The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-12-08
BY TELEGRAPH.
"SHENANIGIN."
Interview With Hon. F. A.
Pike.
The Key to the Democrat
ic Position.
Why Hearing is Refused to Coun-
ty Attorney Rounds.
Especial to the Press. ]

city for several days, giving close attention to
the situation in all its phases.
He was waited upon by reporter of the
Kennebec Journal on Saturday and gave his
views at length, without reluctance or reserve,
as follows:
Reporter-Have you applied personally to
see the election returns of Senators and Repre-
sentatives from your county?
Mr.. Pike-No, not in person. / am here as
advisory counsel to those who have applied.
The application has been made by Senator
Harris of my county in person, by his imme-
date attorney, Mr.. Heath, land indeed by many
others, made in every form and always evaded
or refused. An application is now pending
before the Council, asking them to name any
| But have no faith that we shall get a sight OF
| them.
| Reporter-What in your judgment is the
| motive for refusing to show the returns?
| Mr.. Pike-Well, various motives have been
| avowed by the Council and charged by the
Republicans. Councillor Foster says the pur-
pose of the Council is to guard the returns
| against the possibility of being tempered with
| by the "rabble,' as he is pleased to term the
| few innocent Senators and Representatives
| elect and their attorneys who have applied to
| see them Mr.. Foster further said that if the
| Senators and Representatives saw the returns
they might change the records at home and
then come and wish to change the returns here
! to correspond.
Reporter-Do you think this was the real
| motive of the Council as thus expressed by Mr.
| Foster?
Mr.. Pike-How could it be the real motive
when as soon as the hint was thrown out by
| Mr.. Foster the Republican Senators and Rep.
| resentatives procured certified COZ les of the
| records and came to the door of the Council
| chamber with them and asked to compare them
| with the returns, thus promptly and voluntar-
| lily and unanimously putting it out of thei1
| power to change the records. But when they
| had done this the refusal to exhibit the re-
turns was only repeated in some other evasive
| form.
Reporter-How about the returns from Dem
ocratic towns? Do you think they have been
as carefully guarded from inspection as
the returns from Republican towns?
Mr.. Pike-Well, to begin with, it is a very
suspicious circumstance that so far as I can
learn no Democrats have come from any part
of the state to look after their returns. Hith-
erto, in previous years. the persons coming to
Augusta to look after returns have been about
equally divided between the two parties, as
was natural. repeat it is most suspicious
circumstance that no Democratic candidates
have been here at all this year. / think it
easy to interpret the significance of their alb
sence.
Repotrer-How? What do you mean?
Mr.. Pke-Why; | suppose they feel that
their case is being taken care of by the Fusion
state officers County Attorney Rounds
charges directly that the returns were surrep-
titiously and prematurely opened at the State
House and that Democratic towns all over the
state were advised of the errors in their re-
turns, and that the necessary changes and
amendments were made, in some cases going
so far, it is said, as withdrawing the original
return and substituting an entirely new one,
and certifying it as if it was the original. OF
course this is a most serious charge, and one
that the Governor and Council cannot afford
to ignore.
Reporter-Is Mr.. Rounds a considerate man,
or is he hot headed and disposed to do rash
things?
Mr.. Pike-Quite the contrary of rash. He
is very cool man, man of character and
ability, who knows what he is talking about;
a lawyer who has been for severa' years a sue
cessful County Attorney, accustomed to scan
facts closely and weigh the value of evidence.
He never would have made this grave charge
without having the facts to back it up. Mr..
Rounds has really discovered the key to the
Democratic position.
Reporter-Do you know any reason why re-
turns from Democratic towns should be more
correct than from Republican towns?
