New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-04-25

been created IN washington ny " iNr"i. ~
Florida, published this morning that McLin ana
Dennis, the first member Of the Returning p'"iu'
and the second intimately connected with the
corptiur Of fife vote of that State for the Hayes
electors, have confessed that they were guilty OF
nartcipotion i'm classifying the returns OF the pIeSl-
dental election.
Mr.. William f. Chandler who visited fIorlua
during the canvass of the vote, and who Is prop
ably more familiar with what took place on the
Republican side than any one else III Washington
does not look upon these alleged confessions as at
all important He thinks that whatever McLin
NAV have written will turn out TO be more
In the nature of an indignant denuhca-
ton of the President than confession
of any wrong which he did in connection
with the returning of the vote. Ii McLn cOnlesses
ANYTHING Mr. Chandler thinks his assertions VIII
he foupd in a great degree conditional and to be
based on great many ifs and butts; IN other
words he will say that if such and such
things were done, then such and such actions
wore fraudulent Mr.. Chandler thinks that
McIin has been very unjusty treated by the adj
ADMINISTRATION while deserving great consideration
at the hands of President Hayes. lie has lost TWO
children and he has suffered Ostraclsm an pe'se-
cuton at the hands of the people Of Florida lie IS
now Mr. Chandler says, in a really suffering condl-
ton Mr. Chandler was not disposed to say very
much about his own knowledge of the Electoral
count in Florida but did assert that the President
knows everything that he knows, for the latter has
told it to Mr.. Hayes in person.
Mr.. Chandler scouts the idea that Mr.. Dennis has
confessed anything. This man, he says, is SO
shrewd and sharp that if he ever he'd about any
thing he would ever afterwaTd stick to 1t.
Ex-Attorney-General Williams, who visited the
State in behalf of the Republicans subsequent to
,oftI o ne
nothing of the reported confession except what he
had learned from the newspapers, and that lie knew
of no wrongs 10 be confessed by anybody. He went
10 Florida for the purpose of obtaining certain de-
cisons by the court in the Electoral mandamus case,
and failed
BLAIR HAPPY, OF COURSE
Mr. Montgomery Blair admits that he has known
of these alleged confessions of McLn and Dennis
fore some time, and regards them as of the very
highest importance. The effect of their confessions
he says will he to force the House to pass the Quo
Warranto Bill framed By David Dudley Field. When
it goes to the Senate. Mr.. Blair says, not single
Democrat in that body will dare to vote against
it. Mr. Blair has q very exalted idea of
his own faculty of reading public sentiment, and
declares as the result of his observation
that the American people will not remain
silent and allow such a fraud as has been perpe-
trated to be successful. The honest indignation of
the people, he asserts, will compel Congress to take
official notice of the matter, and he has the most
implicit faith that Mr.. Hayes will be driven in dis
grace from the White House. The movement with
which his name is connected is not he declares his
movement but it is a movement Of the people. His
resolutions were not passed by the Maryland Lcgs-
lature because he drew OF presented them, but be-
cause the sentiment of the people was behind them.
WHAT THE FLORIDA SENATOR'S SAY.
hi, Afr doc
that McLin's confession will turn out to be con-
ditional one, making 10 direct and unqualified
sertions and that Mr.. Dennis, if he has been
guilty of any rascality will not confess it,
Senator Jones has no doubt that the re-
port is true that McLn, who was Secretary of
State during the administration Of Governor
Stearns has made confession disclosing the man
ner in which election frauds were perpetFsted in
1876, and the State carried by the Republicans
Senator Jones says that he has always been salts
fed that the whole business of influencing the Re
turning Board of Florida was fraudulent, and that
the Truth in regard to It would sometime be known
In addition TO the newspaper reports Of McLin's
confession, the Senator says he has other info ma
ton of further confessions yet to be made. McLn
was appointed to Mexican consulate, which
position he held only a short time, and subsequently
he was nominated TO a United States judgeShp, but
the Senate refused to confirm him. Mr.. Jones be-
leNcs llat tUlS the senate mas na1 not
ahttle TO do with Fastening confession, although
both McLin and Dennis may have had some cause
of dissatisfaction with the President of which the
Senator does not know.
Mr. Jones will probably bring the fact of McI.in's
confession and of any other that may he made. TO
the attention of the Senate He saws that he shall
do everything in his power to bring TO light all the
facts connected with the action Of the Florida Re-
turning Board.
MIR. HEWITT TAKES IT CoOLLY.
Mr.. Abram s. Hewitt, late chairman of the Demo
~
day with his friends in regard to the reported con-
fcssions. Mr.. Hewitt SAID that his only informa-
ton on the subject was what he obtained
from the dispatches IN the morning papers. When
Mr.. McLin was here message was sent TO Mr.
Hewitt that McI.n was ready TO confess, but Mr..
Hewitt refused to have anything to do with the
matter, believing that If he consented, and "A con-
fession was actually made, il would afterwards be
asserted that il had been obtained by the Use of
money.
Mr.. Hewitt says he has always believed that
there was fraud IN the Florida count. The
Louisiana question was more complicated
and even if g. could DO proved that
the returnsy we're not properly counted
it would still De difficult 20 demonstrate that the
returns themselves were correct. He agreed sub
stantially with President Grant when the latter re-
marked that there had not been honest election
in Louisiana for twenty years In regard to the
70 Florida count Mr. Hewitt was convinced Of the
existence Of fraud from the very first Some things
he knew could not he proved. He was confident.
for instance, that $4,000 had been sent to
that State just after the election but had no
legal evidence Of it. He also believed that the
Republicans had sent away from Florida some men
who would have been able to give testimony against
the manipulations Of their party One man who
was employed in the customs service there and who
he believed had been connected with the securing
Of 800 fraudulent vOtes at Key West, has been made