Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1878-05-02
THE FLORIDA CASE.
The Full Text of Judge McLin's
Statement.
A DiSgracefuI Confession of
Weakness, Meanmess and
Fraud on His Part.

New YoRK, April 25.-The following is the
text of the statement of Judge McLin, re-
garding the canvass of the vote in Florida for
President, as published here in a long special
from Washington.
Gas member of the late State Board of
Canvassers of the State of Florida, feel i'm
PEELED by a sense of duty to myself, and in
justice to others, to make the following state
ment: "At the time the canvass was made
was not at any time conscious of acting other
wise than right and proper. l entered upon
the canvass with the conviction that it was nay
privilege and duty in political sense to give
the benefit of every doubt in favor of the Re-
publican party. felt that when the question
could be decided either way without doing
violence to the public sense of justice, it was
fairly allowable in politics that should al
ways lean to my own party and give my de-
cision in its favor, even at the hazard of
straining point. At no time did I feel that
l occupied the position Of Judge, charged
with the duty of strict and nice weighing
and balancing of all the evidence presented
Looking back, now, to that time, 1 feel that
there was combination of influences that
must have operated most powerfully in blind
ing my judgment and swaying my action. l
had been for many years and was at the time
of the canvass very active partisan. sim
eerely thought that our State and the nation
would suffer an irreparable injury if the Dem
ocratic party were to obtain the Presidency,
and the policy Of hatred to the negro and
those who had been friends of the negro sho'd
obtain control at Washington. 1t was the
common and unanimous talk also that the very
existence of the men who in the South had
upheld the Republican party depended Upon
the election of Hayes. Mr.. Hayes would sus
tain them throughout the South while Tilden
would crush them. l was shown numerous
telegraphic addresses to Gov. Stearns and 9TH
ers from the trusted leaders of the Republican
party in the North, insisting that the salvation
of the country depended upon the vote of
Florida being cast for Hayes. These tele-
grams came from those to whom l had been
accustomed to defer, for instance from the
Chairman of the National Committee and the
man who was the nearest personal friend of
Mr.. Hayes, who had conducted the canvass
These kilograms also gave assurance of the
forthcoming of money and troops. Follow
ing these kilograms, trusted Northern Repub-
licans, party leaders and personal friends of
Mr.. Aayes, arrived in Florida as rapidly as the
railroads could bring them. was surrounded
by these men who were ardent Republicans
and especially by the friends of Governor
Hayes One gentleman particularly, Cover
nor Noyes, of Ohio, was understood to repre-
sent him and speak with the authority of a
warm personal friend, commissioned with
power to act in his behalf. These men refer
red to the general destruction of the country
should Tilden be elected. The intense ankle
ty of the Republicans party of the north
and their full sympathy with us. Can't say
how far my action may have been influenced
by the intense excitement that prevailed
around me, or how far my partisan zeal may
have led me into error. Neither can l say
how far my course was influenced by the
promise made by Noyes that if Hayes became
President should be rewarded Certainly
these influences must have had control over
my judgment and action Reviewing my ac-
tion at this distance of time with all calmness,
: with my ardor cooled and my partisan zeal
chilled by the President, who has basely belied
and mercilessly destroyed the Republican par
ty Of the South and crushed the very men
who did so much for his election, l am per-
suaded that the Florida canvass was not con-
Quoted with that cool, calm judgment and
honest unbiased decision that should have
characterized a proceeding involving such vast
and important interests. Instead of this
now see that the whole proceedings went
| through upon the highest wave of political ex-
element. That partisan feeling, stimulated
to the utmost by the most powerful agencies,
usurped the place of reason and sound judg-
ment, and therefore political expediency ruled
the hour. Alarge number of precincts were