgia, so as to empower them to enact laws or to elect a Senator, then the body by which I was elected must have been the body chosen next preceding the expiration of the time for which I was elected. The second allegation made by the memorialists is, " that at the time said Blodgett was elected the constitution of said State required that the Legislature to be elected in the fall of 1870 should assemble on the second Wednesday in January, 1S71, prior to the occurence of the vacancy, but that the day of meeting was wrongfuly changed to November, 1871." Let us see if this was wrongfully done. I say it was done legally, fairly, and according to the plain letter of the constitution of the State. These words are used in said constitution, Art. iii, Sec. 3, Part 1 : " The Legislature shall meet annually on the second Wednesday in January, or on such other day as the General Assembly may -prescribe." On the 25th October, 1870, an act to change the time of meeting of the Legislature of this State was approved, (see printed laws, No. G5, page 69,) by which the day of meeting was changed from the second Wednesday in January of each year to the first Wednesday in November of each year, be- ginning with the year 1871. By reference to the journal of the House of Representatives of the Georgia Legislature, page 1119, it will be seen that this bill passed as a recom- mendation of the Judiciary Committee, without even Demo- cratic opposition. It may have been wrongfully done, ac- 6 cording to the high moral conceptions of these memorialists, but it was certainly dune according to the constitution of my State. The constitution of Georgia not only authorizes the change of the day of meeting of the Legislature, but it also author- izes the change by the General Assembly of the day of elec- tion. (See Art. Ill, sec. 1, par. 2.) The constitution pro- vides that the election shall begin on Tuesday after the first Monday in November of every second year, but the General Assembly may change the time of election. This was also done by the Legislature, as will be seen in printed laws, page 6. So it will be seen that this new Legislature was elected the last of December, 1870, instead of in November, the day fixed in the constitution. By the logic of the moral code of the memorialists, it is not wrongful for Democratic members of the Legislature to take their seats, although elected on a day not named in the constitution ; but I must be denied a seat in the United States Senate, because the same Legislature, under the same authority, changed the day of meeting. This change they say is a mere trick, defeating an expres- sion of the voice of the people, in accordance with the laws of the United States. Now, your immaculate memorialists abandon the argument and go into motives. I am not able to cope with them in this new arena. I do not pretend to deny to these gentlemen great respect for the free voice of (he ])eople of Georgia, and unbounded adoration for the laws of the United States. The third and last position taken in this memorial is, " that at the time said Blodgett was elected, a quorum of the House of Representatives of the General Assembly was not present." This position is also untrue. If all the members of the House of Representatives had been in office or in life there would, according to the constitution, have been 175 members, and a majority of that number constitutes a quorum, and 88 members would have been a majority. In two counties, up to that time no election had been held, and there were several members dead and not in office. There were 86 mem- bers voting, and about 30 present who did not vote ; in fact there were present at the time 116 members — 28 over a quo- rum. In proof of this, I call attention to affidavits of the •Speaker pro tern., and the Clerk of the House, marked Ex- hibits "A and B." The journals also show that other mem- bers more than sufficient to constitute a quorum were present, as they were protesting against the proceeding and obtaining leave of absence. Hence it is apparent that this is a naked, bold effort to keep me out of the Senate, without a shadow of reason, truth, or justice, because I do not agree with those gentle- men politically. Why was no voice raised against the admission of the hon- orable Senator from Tennessee, (Mr. Cooper?) He was elected in October, 1869. Another election was held for mem- bers of the Legislature of his State on the 4th of November, 1870. It seems that a Southern Republican need expect nothing at the hands of his opponents but the most relentless perse- cution. In conclusion, I have to say that I rely upon the legality of my election and the just judgment of the Senate for my vindication, and for the protection of the people of my State, who have the right to be represented in the councils of the nation. Respectfully submitted. FOSTER BLODGETT. P. S — I also desire to call particular attention to the "Brief of Facts and the Law on my behalf," as prepared by one of the most eminent legal minds in the United States. F. 13. EXHIBIT A. Georgia, ( Fulton County. S Personally appeared before uie Ephraim Tweedy, Speaker pro rem. of the House of* Representatives, who, being duly sworn, deposes and says that he, as a member of the House of Representatives of the Geu- eral Assembly of Georgia, was present, and voted for the Hon. Foster Blodgett, for Senator in Congress of the United States for six years from the fourth of March next, and that there was largely over a quorum of the House present. When the election was being held a large number of Democrats were present in their seats, remaining silent when their names were called. In my opinion not less than thirty were present who did not vote. EPHRAIM H. TWEEDY, Speaker pro tern. Sworn 10 and subscribed before me, this 8th day of February, 1S71. [seal.] H. J. G. WILLIAMS". Notary PitLlie, Fulton Co. EXHIBIT B. State of Geouuia, [ Glynn County. j Before me personally appeared John J. Newton, Clerk of the House of Representatives of the General Assembly of Georgia, who, being duly sworn, deposes and says that he was present and acting at the time of the election of Hon. Foster Blodgett as a Senator in the Congress of the United States for the term commencing March 4, 1871 ; that at the time said election was being held, he is positive that more than a hundred members of said House were present ; that at least twenty-five were present and in their seats, .who, when their names were called from the roll, refused to vote, and that a majority of the members of the House were present in the Representative Hall during the entire time that the election for Senator was going on ; that one hundred and fifty-five were all the members of the House at that time ; that all the decisions of the Speaker regarding a quorum, which decisions were sustained by the House, were, that a majority of the ac- tual members formed a quorum. JNO. J. NEWTOX, Clerk, House Representatives . Sworn to and subscribed before me, this February seventeenth, (17th,) 1871, (eighteen hundred and seventy-one.) [8BAL.1 C. P. GOODYEAR, Clerk Superior Court, Glynn Co., Ga. -- : - -= i i i! n llli! 1 - "S - C