The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1878-05-22
THE INsrIGATION.
Garfield and Hale Trembling i'm Their
B0ets-rhe Mississippi and Oregon
Questions Settled.

Washington Post
The republicans will soon find out in what
utterly indefensible attitude they have
placed themselves. III it is not an open plea
of guilty and confession of crime, no party
ever plead it. Nor will all the sophistry and
ingenuity of Messrs. Garfield, Hale and Con-
ger bear the test OF common sense How
does the case stand before the country, re-
gardlesS of any partisan effect?
Messrs. Garfield and Hale were chiefly in
strumental in and instigators of the theft of
the electoral vote of Louisiana. Every in
telligent man knows that both Hale and
Garfield were down there and supervised the
job. Every intelligent child knows that
without their powerful aid and influence.
Wells and Anderson-who were bat the in
struments-never- would-have dared the
dangerous deed. the Investigation pro-
posed therefore directly aims at Hale and
Garfield themselves They are among the
parties to be investigated. If they had or
binary decency or shame, their great per
sonal interest In the matter would have die
tated silence. If they had clear conscience
they would have demanded this investigna-
ton in order to vindicate themselves. But
as they have guilty conscience and not a
particle OF shame or decency, they had the
audacity to lead the opposition. In doing
so did they not confess their guilt?
The answer, that they only opposed it be-
cause 1t did not grant them an Investigation
into alleged frauds in Oregaa and Mississippi.
is no answer at all. This is and can not be
an investigation in what was intended, or
should have been, but what actually was
done. The vote of Oregan was counted for
Hayes, and that settles the matter so far as
Mr.. Garfield is concerned. The allegations
about Mississippi are preposterous This is
not to inquire why people voted. nor how
they voted, but simply why and how, after
the people had cast their ballots, they were
robbed of the result of their election by in
famous republican leaders and the returning
boards Besides, in the creation of the
electoral commission, the republicans them
selves distinctly admitted that their charges
against Mississippi were groundless. They
dropped those charges, and consented that
they should not even be ted as disputed
questions before the electoral commission.
In the counting of the votes OF those states
not single objection was made TO them by
a single republican. They then and there
finally and irrevocably consented TO their
legality, and debarred themselves from fu-
ture cavil or objections. They did this, too,
after committee of the senate under the
lead of Morton. bad concluded most search
ing, expensive and thorough investigation
into the election of Mississippi. After hun
dreds of witnesses were examined, the result
was so palpable that the committee dropped
the whole matter, and never made a report.
1t did not ask even to submit the question TO
the senate. The issues were joined and the
pleadings were closed when the electoral
commission was created, and the reDubli-
cans themselves left all mention of MiSsis-
sippi out of them. To bring up the matter
now is not only to go behind the returns,
but a ridiculously great distance further.
To compare this with the case of Florida
where the very person whose vote would
have given the state to TIlden, but who gave
it to Hayes instead, now confesses that he
did so fraudulently, and only through great
pressure of the agents of Mr.. Hayes--is pre-
p0sterous nonsense.
Turn and twist and toll as they may, the
republicans can not escape the dilemma in
which their leaders have placed them. Be-
meath. all the sham and subterfuge remains
the ppun fact that they are afraid of the
truth, opposed to investigation, allied to
fraud and closely identified with the crime
of the nineteenth century.