The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-07-12
A POSSIBLE COMPLICATION.

Every American school boy is early i'm
pressed with the lesson, deduccd from the
physical fact, that great oaks from little
acorns grow" The results that flow from
an apparently, or really, Insignificant act
may DC of momentous consequence, in
yolve a country in bloodshed and change
the destiny of nations. AS an illustration,
we read, in ancient history, that the cack-
ling of geese saved Rome In the prcsi
dental election of 1S00-01, deliberate
attempt was made to cheat the people
The plot was arranged and was ready for
the final throw, when its consummation was
prevented by the action of one MAINLAND
he Vcrmontcr. At that time the candi-
dates for Presidents and Vice-President were
voted for on the same ticket. without any
designation of the office, the law being
that the candidate having the highest num-
Der of votes should be President, and the
one receiving the next highest number
should be Vice-President. Nominations
wcic, iiUnCSOi, maui now, ana the peO-
pie Enthusiastically indicated their preferen-
ces. The electoral colleges, by pre-
arranged concert of action, generally,
provided against the contingency of tie
vote. Mr. Jefferson was the republican
candidate for the presidency, and no other
person was thought of in connection there
with, by that party By some unfortunate
miscalculation, there was tic vote be-
tween him and Aaron Burr, the candidate
for the presidency, and only candidate
for that. Then commenced, and continued
for days and weeks, the most remarkable
and dangerous political intrigue that ever
disgraccd the pages of American history,
having for its object the elevation of Aaron
Burr to the higher position and, thereby,
deliberately cheating the known and ex-
pressed will of the people. The absence
OF Lewis Il. Morris, one of the two repre-
sentatives from Vermont, intentional, to
be ure,-defeated the contamination of
the fraud, giving the vote of Vermont to
Mr.. Jefferson and thereby, electing him.
Who can imagine, even, the results TO this
country, for evil or good, that flowed from
the temporary absence of Gen. Morris from
his seat Again, what would have been
the effect npon our national pride and hon
or, or even, upon our existence as power
full nation, if our fathers had not resented
British insults, and declared war against
that country in 1912, establishing, forever,
her position as nation, and her ability and
willingness to defend herself and her citi-
zens from wrong. Yet a controversy about
a miserable little pig, in New England
town, gave the one vote necessary to de-
eide the question between an honorable
war or dishonorable peace. If we could
trace out all the great events of history,
they would be found, perhaps, like those
mentioned, to have had their turning point
in the insignificant act of some insignificant
individual.
1t is hardly possible to conceive of amore
contemplate specimen of humanity, than
the self-styled Lord Gordon" the quon-
dam friend of Jay Gould, and who first
achieved disgraceful notoriety, in dis
graceful transaction with the, then, dis
graceful and disreputable Erie railroad
management. That so insignificant a char
acter should become of international i'm
portance, is, even, more strange than that
geese should have saved Rome, or pig
become the moving cause of the saving of
national honor. But so it is. In humble
imitation of General Mackenzie, who knew
better, a couple of " Minnesota detectives"
have been showing their authority on
British soil. These {. detectives" perhaps,
knew nothing about territorial rights, the
jurisdiction of States or nations, or interna-
tional law and, if they did, might have
presumed from precedents established at
the other end of the line, and tacitly, at
least, approved by the powers that be, that
it was not of any consequence anyhow.
These detectives hail from Minneapolis,
and there has always been strife between
that city and st. Paul for the supremacy
1t may be, therefore, that this occasion was
taken, in order to show the extended juris-
diction exercised by the police of the former
city in contradistinction to the more limited
powers of those of st. Paul Their action
must have been based upon one or the other
hypothesis, and 1t matters not which. The
latter supposition is as reasonable, legal and
proper as the other and ignorance, prece-
dent or the strife for supremacy is equally
tenable ground upon which to stand, there
being, actually, no choice in the matter,
and they may as well rest their justification
upon the one claim as the other
Gordon is an insignificant individual,
who, If left alone, would have been remcm-