Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-02-14
The FOrlOrn Hone.

Baked upon Florida, the democrats are
rallying their forces for desperate fight
upon Louisiana. The first charge will be
against the returning board. The case is
bad enough, in all conscience, but the exam
ination thus far has been entirely ex-parte.
The other side of the story is coming, and
will be heard to the uttermost if the Com
mission decide to go into the investigation,
and when the case is concluded, we doubt
if the public will be entirely convinced that
Governor Wells is forger, or that he stood
ready to sell out to the democrats for mod
crate sum of money. The character of the
witnesses against him is very bad 1t has
already been proved that they have sworn to
falsehoods, incidentally. Senators Allison
and Howe, Secretary-of-War Cameron and
President Grant assert that the references
of Maddox to them in his testimony con-
vince them that he is untrustworthy. lie
knows how to pervert the truth, and ingen-
iously mixes truth with falsehood Evil
dence is on the way from New Orleans to
confound the statements of Littlefield. and
when the case is concluded, the country will
be divided in its opinion of Mr.. Wells
Here is Senator Wadleigh, of New Hamp.
shire. very conservative Republican, and
one of the most honest in Congress, Just
back from Louisiana, where he has spent
six weeks, and he is perfectly certain that
Wells is an honest man, nor has he doubt
that, with an honest fair election, Louisiana
would go overwhelmingly Republican. How
shall we get along with such fact as this ?
Mr.. Wadleigh is not violent partisan, and
he is an able and upright Senator
Looking as impartially as possible at both
sides, we must conclude that the leading
politicians of Louisiana, in both parties, are
corrupt set of men, The returning board
may have been ready to sell out, if it could
have done so with safety, but it seems, also
that the democrats of New Orleans and in
New York were ready to buy if they could
do so with safety. All the evidence points
to this. In New York there were democrats
ready to purchase the single elector needed
to make Tilden President, whetherin Oregon,
Louisiana or South Carolina. The difficulty
was, that the men who were to furnish the
money were timid, and finally, seeing the
character of the men they were to deal with,
backed out altogether. No wonder that the
leaders should fear to treat with such a
scoundrel as Maddox. The general belief at
Washington is that he was simply trying to
make money out of either side, or both, and
that if Wells was not fooling him his idea,
also, was to make some money out of the
Republicans. lie wanted to be paid for
doing his duty and Maddox was to have
part of the price.
1t really seems as if Dudley Field and
Proctor Knott were in danger of OVERRIDING
this Louisiana business. Unless they are
careful they will make hero out of this old
man Wells, bad as he may be. lie has been
treated with wanton cruelty by the House
committee, which has been much more
anxious to make out case for Tiden than
to get at the truth of the matter. They have
refused to hear the other side, or allow any
explanation. What is to be gained by all
this 1t is the Commission, and not Congress,
which is to decide the case in the end and
ii the commission decide TO go back of the
Governors certificate, it may safely be con
cluded that they will not stop with the re-
turning board, but look to the ballotbox as
well So what is to be gained by all this
unseemly bluster2