Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1868-11-27
Che 9reseott Journal
PRESCOTT, FRIDAY. NOV. 81.
The ..Doetored" Vote In New York.

who has been doped into the semblance
of soundness and strength, is "doetor-
ed' horse. A worthless liquor, com
pounded of poisonous drugs and villain
Gus liquids, till il wears the color and
has something akin TO the taste of the
genuine article of which it is a counter
felt, is doctored" drink. All the
shams, subterfnges, deceits and frauds
which abound in life, are but SO many
attempts to " doctor" the personal ap-
pesrance, the reputation. or the business
credit Of the persons using them, to an
appearance of soundUess which they do
not possess.
Tie Democratic vote Of New York at
the late election, is "doctored" vote.
No well informed person supposes that
the apparent majority of 5000 for SEY-
MoUE and $4,000 for HOFFMAN repre-
sents the interest of the legally qualified
voters of that State. The doctoring''
process was used to greater extent than
ever before. The frauds were unparal-
Ieled, both in the scope of their plan
boldneSs Of their execution.
That we may not be accused Of indul-
g;ag in merely Loose talk, we give au-
thority which will be recognized as COM
potent. The Round Table, published in
New York city, journal of high char
actcr, which is admitted 10 be the ablest
American Review of Politics, Science
and Literature, which itself supported
SEYMOUR and HOFFMAN, in its issue of
Nov. II, saws
New York has been disgraced in the
late election by frauds which decent men
Of whatever party should unite to ex-
pose and TO punish. Ordinarily speak
ing, the knavcs who engineer this sort of
business are sufficiently adroit to cover
their tracks. Suspicion may be rife in
the community that something is wrong,
but none can tell precisely how or where
the wrong has been done. But in the
present case, either through carelessness,
haste, or simple, brazcn hardihood, The
tracks were left uncovered. In other
words, the election returns from the sew
eral districts show greater number of
votes than the district registries show
names-instead of, as in the legitimate
course of things. falling more or less
short. There can be no explaining away
fast ike this. 1t is unanswerable. Ii
reflects discredit on the city, on the state,
and, in general, on our institutions. The
dirty business should be cleared up,
whatever the cost and whoever the often
ders; and the latter should be branded
with indelible ignominy and subjected to
the seyerest penalties the law can infict.
Harper's Weekly, a Journal the candor
and ability OF whose political articles,
command universal respect, is more spe-
cific in its charge. We extract from an
article in It's issue of Nov. 10:
"Now it appears that the fourth dis.
trict Of the Sixth Ward had a registry
of S2S names, but it returned $40 votes
for Hoffman, and q for GriswoId-thir-
ty-five more ballots than registered
names. The tenth district of the Eigl-
teenth Ward had registry of 406. Ii
Teturned455 votes for Hoffman, and l24
for GriSwold-one hundred and seventy
three mere ballots than registed names
The twenty first district of the same ward
had 322 registered names, and returned
40 votes for Hoffman, and 80 for Girls.
void. The poll was nearly double the
registry. The twentieth district of the
Nineteenth Ward had registry of $50
names, and returned 436 votes for Hof-
mar, and 1874 for Griswold-two hun
dred and fifty two more ballots than reg
istercd names. Now. upon this state of
facts. the Ereaing Post justly remarks
: With perhaps 900 legal voters in the
four districts. there are 1876 names reg
istered. and they return an actual ma
iority for John 4. Hoffman of 1896, OF
twenty more than the whole number Of
names on a registry already doubled by
fraud" y"
These are but specimen bricks from
the rotten building,-mercly few drops
from the great ocean of fraud.
1t will not do to dismiss this gigantic
crime with the fiippant and frequent as
sertion that "all is fair in politics" i
there is anything valuable in our system
of government, it is the fact that eacl
man has voice equal to any other il
the selection of our public officers. The
whole structure rests on the integrity o
the ballot destroy this and all safety il
gone. National ruin may not engulpf
us at once. but it will come just as surely
as effect follows cause in the Providence
of God.
Now the indelible disgrace to The
Democratic party of New York, rests ii
this. that that party iufiexibly opposes
s.l attempts to ferret out these frauds
and punish the perpetrators. The I'm
ion i.ea0ue Club. representipo the bes