Connecticut western news., 1877-03-09
Friday Morning, Mar. 9, 1877.
The Great Contest Ended.

I. The great struggle for the presidency. fol the coming term beginning March .4th is ended, and the whole country, irrespective of party lines, rejoices that it is finished. The uncertainty of measures to be adopte by new administration seems always to operate upon the business interests of the whole country, tending to produce with holding of the usual energy in the prosecu- tion of business. Men with capital seldom engage n new enterprises during a presi- dental campaign, regarding it wise to first know the incoming administrators policy before they place their money into the un- certain channels of business, and the con- test just closed, after so many years of de. pression in business, and protracted to al- most the day of the inauguration, has been especially burdensome to the people, and although those who made Mir. Tilden their choice, will be disappointed in the defeat of their candidate, they will gladly accept the situation, and rejoice that the question is finally settled, and will now hope that the wheels of trade and commerce will once more move along and bring them re- lief from this terrible stagnatlon. Ruther- ford B. Hayes was formally declared elect ed president for the next four years, last Friday at ten minutes past four o'clock in the morning after an all nights stormy session, and last Saturday evening took the oath of office at the White House. Mon- day he was duly inaugurated, and is now the president of the United States. The closing scenes of the terrible contest for the presidency is thus graphically described by the New York World, from which we quote the following:
 QAt solemn word from Ferry, Senator Allison, short, stocky man with stubby whiskers and thin, rasplng voice, rises the great clock opposite hlm stands 4:04- and gives the vote of the state. As he ends and the four tellers stoop together, in the stiffness in the gallery over the speakers head men heal the scratch of the pens. Ferry rests one hand on his gavel and says: -''This concludes the count of the thirty eight states of the Union. The tellers will now ascertain and deliver the result to the Senate" The man is reading from the last pages of the book holding the electoral lists, whose pages he has turned from Ala. bsma to Wisconsin. Allison takes from bis desk the long tally-sheet, turns it, finds 8 smaller square sheet of paper with few lines written on it, and holding it at arms length. gives the total vote and the vote for each candidate. There was a moments pause, the pens scratch and the tally sheets rustic as the four tellers make the last entry upon them. Turning, Allison hands his tally sheet to Ferry. The president of the Senate t,kes the long sheet, spreads it be- fore him, and hls messenger hands him Ia long, black feather,-black from quill point to barb ends, no spot of whire in it. and as he dips it into the ink before him and signs away the presidency, the black plume IS the centre of the picture men had waited since November to see. Laying the long black feather down across the tally sheet, Ferry rose. He had written on the pages of the little book before him all he had to say, and holding the book in one hand and his gavel in the other, expressed the hope that there would be no demonstra- tion, and said:- #..
 The whole number of electors appointed to vote for President and vice. President of the United States is 369, of which major ity Is 1855. The state of the vote for Pres ident as delivered by the tellers and as de- termined under the act of Congress of Jan- uary 29th 1877, on this subject. is:-
 For Rutherford B. Hayes...... .....1s5 votes For Samuel J. Tilden. votes
 The state of the vote for vice-President of the United States as delivered by the tel lers as determined under the act of Congress approved January %, 1877. on this subject, is:-
 For William A. Wheeler. votes For Thomas A. Hendricks. .1s4 votes
 Wherefore do announce that Ruther- ford B. Hayes, of the state of Ono, having received a majority of the whole number of electoral votes, is duly elected President of the United States, for foul years, com- mencing on the fourth day of March, 1877; and that William A. Wheeler, of New York. having received majority of the whole number of electoral votes, is duly elected ce-Presdent of the United States for four years, commencing on the fourth day of March, 1877. This announcement, to- getbsr with the list of the votes, will be en- tered on the journals of the two Houses.
 AS the man ended there came from some where faint signs of disapproval. They died away, no one paying the slightest at- tention to them. Ferry turned the gavel in his hand and extended it with a bow to Randall, held out his hand, which Randall took, and with the lowest of bows Ferry went down the steps and took his place at the head of the Senate. The count was over.