The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-12-20


us this crisis. Aye, it is something audacious
for eight men to do what these have done. 1t
is something audacious for a body or board oil
men to say to the people of this commonwealth
1.-The time has come now for the first time IN
our history when our public election has ceas-
ed to elect" and we feel tonight if we do not
give utterance to the voice OF our indignation,
if we do not rally as of old in defence of our
public liberties, that the time will soon have
passed away when we shall be worthy OF the
name of men or entitled to the privileges OF
liberty. tremendous applause)
The following resolutions were then read;
THE RESOLUTION.
The citizens of Augusta here assembled
unanimously join in the following declaration:
First,-That republican form of government re-
quires and demands the prompt and hearty submis-
at the polls and any attempt to thwart this will or
deprive the people of their choice is crime against
liberty which, if successful, will undermine civil
order corrupt society," and lead to bloodshed and
anarchy
Secoad-That Alonzo Garcelon, Governor of
Maine and the seven executive councillors associa
ted with him, have forfeited the confidence and
earned the condemnation of the people OF this State
by falsely counting and falsely declaring the result
of the recent election attempting to install the
minority in power over the majority They have
committed this crime knowingly, wilfully, deliber-
ately, with the light before their eyes and in deli
ance of the remonstrances, evidence ard proofs sub
ties.
for the first time in Maine cannot carry with it the
authority of law and must not be permitted to
achieve its wrong ful and wicked design We call
all good citizens to unite with us in avertng this
threatened calamity and we make special and di-
rect appeal to those men who are fraudulently
counted in as senators and representatives not to
contaminate their honor soil their conscience by
accepting the wages OF sim They each and all have
it in their power refuse to act the receivers of
stolen goods and thus escape the brand of infamy
which surely awaits the thieves.
The resolutions were adopted with great APP
plause.
SPEECH OF SENATOR BLAINE.
In response to loud calls for Senator Blaine
that gentleman took the platform, amid the
widest demonstrations of applause, Mr..
Blaine said
1t is well, Mr.. Chairman, in meeting of
this kind to understand with precision the
grievance of which the people complain. Let
me state it as briefly SIS possible. On the eighth
day of September last the voters of Maine, in
pursuance of their organic law, proceeded to
elect Governor, and Senators and Representa-
tives in the Legislature. The election was pre-
coded by a prolonged, thorough and somewhat
exciting canvass of the State. Hon. Arson ?.
Morrill,, who I regret is not able to be with US
this evening, told me that he had voted for
fifty consecutive years in Maine, and in many
of the campaigns had taken, as we all know, a
prominent part and that in the whole of that
long period he had never known a political
contest in which the issues before the people
had been so ably, so deliberately and so thor
oughly discussed both on the stump and by the
press He said he did not believe there had
ever been year in which every citizen of the
State knew so well just what he intended by
his vote.as in the election of 1879. am sure that
would be the testimony OF every honest and can
did man in the State. The vote was full, free
and fair The result of that election, as shown
by the official returns, was to give the Republi-
can candidate for Governor plurality of 81,
600 votes over the Greenback candidate and of
46 900 over the Democratic candidate. In the
Legislature by the official returns the Republi-
cans chose nineteen Senators and the opposi-
ton twelve Senators, and in the House the Re-
publicans chose ninety members and the OPP
position sixty-one. On the Legislative ticket
the Republicans had an absolute majority of
nearly five Thousand on the popular vote.
This was the result as shown by the official re-
turns made by the city and town clerks and
Immediately made public by the Secretary of
State.
When the sealed returns were opened, some
weeks later, to be counted by the Governor
and Council, they disclosed the same result
that had been published from the clerks re-
turns, and common honesty and common de-
cency. to say nothing of high official integrity,
required that the men chosen by the people
should be declared elected and receive their
certificates. But the GOVefuOr ana council
had resolved otherwise, and in collision with
other well known men they entered into a con-
spiracy to change the result and deprive the
people of their choice. And then began the
remarkable count which has just closed to the
lasting dishonor and disgrace OF all who had
part or lot in it. They began to discover fatal
defects" as Gov. Garcelon termed them, in
the returns from Republican towns Here and
there an was not dotted or a not crossed or
a man had junior left off his name or the mi
tial letter of his middle name was wrong, CT
the ballot that elected him had the names
printed at right angles to the narrow side when
thew should have been parallel, or the sigma
ture of all the town officers, to the acute eye of
a single Councillor without any other evidence,
were written in the same hand, or the total
number of votes was not filled out in the right
part part of the election blank, OR one of the
town officers was an alien or two selectmen
were permitted to swear away their own re-
turn by an eX parte affidavit that although
thew hs once sworn that the return was sealed
in open town meeting, they now swore it was
not, or the returns of cities were signed by
only three aldermen just according to the
blank sent out from the Office of the Secretary
of State after being prepared as trap or pit
fall.
These and numerous other minor points of
like value were freely used to destroy the
popular vote and maintain in power the party
and the men whom the people had rejected.
The result of the whole of this pitiful and
wicked pettifogging was to change Republic
can majority of seven in the Senate and TWEEN
ty-nine in the House to q fusion majority of
nine in the Senate and seventeen in the
House, with five Republican cities completely
DISTINGUISHED and denied by the Governor
and Council the poor boon of new election.
So that Portland, Lewiston Bath, Rockland
and Saco, are absolutely rendered incapable of
taking any part in the organization of the legs-
Iature or in the choice of Governor or the cleo
ton of state officers the original composition
of the House committees which shape and
practically control legislation. Perhaps if the
representatives chosen by these five important
cities will humbly petition the House and cool
their heels in the ante chamber OF fusion great
ness for three or four weeks they may be per-
mitted to be sworn in when they can no longer
embarrass the progress of the cOnspirators pro-
eramme, and no longer be able to serve their
constituents. These five cities have q valua.
ton of more than fifty-one millions of dollars,
and nav nearly one qnarter of the entire taxes
of the state To be accurate, they pay % per
cent of tho whole. This very year the fusion
state government has levied and collected from
these cities more than two hundred thousand
dollars of taxes, and now by virtue of a dis
graceful trap Connected inthe Office of the Sec
retarv of State, four of these cities are disfran-
chised The fifth, cur beautiful metropolis
Portland, pays enc hundred and eighteen thou
sand dollars of taxes and is denied representa-
ton on the paltriest of dishonest pretextS, and
is not even allowed the opportunity OF new
election. But will not allow myself to go into
a lengthy speech. Before closing however
beg YOU to observe the following points.
First-The Governor and Council have refused
certificates to 20 Republicans of the House and
to eight Senators. Thirty-seven in all swept
off and out by one wave of an autocratic hand.
Second-Of this entire number there was
not one case for which the law did not provide
and direct the mode of correction. But the
Council said the law was unconstitutional, and
they set it aside. They gave out that Henry
W. Paine of Boston advised them that this was
their proper course. When I see an opinion of
Henry W. Paine that the executive depart
ment may at will set aside the laws they are
sworn to enforce, will unite with his other
Kennebec friends in deploripg the decay of his
splendid intellect and the loss of his admirable
Judgment Till then L prefer to remember
Henry w. Paine as I have known him for
quarter of century.
Third-There shave been fifty-nine annual
elections in Maine, carried in turn by the old
National Republicans, by Democrats, by