The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-12-20
EErom the New York World. 18th
The Florida vote.

MANLY LETTER FROM GENERAL BARLOW vIE-
TUALI.Y GIVES THE STATE TO TILDEN.
The following letter from General Fran
els c. Barlow to friend has been handed
to us for publication -
New YORK, December Is, 1876.
My Dear --,-l certainly thouShs'l
had made my own opinion clear as TO the
points OF contest Of which l protested to
have knowledge. ....
A little calculation would have shown
what it was On the face OF the returns
the vote was Hayes, "a 1927 Tilden, "a, 2S7.
Certain additions and deductions were
agreed on unanimously By the Board, which
we may assume to be correct. These con-
coded changes left it: Hayes, -24,2S7; Til
den, "a. 43S. Then l should have thrown
ont 2l9 Republican votes in Archer pre-
cinct. No. ;. and also Friendship Church
nrecinct. in Jackson county, as a majority
Of the Board did, They also rejected Camp
bcllton Church precinct, in this countV-aS
TO which do not know the facts, but will
assume that it was rightly rejected, as it does
not alter the result to which I should have
come.
The two last precincts disposed OF 121 Re-
nh blican and 1856 Democratic votes, and,
deductiny these and the 2l9 in Archer, you
get the following result: 49,; ,..
Tilden ......... 24.o02
Hayes. @"'o1f
r,,den,s majority. .......................... IS
sbould have come to this result after
n.ss,ny upon all the cases before the Board
except Hamilton county. 1t IS this county
which causes the only doubt have about it..
The official minutes of the Board, as pub
Eshed in the New York papers OF December
| 18th. state that in some precincts OF this
county (names not giyen) SO Democratic and
IS Republican votes were thrown out. l
do not know the ground, but. allowing it,
YOU still have a Democratic majority OF 80.
Then comes jasper precinct, No. ., where
the vote was: Democratic, 323; Republl-
can, lS5, as returned. About this case l
know only what appears in the minutes OF
the Board and in CowgilPs letter and
| Cookies protest attached to my report. The
irregularities complained of abandoning
| the canvass when half finished, and turning
| it over to two lawyers, who completed it the
next day) would justify the throwing out Of
the whole returns; but what am in doubt
about is whether the inspectors were Re-
publicanS or Democrats. Cooke says IN his
protest that they were the former, and Cow
gill and the minutes say nothing about
II. | have heard, and Cooke also says,
that they made affidavits in aid of the Re-
publican contest, and il so I presume they
were Republicans. In that case it should
be presumed that in the return as made
they looked after the interests OF their own
party; and at any rate do not think that a
Democratic majority should be thrown out
because of Republican wrong-doing, il such
were the case. II this precinct be rejected
it would give Republican majority in the
State: otherwise, not. In the latter case
4 n,,it la. hot
perhaps some OF the Republican contests
which the Board did not stop to consider
(probably because the majority had been
| reached on other grounds) would have
changed the result, il passed upon.
| But there is no use in specializing about
this, as the case must be considered rs it
was made up by the Board. Leaving out
the Jasper precinct, we therefore see that,
in nv opinion, there was . Tilden majority,
even considering that Campbellton and the
irst-named precinct in Hamilton county
should he thrown out, which L do not say
was rightly done. | certainly never had
any doubt rs to what my own opinion was
except as to this precinct, upon which 1t
happened that / did not know fully what
the evidence was; but rs do not have the
assurance TO put my own opinions above
those OF the Board upon questions as to
which there was conflicting evidence, was
not willing to give my own views without
at the same time giving this evidence; and
hence my report was $50 long,, ,...
am not unwilling to express my yopin'
ions, nor do object to having any one to
whom they are OF any consequence know
them. Yours truly ...,..s...,t-,
'.. FRANCIS G.. BARLOW.
General Barlow is Republican, and was
one Of those who went to Florida to wit
ness the counting OF thevote for President.