The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1877-02-07
WHAT WILL THE END BE.

IN
In the opinion of many persons whose
views upon matters of public interest COM
mand attention and respect, it was thought
that the plan devised to determine who was
elected president and vice president
on the eth day of November last,
had brought the question within
the narrowest possible limits; that
irrelevant matters would be eliminated
from the controversy; that the light OF truth
would be so luminous that the. pilots could
see the returning board frauds, like reefs and
rocks on lee shore, and have little difficult
ty in steering the ship safely into port. 1t
is safe to say, however, in view Of
subsequent developments, that these
hopes have lost much of their rosy tint; that
on both sides sanguine individuals have
counted chickens before they were Matched,
and that instead of narrowing down the con-
troversy there are indications of breadth,
depth and height of such portentous mea-
surement that no one is warranted in prog
nosticating what will be the end of the mat
ter.
Just now the purpose on the one side seems
to be to get behind the certified returns, and
on the other side to prevent such proceed
ing, if possible. Upon the result of this
struggle hangs important issues, and as a
consequence the lawyers engaged are ex-
hausting their knowledge of the law.
| IL success attends the efforts of those who
desire to go behind the returns for funda-
mental facts, it is held that the testimony
will prove so yoluminous that the commits
sion Will be unable to arrive at decision
| before the 18th of March, when the
country would be in the perplexing di-
| lemma of being without a president,
a circumstance that wculd make another
presidential election necessary. In view of
the facts that in the previous contest a vic
tory had been changed to defeat, fraud and
perjury made as potential as honesty and
truth, and that the ballot box had
been bulldozed by returning boards,
| it would be difficult, it is be-
lieved, to arouse the enthusiasm of the
people unless some additional guarantees
were afforded, giving assurances that the
votes deposited wouldbe honestly counted
/ dilO tiiob thC amy "OhAN hOb W uScu W Shiu
conspiraters.
We are of tle opinion that the
commission will settle the question. but
at this writing we regard the final
action as exceedingly problemstical.
So far we have been unable to discover in
any ruling or declaration, deep and abid-
ing abhorrence of the damning frauds and
perjuries by which the radical party hopes
finally to succeed. The conspirators drag
into court three states out of which they
have almost stabbed and stamped the breath
of life, and point to them as trophies oil
of their devilish purposes with an exulta
ton as grim and CHASTITY as Sioux chief
would point to so many scalps just torn
/ from the heads of the bloody victims of his
savagery, and demand, by virtue of their sue
cess, verdict for Hayes, and Evarts, the
great America barrister, the man who res
cued Beecher from the penalties due
his lechery, girds hiaaself anew to
achieve success in a case infinitely more in
| famous. Still We hope the commission will
deal justly, and since it is sitting and act
| iag in obedience to laS, we shall, if decision
is arrived at, admit its authority and obey
its mandate.