Mr.. Pike-None in the world. Surely no
one will contend that the Democratic towns in
this state are more intelligent than the Repub
lican towns, or would be likely to have more
intelligent officers. 1 know, moreover, that
the Republican committee in the state gave
special warning to town officers to be careful
"
instinct in advance of what we might have to
deal with. Here we have in round numbers
say five hundred cities and towns and planta-
tions in the state. Of the thirteen cities the
Republicans carried all but one by absolute
majorities Take the state through it NAV be-
counting small towns and plantations, the
Fusionists carried as many as we did. Now,
on the fair doctrine of chance, there would be
as many errors and omissions in the one class
of towns as in the other. 1t is pure nonsense
to maintain any other theory.
Rep0rter-You said moment ago that the
Governor and Council connot afford to ignore
the charges made by Mr.. Rounds. What was
your exact meaning?
Mr.. Pike-Well, the Governor and Council
either cannot afford to ignore or possibly they
cannot afford to investigate. Perhaps I had
better have said, they cannot afford to inyesti-
gate. Mr.. Rounds did not charge collision on
the part of the Governor and Council, but
every one can see that if they pass by so grave
an accusation as this they are in danger them
selves Of being held as accessories after the
fact.
Reporter-I see that some papers, supposed
to represent the views of the Governor and
Council, intimate that they will withhold GER
tifcates of election from Senators and Repre-
sentatives charged with bribery. What do
you think of that?
Mr. Pike-Well, as to bribery, they are get
ting along better with their charges than with
their proof. The Governor is doctor, and the
gentleman who lately spoke for the Council is
doctor, but should think they would know
enough law to know that secret ex-parte Aft
davits, with which hear tine Council Cham
Der has been well filed, do not afford that
kind of proof, on which, in this country, a
man can be deprived of his rights. Besides,
pass in any form on the question of eligibility
in the election of Senators and Representa-
tives. The Supreme Court has repeatedly
said that on points outside the returns the
Governor and Council have no right to hear
evidence, ex-parte or otherwise, other than
that expressly specified in the statutes.
Reporter-What is there really in your
Judgment in this talk about Republican bri-
berry and corruption at the late State election.
Mr.. Pike-I know nothing about the use of
money. was not called upon to pay anything
and didn't pay although L took somewhat
active part in the campaign and have always
heretofore put in my share of money. L
thought they must be getting along very eco
nomically and the charges in our neighborhood
were of the most trivial character a pair of
cheap boots leading off as the most conspicuous
evidence of corruption. Those who have
figured it up say that the whole evidence
obtained by the fuSiOnists of the expenditure
of money by the Republicans in the State thus
far amounts to S7S. This seems very amusing
when the Chairman of the Repu blican State
Committee in public speech two nights after
election said the Committee had expended
$4,000 in the campaign for campaign papers,
public speeches, documents, and getting home
voters and all other expenses of the campaign
and offered to show the vouchers to any Curl
Gus inquirer.
Reporter-If there was bribery is that a
matter in which prosecution could be based in
our courts.
Mr. Pike-Of course, and it was tried in our
county. Parties came before the Grand Jury,
composed as it was of eleven Fusionists and
seven Republicans and told their stories to
their hearts content. 1t was just after the
State election and they were full of it. But
after they got through the jury threw the
whole thing out with great unanimity and with
some disgust too, as they voted not to go into
any further investigation of the matter. The
gossip of the thing was that the Democrats got
fully enough before the Republicans did. And
while L am ON this matter 1 may say that as
member of the Constitutional Commission in
1875, l aided in reporting an anti-brlbery oath
which if put into the Constitution would have
gone far to destroy bribery at elections. After
wards as Representative from my town,
carried it through Republican House. The
fusionists last year had a majority i'll the
House, but their zeal against bribery did not
endeavor to manifest itself in legislation. 1t
only grew warm after they had got beaten
and they needed something to divert the pub
lie mind from their efforts to defeat the
popular vote.
Reporter-What do you understand as to the
method by which the Governor aud Council
propose to defraud the Republicans of their
majority of 20 in the House and in the
Senate?
M. Pke-Why, if they do it they will
insist on technical objections to certain returns