The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1874-08-03
ARxANsAs -C0Na1R0ox1N.

The Congressional investigation, by a
Republican committee, into the Arkansas
election Of 1872 has proved that Baxter
was never elected Governor, and has es'
tablished the strongest Of probabilities
that the Legislature which afterwards
convened and chose Dorsey United States
Senator was never itself elected, % that
MI. Dorsey has no right to his seat.
The same investigation also shows the
shameful frauds committed in order to keep
Democrats outof the seats in Congress.
to which they we're chosen, and put Repub.
licans in their places. We have given
more attention to the frauds in the Third
district from the fact that Wiltshire was
formerly a resident of this county.
The State voted for Greeley by about
$4,000 majority, but by classifying the re-
turns the electoral vote was given to
Grant. FLO j,
The State has four Representatives, one
of whom is chosen at large. In the First
District, Cause (Democratic) ran against
Hodges (Republican), and was elected by
1850 majority. The official returns oi
Clayton, Dorsey, ct al, elected Hodges.
Cause, aware that the House, in its thor
temper, would not decide a contested
election against a Republican. though the
case against him were proved ten times
over, declined to make any farther fight.
Hodges took his seat without opposition.
The investigation has shown that he has
no valid title to it.
In the Second District, the Republican
candidate, Snyder, was probably elected.
He now has his seat.
In the Third District, Thomas M. Gun
ter (Democratl was opposed by w. w.
Wiltshire Republican,. The former was
elected by about 5000 majority. Some
4,6OO Of these votes we're counted out, but
the najarity was still l,400. Then Gov.
Baxter certified to Congress that the vote
stood thus: .t..
W. ": Wiltshire.
"nSnpe
Thos. M. Gunter....................1l,49
'Gnntee' IS, M. Ganter,1"T. NJ. Gun.
tee, ~ 'Thos. M. Guntee,'' 1T. RIOS
Guntcr, ~ and "Thos. NJ. Crepter'.. l,456
Baxter testified that this statement was
correct, ''as appears from the returns OF
said election on file, and certificates of
clerks deposited in the Office of Secretary
Of State" The clerks were all in the pay
of the Clayton Dorsey ring. Any one OF
them, by copying Gunter's name wrongly,
could cut down his vote. SO of course
they misspelt most laboriously. On
the showing of this return, the
House, in February of this year
seated Wiltshire. Republican mem
bers protested in vain. Gen. Hawley said
that the returns, doctored as they were,
showed that Gunter had a majority Of 900
to 400. The Investigation shows a ma
jority Of 5000. Now mark the sequel.
When the Baxter Brooks squabble began,
Wiltshire turned around with Baxter
against Clayton, and Dorsey, and Brooks,
that, is against the Republican party.
Whereupon the House, June II, did, with
out ten minutes debate, nnseat the recall
citrant Wiltshire and admit Gunter by an
unanimous vote.
For Congressman at Large, Hynes,
Democrat) and Bradley Republican, ran.
The former carried the State by 1900
majority. Arrangements we're made to
count him out but, by the mistake of
somebody and to the surprise and vexa
ton of everybody engaged in the job, the
official" returns, after all their doctoring,
gave him 246 majority. An effort was
then made at Little Rock, to have Gov.
Baxter withhold a certificate from Hynes
and send to the House u certified state
ment of votes, as in the Wilshire-G unter
case: This would have involved Hynes'
certain defeat. He, a Democrat. would
have had defiance before a Republican Con
gress under the highly moral Republican
system of voting on a candidates politics in
stead of his evidence, So the man who was
elected by $4,000 majority paid the man
he had defeated in order to prevent the
latter contesting the case. He got his
certificate and took his seat. His bride to
Bradley was partly cash, partly paper. He
failed to pay the notes, and Bradley appeared
at Washington, last month, and tried to
unseat him. By that time, however, it
became evident that Arkansas, Repubh-
can was substantially a..synonym for 'ras-
cal" The House ignored Bradley and
contented itself with ordering a general in
vestigation. 1t thus appears that Sena
tor Dorsey, Of Arkansas, has no right to
his seat that Hodges, of the First Dis.
trict of Arkansas. has no right to his; that
Gunter, of the Third, after being kept out
of his for fifteen months, finally got it only
because his whilom adversary had become
more anti Republican than he; and that
Iiynes, Congressman at Large, though
elected by 1900 majority, had to buy his
certificate aud so win his seat honestly and
dishonesty. We commend this showing
to the statesmen" who have reconstruct
Arkansas. and tn those all oyer tho