Mexico weekly ledger., 1876-11-23
Close Presidential Election.

Close Presidential Election.
Should the successful candidate owe
his triumph to his having received the
favors OF a small State or two, he would
not stand alone in the list of our con-
sulares, for more than one man has
been made President of the United
States by a meager majority-cast
| either in the electoral colleges, or at the
polls, or at both places. Our first con-
tested Presidential election, in 1895 81,
was decided so closely that the change
of tUo electoral votes would have placed
Thomas Jefferson, instead of John
Adams, at the head of the Nation, as
Washington's immediate successor.
Mr.. Adams had IL votes, and Mr.. JEFF
ferson 68. One of Mr.. Adams's votes
came from Virginia, and another from
North Carolina; and had those two
votes been given for Mr.. Jefferson, he
would have had 20 votes and Mr.. Adams
| 69-and the Virgmian! would have been
| elected, by one majority. One of the
| electoral votes for Mr.. Adams, chosen
in Maryland, was obtained by only four
majority; and had it been secured for
Mr.. Jefferson, he would have had So
votes and Mr.. Adams 20, and the latter
would have been elected by one
majority. There were 1873 elector-
| al votes at that time, or about
AZ less than one-half the present
number; so that, should the successful
candidate on the 7th of November, 1876,
receive eight majority of the Electoral
College, he would be elected about as
well as John Adams was elected eighty
years since. Considering who and what
John Adams was, eight maj jority in 1876
would be nothing to be ashamed of on
the part of either of our candidates.
and nothing to be proud of, it must be
added. Mr.. Jefferson defeated Presi-
dent Adams in 1800-O1, when he had 73
electoral votes and the President IS, or
a majority of eight-equal to about 20
majority in 1S76-77. In 1928, a
change of 20 votes in the colleges would.
dent Madison, who received 1913 e1ector-
al votes, while Dewitt Clinton got 80.
In 1869, Mr.. Van Buren, would have
failed of an election had there been a
change in % electoral votes, as he had
but % over the number necessary to a
choice-and Pennsylvania, having 80
such votes, gave him but small popu-
lar majority. A change of 5000, in that
States popular vote would have defeated
him in the colleges, by sending 80 Whig
Electors to the Pennsylvania college.
AS it was, Col. johnson, the Democrat
ic candidate for the Vice-Presidency,
was defeated in the colleges, because
Virginia would not support him, her %
votes being given for William Smith, of
Alabama. Col. johnson was chosen by
the Senate, the only instance of the kind
known in our history. Great as were
the popular majority and the electoral
majority given for Gen. Harrison in
1904, he would have been defeated
in the colleges had it been possible to
change some eight or nine thousand
votes in the four States of New York,
Pennsylvania, Maine and New Jersey.
Those States cast 9S electoral votes,
which, added to the so such votes that
Mr.. Van Buren, received, would have
given him just the number necessary to
a choice, and yet there would have been
a popular majority of more than 100,-
600 against him. The four States NAM
ed gave a popular vote of almost 900,
600, though their united majorities for
Gen. Harrison did not much exceed
16,OOO-New York giving him rather
more than $4,000, New Jersey about
$500, Maine 410 and Pennsylvania
343. 1t was very close work, and there
would have been great trouble had the
Democratic vote been so increased as
to defeat Gen. Harrison in the colleges,
after the people had so decidedly indi-
Gated their preference for him at the
polls. Some men feared that there
would be pronunciamiento. At the
election of 1844-45, Mr.. Polk was chosen
to the Presidency through the aid of the
New York electors, who were Sc in
number; and as Mr.. Polk had 10 votes,
and the number necessary to choice
was 138-the whole number of electors
beng 275-he would have had 1874 votes,
had New York decided against him.
Mr.. Clay had 1O5 votes; and, had he
received New York's vote, he would
have been chosen by 141 votes, or by
majority of only fve votes. The Demo-
cratic popular majority in New York
was small-about 5000, we think; so
that small change there would have
substituted Mr.. Clay for Mr.. Polk as
President, and thus have changed the
whole current of our political history
for the last thirty-two years. In 1889
the change of 10 electoral votes would
have given the Presidency to Gen. Cass,
as Gen. Taylor's vote was 163 and that of
Gen. Cass 1877; and some of the Taylor
votes were got by small majorities. The
elections since 1889 do not require
particular mention.-BoStOn TraveLLer.
A WOman's Horrible Fate.
In the county of Clearfeld, four miles
from the town of that name, is the lit