The Portland daily press., 1879-12-06
RY TELEGRAPH.
THE COUNCIL.
NO ANSWER TO COUNTY AT
TORNEY ROUNDS YET.
Governor Garcelon Not Feeling
Happy.
A POINTED LETTER FROM COUNSEL
LOR BAKER.
Mr.. Strout's Argument on the Portland
Returns.
Especial Despatch to the Press.l

Returns.
Especial Despatch to the Press.l
AUGUSTA, Dec 5.-There have been few
people about the State House today other than
the. regular habitues Of the place. The Coun-
ell have been busy with the returns and still
maintain the same mysterious air when ap-
preached on the subject now uppermost in
mems minds
There is good deal of curiosity concerning
the course of the Council on the request OF
County Attorney Rounds. The charge he
makes is so direct circumstantlal and OF such
grave import that they cannot ignore it.
Neither is it to be expected that they will al
low him to bring evidence before them which
may strike uncomfortably near the Council
chamber. 1t is thought they will probably
shuttle and evade as they have done with all
the other requests and demands made by the
Republicans. They will have to look sharp
to find excuses which will keep him OFT two
weeks He is an uncomfortably persistent fel-
low. They have thus far allowed the matter
to slumber. Mr.. Rounds is confident that he
can prove what he alleges, and it is said his
testimony will come from quarter WIT it is
least expected.
The Governor today is extremely wrought
up over something which appeared in the
PRESS today, in which he alleges question OF
veracity between himself and someone else is
raised Your correspondent endeavered to
get him to state what the difficulty was, but
His Excellency was in hurry to catch the
train. He intimated that he should publish
reply. 1 presume the trouble is the different
statements concerning the interview OF Messrs
Wing and Savage with the Governor and
Council. I am credibly informed that the
correspondent of the Journal was in error con-
cerning Mr.. Fogg's alleged remark regarding
the Supreme Court. 1t was not Fogg at all
and why it should ever have been attributed to
him is a mystery. 1t happened in this wise
The learned and able messenger to the Gov
ernor's Council was walking down the street
with prominent Republican one day. "Well,
what are they going to do next?" inquired the
stately Mark. 81 hardly know" humbly re-
piled the other; "our friends are talking of ap-
plying to the Supreme Court. p "What do they
expect the court to do?'' laughed Mark. "They
can't touch u.s." with slight emphasis on the
last word. ''Their talk about the Supreme
Court is all foolishness.''
sour friends are tolerably confident" said
the other, "and I guess we shall give them
try"
Then was the time for the Governor and
and Council to assert its importance, and draw
ing himself up to his full height, and in voice
expressive of profound distain, Mark Harding
uttered this immortal sentence: Il tell you
WE defy the Supreme Court"
Sheriff Libby served notice upon Secretary
Cove this forenoon of the hearing to be held
before Judge Virgin Tuesday, and notifying
him to appear before the court at that time If
he wishes to be heard. The Secretary left for
Biddeford this afternoon. He remark that
Baker and Baker are in this matter barking up
the wrong tree. ''The coon," said he, ''was
gone before the dog got there" which is an in
dication that his argument will be that the re-
turns are gone out of his possession, and that
he would have no power to obey a mandamus
should one issue against him. The returns he
thinks, are lawfully in possession of the Gov
ernor and Council.
Work is accumulating before the Governor
and Council. They have not finished the
county returns yet, and several hearings have
yet to be had. That on the Cumberland
County returns is set down for Tuesday. These
hearings have yet to be concluded and the GER
tificates issued before the 18th. They have got
to work hard to finish their work within the
time prescribed by the instrument for which
they have conceived such a wonderful ad-
miration.
1t is easy to hear sermons concerning what
the Governor and Council will do. The story
most common today is that there are to be GER
tificates issued to q fusion and ten Republican
Senators. That would require royal work, but
if they are to do anything in that line they
might as we'll do thorough work. 1t is under
stood that E. f. Pillsbury & Co. are to issue
daily edition of the Standard this winter,
commencing before many days. Such yen-
ture would hardly pay if there were to be no
fusion majority in the Legislature. The one
naturally wound depend on the other.
FELIX.
Mr.. A. A. Strout's Argument.
Messrs. Henry c. Peabody, candidate for
Judge of Probate, Seth L. Larrabee, candidate
for Register of Probate, and A. W. Coombs,
candidate for County Attorney, examined the
returns from Cumberland County yesterday.
1t is understood that no defects were found ex-
cept in the Portland return of scattering"
votes, and this, in the case of county officers is
amendable and will be amended
At o'clock A. A. Strout, ESQ.,, Representa-
tive elect from Portland, argued the question
of whether the returns of certain votes as
Scattering for Representatives from Port
land constitute fatal defect. Mr.. Strout con-
tended, first, that the eturn contains no sub
stantial error. 1t is properly signed and au-
thenticated, and shows all the facts necessary
to determine, without shadow of doubt, who
appear to have been elected. The return ap-
pears to show the whole number of ballots, and
that the FIVE candidates first named received a
plurality of six or seven hundred. Even if the
votes reported as scattering should be added to
those of the other five candidates the result
would not be changed. There is then no de-
feet in the return which can make the result
uncertain.
Admitting that here is a technical but not
substantial error, it does not follow that the
return is legally defectives 1t has been ruled
by the courts that technical accuracy is not to
be expected by municipal officers, and t1at
where it appears that certain method of do |
ing business has been followed and recognized |
for many years, even though it is not in strict |
compliance with the requirements of the law, |
1t must be regarded as substantial compli- !
ance. Comalu,lis error Jdcit legema. This rule |
is set forth with great clearness by Chief JUS |
tice Richardson in the case of Cohran vsCoch- |
ran, New Hampshire Reports 1t has been
the custom in Maine to return the scattering