Portland gazette and Maine advertiser., 1806-06-16

The following is an outline of the debate IN
the Senate, on the motion of Mr.. Gore.
which referred to the votes Of Hesborough.
Mr.. Gore moved that the votes for Caleb
Stoon, or Caleb Stron, as he was convinced
It was, fhould be taken from rhe column
sf fczttering votes, and placed in the CO.
iumn of Caleb Strong.
Mr.. Gore obferved that in making
shis motion, he was governed by this
principle !; that in examining the
votes returned for Governor and
Lieutenant Governor, there were
certain conititutional requifitions,
which were eifential in the returns
that when thefe exifted, and quef-
ton arofe merely from the dehcien-
cy or tranfpsiition of a letter, or any
imperfc6tion in the character itfelf
the Senate were facredly bound to
govern themfelves by the evident in
tenti0n, of the Petfon who makes out
the return.-rhat from infpeaiDg
the manufcript, as we'll as from 9TH
or circumstances, which he ftated as
confirming the evidence afforded by
the record itfelf, he conceived, in
the prcient intance there could be
no doubt, and that the return was
indifputabIy intended for Caleb
Strong.
Mr.. Titcomb rofe to give fate
ment, as chairman of the committee,
appointed, to examine the votes, of
certain facts relating to returns from
feveral towns. In the return then
under confederation, there were votes
given for Caleb Stron, in another,
for Caleb Srong. He enumerated
81 towns, in which the name of
Mr.. Sullivan had been variouAy fpelt,
accounting to upwards of Io hundred
votes. Some of them were for
Tamss SH-H-vi-eD. They were how
ever inherited in the column for
James Sullivan and he had voted
in favour of t,on the principle men,
toned by the Honourable gentleman
from Suffolk, which he had ever
underitood, heretofore to be the rule
of conduit in 6milar cafes, that the
evident intention ought to be regar-
ded.
He added that he had endeavour-
ed to obtain of the Honorable gen.
,lemcn, aifociated with him on :he
Committee, before they proceeded
10 examine the returus, TO eitablith
fome general and fixed principles, by
which they fhould be governed in
all cafes wherever they might apply /;
that the majority Of the committee
would not agree to this propoial,
but would and did trlt put the few
eral towns in clafieS of different def.
criptions, and then deliberated re-
fpeGtively on the propriety of recei-
wing or rejecting fuch and fuch clal-
fcs.
DR.. Hill rofe and ftatcd that
finding a number of the returns
deficient in the fpelling ofthe names
of the candidates, the committee
had referred to the records of the
HONORABLE body for Precedents-
that they had found, and it feemed
TO be admitted by all the members
of the committee that where the let
ters conveyed the eiIential found
they ought to be admitted that
when they did not, they had been
uninformly rejected. He was of
opinion that the letters in the votes
given for Caleb Stron did not make
a name near enough 10 that of Caleb
Strong to be certainly intended fer
him. He added that the letters aP-
prared to him not to De ft,no,n ;
but f,to,o,n, and that certainly no
member Of that honourablc board
could trace, in this, very near re-
Tendance 10 Strong.
Mr.. Phillips (of suffolk began by
obferving that nc conlidered the du-
ty which i now devolyed on that
body to diicharge as being of a very
critical and important nature, du-
~ which ought to De performed
with the utmof caution. The quet-
ton was whe;her they fhould inter