"'_Committee to meet with the Senate committee as to the counting of the electoral votes for President and Vice-President_: Mr. Payne, of Ohio; Mr. Hunton, of Virginia; Mr. Hewitt, of New York; Mr. Springer, of Illinois; Mr. McCrary, of Iowa; Mr. Hoar, of Massachusetts; and Mr. Willard, of Michigan.' "During the Christmas holidays, and for some days after the 1st of January, leading members of the House of Representatives were in New York and had interviews with Mr. Tilden. He was frank, open, and earnest in his conversations with them, and with many others, in advocating the making of an issue first in the House of Representatives and then in the Senate. He was for asserting, by formal resolution, the exclusive right of the two Houses acting concurrently to count the electoral vote and determine what should be counted as electoral votes, and for denying, also by formal resolution, the pretension then set up by the Republicans, that the president of the Senate had any lawful or constitutional right to assume that function. He was for urging that issue in debate in both Houses and before the country. He thought that if the attempt should be really made to usurp for the president of the Senate a power to make the count and thus practically control the Presidential election, the scheme would break down in process of execution, and that, in any event, it was in the interest of popular elective government not to yield to the menace of usurpation, all which actual usurpation could take for itself if completely successful. "On the request of some member of the House of Representatives, Mr. Tilden himself drew two resolutions for the purpose of making this issue. The Democratic members of the Committee on Privileges, &c., found themselves best able to agree on the simplest form of asserting their principles and deemed that most expedient. Resolutions of that character were prepared by them, transmitted to Mr. Tilden for his advice, and returned with his approval. These resolutions were reported by the Hon. Proctor Knott, chairman of the committee. They will be found in the Congressional Record of Jan. 12, 1877. They are as follows: "This policy seemed to have been generally agreed upon by the Democratic members of the House of Representatives, and it had been recommended persistently by Mr. Tilden for weeks to all who consulted him upon the subject. "On the afternoon of Friday the 12th of January, Senator Barnum, passing through New York on his way home for the purpose of getting his family to take them to Washington on the following Tuesday, called on Mr. Tilden and expressed his conviction that a majority of the Senators would concur in denying the right of the president of the Senate to make the count. He had not heard a word of the proposed electoral contrivance. It was afterwards ascertained that the Democratic Senator from New York had been left in equal ignorance.