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1292 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS [Mar. 28,
evidence on the side of the majority, and the vote being taken
before the minority Report was made, I have had no oppor-
tunity of giving an intelligent vote.
Mr. Dodson declined to vote for the following reasons:
In the absence of the evidence taken in the cases of the con-
tested elections, and a report from but a portion of the Com-
mittee, it would be impossible for him to vote intelligently
on a subject of such grave importance.
Mr. Rutledge declined to vote for the following reasons:
That no evidence in the case having been submitted to the
House until to-night, and having had no opportunity to ex-
amine the same, and having heard only the reasons,arguments
and deductions of the majority of the Committee on Elections on
the Fame, and no report of the minority of said Committee
having as yet been submitted to the House, believes that
there is no data on which a fair and impartial opinion of the
merits of the contested election in the First Legislative Dis-
trict of Baltimore can be formed.
Mr. Donaldson declined to vote, and gave the following
reasons for his refusal, viz :
"None of the testimony in any of the cases reported upon
by the Committee on Elections, has been laid before the
Home until to-day, and are not in such a form as to war-
rant an intelligent opinion upon the merits involved. On
the fourteenth day of March, of this present Session, there
was offered in this House, an order tor the printing of the
testimony in the cases of the contested seats in this body, of
the Baltimore City delegation, but this order did not prevail.
"The only members of this House, who have had any
opportunity to form an opinion from knowledge of the facts,
are those upon the Election Committee itself. While, doubt-
less the conclusions reached by the Committee, are conscien-
tious and may be correct, yet I cannot but remember that
each individual member of this House, sits as a sworn judge
to find himself a verdict on the law and the evidence, and
can take without enquiry the decision of no other person or
persons. But no judge can be called upon for his decision,
uutil he has the facts before him.
"In the pending contests, each side has made out its case,
but the cascb made have not been submitted to the House
in such time as to admit of an original judgment.
"Being then without material on which to base a judicial
decision, (for the questions are to my mind purely judicial,
entirely above and beyond all partisanship,) I can give my
voice neither for nor against the several reports and resolu-
tions of the Committee on Elections."
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