—What does that matter? He didn't himself. But they voted on the question all the same.
How did the vote go?
—Well, that is a simple question! Why eight to seven, to be sure! What he said was supposed to mean they had no right to take evidence. The 'Pubs agreed with him. They said they were there to do nothing, and intended to do it, and pay attention to it. They were eight. And they voted eight—eight, eight, eight, eight—every time.
Well, but what had Garfield particularly to do with this?
—First of all he said in Congress: "The Commission is clothed with power to hear and determine the vote of any state." * * * He declared on his honor (!) that the Commission had power to go down into the states and review the act of every officer, to open every ballot box, and to pass judgment on every ballot cast by seven millions of Americans. He said they had all the powers of the Senate and House of Representatives to examine into everything.
And then?
—Well, then, as he was playing euchre, he popped the "joker" (himself) on the 'Crats' left bower, and voted the Commission had no right to do anything of the sort. In the next game the "joker" will be discarded.
How about the 'Crats, as you call them?
—Well, as they were only seven, and couldn't be in two places at once, and vote fourteen, they threw up their hand.
Why, this was simply a farce?