New-York daily tribune., 1859-02-12

informally x necessary, because the overwhelming
frauds, usurpations and outrases Of the Border
Ruffisn, had left them no slternatiye)-chossnt to
represent them, YVES never admitted to aseat for
an hour and we believe no dollar Of pay or mileage
gAs ever allowed him. This perseverance in usur-
pstion-.his spotheosis Of depravity, was effected,
thank Heaven entirely BY Democratic and South
American votes, not a srgle Republican concur.
ring or acquiescing therein.
With regard TO Nebrasks, less palpable, but We
think decided, wrong was done. The contestants
were Mr.. Bennett (Republican) who had undenia-
bly received majority Of - votes, and Bird
B. Chapman (Democrat) who had obtained
the certificate from the Democratic officers Of the
| Territory. he was counted in BY rejecting the
votes Of certain persons who were proved to
be residing at the time on an Indian reservation,
where they had legally no right to be. The House
sustained this ground Of objection-several Repub-
licans concuIring, we think most mistakenly-,nd
the minority candidate held the seat to the end.
Wrong IS we thought and still think this deciaion
it was squarely, msnfully made, and rested on a
plain principle
Other seats in that House were to have been
contested-two from Baltimore among them on
tie ground Of alleged frauds Outrages aud Illegal.
ties committed by Americans in the elections,
whereby the Adopted Citizens were deprived Of
their constitu tiOnsl rights. Bot, as the two
Americans" whose right to seats was thus cha-
lengsd were wanted TO vote for a Democratic
Speaker-or at least to vote go as to defeat Banks
some back. stairs arrangement was made BY
which TIE contests were in effect waived aud they
permitted to retain the seats unluestioued.
The present House met under somewhat SINH
liar circumstances. Again the allegations Of
American" fraud and yiolence--in Baltimore espe-
cisllJ lJ-were loud ard vehement; yet they have ne
yer 20 far ss we are aware, been sharply looked
into by the House or lis Committee of Elections.
They have somehow been slid over, and the Messrs.
II Winter Davis ard j. Morrison Harris retained
in Tie sests for which we presume majority Of
the legal votes actually cast had designated them,
but at an election which it would be preposterods
to term peaceful or fair ore.
From Nebraska there comes another contest
this time between two Democrats, Bid b. Chap
man and Fenner Ferguson. The atter had the re-
tuIn, based on an undoubted majority Of the votes
returned; but q large portion of these votes were
t'leged to have been fraudulenty cast, many OF
them by " repeaters," and several Of them after
the time at bch the polls were expressly required
by law to BE- closed. THUS in Florence, where the
polls were Illegally held open iu the eyening-till
nine o'clock, it is swOrn-the judges say in order
to take the votes of several who were of haying
the prairie or running steamboat-there were four
hurdrsd and one votes cast at this election (Aug. 3
1870 364 Of them for Ferguson and only for
Chapman, (the residue for otherS;) while at the
spirited election Of 1853, one year later this same
Florence gave but one hundr,d and ffiynine votes
in all or considerably less than half the number
poled there for Congress one year before
Now, We know that the growth Of Western
cities is sometimes Of retrogressive order; but
we submit that all the facts show the vote Of 1857
in Florence to have been Illegally frsudulently
swelled to effect purpose, and that Ferguson un-
fairly obtained at this precinct alone far more thsn
the 81 majority by which he was returned elected.
So at Monroe, eigttystren votes in all were cast
for Congress in lc57, (e3 of them for Ferguson,
only one for Chapman yet at the election of 1855
only t,etire votes in all were cast at this place.
The Committee on Elections report that foity-two
votes for Ferguson were entered on the pOll-book
at this place before the polls were opened.
OLiper Tuia aud Samuel UtRer were two
of the voters here in 1857, who seem
to have eyaporated in 1853. Cleveland was
the third place at which irregularities in
holding the election for Congress were shown;
and here, too, Ferguson had large majority, while
the vote was much larger than the following year.
No irrcgularity is even alleged at any poll which
gave Chapman msjority; nor is any unfair deal
ing at any such poll complained Of. And yet the
House, as if reluctant to shoulder boldly and
sauarely the iniquity it was upholding, voted on
Thursday by six majority to lay the rhole matter on
the tQbl-that is, to overrule the Report of the
Committee on Elections and keep Ferguson in the
seat The Yeas ard Nays on this remarkable
proposition by John Cochrane of the City
have not yet reached us or they would here DO
given.
The moral Of this vote is exactly that of HoJle's
pitby maxim, 'In cases Of doubt, pocket the
" stakes" Get yourself returned to Congress any
how--by sham votes, by doube votes, by holding
open till midnight the polls where your side has all
its own way and by all manner of chicanery and
fraud-then dodge notice that the cOntestant win
proceed to take testimony and thus weary through
session. At the next, ask time to take rebutting
testimony, and 60 hold on till the close, when
some convenient friend, under the plea Of saving
time, contradictory testimony, &c, may move to
lay the whole subject on tn, table, and thus catch