The Portland daily press., 1879-12-31

|
and Council were expected to act. l remained
in Maine only short time and then returned
to Massachusetts, again, and communicated all
that had learned to Senator Blaine, who was
then in the West The character of his reply
showed that he still had no fear Of the success
of the plot"
''After your return to Massachusetts, did you
learn anything further in regard to the plans
of the FusonistS?''
| 81 did"
"Where. when and how?''
''In Boston, about the 1st Of October, met
| q gentleman / knew intimately, who told me
that the Fusionists would certainly capture
| the State Of Maine"
| ."WhO was this gentleman"
| HE was an influential Democrat. My in
| quiries were OF a confidential character, and
prefer not to reveal his name"
Did he give you any details of the plans of
the Fusionists?"
| eyes, sir"
| "What were they?''
"He told me what / already knew-that
there was movement on foot to upset the
| Maine election, and that a conference had
been held in Boston for the purpose of raising
| money to pay the expenses of the investiga-
| tion which was to furnish the evidence upon
| which the Governor and Council might act"
| ''Did he tell you how he had obtained this
| information?"
HE did not in detail and it was not neoes-
| sary, because l knew from his relations to the
| Maine Fusionists and from remarks that he
|
| conference"
| "Hov- i!l Z ',appen that, knowing you to be
| Republican respondent, he made these
| communications to you?'
He feared was making an investigation
on my own account and was likely to learn the
| plans of the Fusionists, and, not knowing
| how much l might already have ascertained,
| was anxious to prevent premature publiea-
| ton of the plot. In the conversation with me,
| he said he knew all l wanted was the news,
| and that If / would keep my hands off | should
| have all the details for publication as soon as
| any other journalist, and he offered to give me
| anorder upon the person who received the in
| formation as it was collected in Maine which
| would enable me to obtain and print it as early
| as any other correspondent. He wanted to
prevent me from exposing the whole plot in
| advance"
"Did he tell you who were present at the
| conference?"
"He did not, except that persons interested
in the Presidential campaign of next year were
| very anxious to overthrow the Republicans in
| Maine this year."
AIMING FOR THE ELECTORAL VOTE.
''Did you infer from what he told you that
Mr.. Tilden's friends in New York were the in
terested persons referred to?"
II am not sure whether he made an explicit
statement to that effect or not; but the inn
preston left me was that Mr.. Tilden's friends
in New York and Boston furnished the money
| to carry on the investigation. In many con-
VefSdtlOllS WHICH lOOk place On StNSTdl udyS ilG
discussed at length the effect the overthrow Of
| the Republicans in Maine would have on the
| Presidential election next year, and said that
the moving purpose was really to secure the
electoral vote of Maine for another than the
Democratic candidate in 1880"
''What do you mean by saying that it was
the intention to secure the electoral vote of
Maine for another than the Democratic can
didate'?"
''I had expressed grave doubts as to the
ability of the Fusionists, under any circum-
stances, to get the electoral vote of Maine for
the Democratic Presidential candidate To
this he replied: '"That is very true, but we
shall have third candidate, Greenbacker,
and the present coalition between the Demo-
Gratis and Greenbackers is to be kept up. Don't
you see that it will help the Democratic candi-
date next year almost as much to give the vote
of Maine to a Greenbacker as to Democrat?
And even if tho Fusionists should fail to carry
the State for a Greenbacker, a duplicate set Of
returns might be forwarded to Washington,
upon which the Democratic Congress might
base some action which would be advantage
Gus to the Democratic party.
"During your conversation with this gentle
man., did he tell you that the Governor and
Council could be relied upon to perform their
part of the work?'
80 yes. He said there was perfect under
standing; for you know, he said joklngly,
that shrewd politicians, such as we have, do
not put up their money without knowing what
they are going to get
''Then you understood from what he told you
that the decision of the Governor and Council
| was. in fact, already made, even before the
| character of the evidence then being collected
| was known, and that the evidence was to be
| used simply as a justification of the Governor
| and Council in what they had already deter
mined to do?,' -......s..--s.
was being collected by detectives for a two
| fold purpose. First, it was to be published for
| the purpose of throwing discredit upon the Re-
| publican leaders in Maine, and especially upon
| Senator Blaine, and to create public senti-
| mems, if possible, that would justify the action
| of the Governor and Council Secondly, the
| evidence of alleged fraud, corruption and civ
| ilized intimidation, as they call it, was to be
used by the Governor and Council as pre-
text for going behind the returns and refusing
to give certificates to enough Republican mem-
bers to transfer to the fusonsts control of both
branches of the Legislature"
'During your conversation with this gentle
man, or with leading fusionsts of Maine, was
it ever intimated that the Republican majority
was to be destroyed by throwing out votes on
account of fatal technical defects in the re-
turns themselves
n '"There was never such an intimation. That
branch of the plot was managed by Others"
Ibid this gentleman ever express to you any
opinion as TO the legal right of the Governor
and Council to go behind the returns, and act
upon them judicially?"
so, yesl We discussed that question pretty
fully, and he maintained that the Governor
and Council had such right, and said that
they intended to go behind the returns II nee
essary He said they had any quantity OF Re
publican precedents to justify such action, and
that they had State official then looking up
the Republican precedents for such action
He mentioned two or three instances in which,
he claimed, the Republican Governor and
Council of Maine had previously exercised the
powers of q Returning Board.
BOSTON AND NEw-YoRK POLITICIANS INTER-
EsTED.
''What further details did this gentleman
give you?"
''He said that the detectives who were col
lecting evidence in Maine were experts from
New-York and Boston, and were paid with the
money collected from politicians III Boston and
New-York who were interested in the result
on account of its bearing on next year relec-
ton. He complained of a lack of money suf-
ficient to make the investigations as thorough
| as they would like, and said that they could
| apply to only few men, because they could
not reveal TO many people what their plans
really were.'
| er person in Boston who knew the secrets OF
the fusionists, and who gave you further de-
tails about the plot to steal the vote of the
State of Maine?"
"One evening l met one of the detectives
employed in working up the case in Maine,
and he told me something about the duties he
had performed. He said that he had had
very hard time, and that he had travelled
great zeal, mostly py team, anu uIuer ulsSuisc
as o hog drover and cattle buyer, for his in
structions were to buy, beg or steal whatever
of information there was which would be use
| full to the fusionists."
''Did you, while in Boston or Augusta, hear
anything about the division of the spoils if the
| fusionist plot succeeded?"
"You know the Greenback party were ex-
tremely anxious for the control OF the State
Government, and they were willing to make
any sacrifice or commit almost any act of fraud
that would give them that control. L heard
that there was a private understanding with
the Greenbackers that Joseph l.. Smith, their
candidate for Governor, should, in case the
! Republican majority was destroyed, be elected,
| and that Governor Garcelon should be made
the Superintendent of the Insane Asylum.
| These facts did not come from one but from
| half a dozen reputable men,"
SIS there anything further that you are will
ing to say about this Boston gentleman-who
| he was etc.?'
''Only that he was the chief medium of COM
munication between the outside politicians and
| those in Maine. He was also the man who
handled the money to pay the expenses, or
good deal of it, and paid it out"