The silver state. [volume] (Unionville, Nev.) 1870-1903, 1879-12-26
THE MAINE QUESTION.

Reports from the East indicate tina:
two State Governments, each claiming
to be the legitimate one, will be set up
Ill Maine, after the fashion introduced
Ivy Louisiana. 1t is intimated that TIE
President will sustain one and Congress
the other. Members of Congress cite in
support of their position that Congress
alone has the right to decide which is
the legal one, the speech of Senator
Morton on the Electoral Commission
bill, in which he took the ground that
Congress has the right to decide be-
tween dual Governments in State,
d and supported it by the following ex-
tract from the Supreme Court in the
case of Luther VS.. Borden.
''Under the Constitution, it rests
with Congress what government is the
established one in State, for the unit
ed government and Congress must de-
termine what government is established
in STATE before it can decide whether
it is republican or not. F."
It has been intimated that the pre-
cedent established by the Electoral
Commission, in refusing to go behind
the returns from Louisiana and Florida
at the time of the Presidential election
in 1876, would result in serious compli-
cations. 1t was generally believed,
however, that no such emergency would
again arise, and that the votes Of quail
fed electors, not returning boards,
thereafter, as before, would decide the re-
suit of elections. Now, the fallacy of this
, belief is made apparent in another Sec
tion of the Onion. The Governor and
Council of Maine, who issued certiti-
Gates of election to candidates who
did not receive majorities at the
polls, claim to have acted in
accordance with the laws and Con-
VI b.tC 6UdOC. Ills CIetiul IL
will be observed is precisely similar to
that set up in defense of the action of
the Louisiana Returning Board. That
claim was approved by the Republicans
as the claims of the Maine Board of
Canvassers is supported by Democrats.
The latter believed that a great wrong
was perpetrated in Louisiana, and
PRESIDENT who was not elected. counted
in by the electoral vote of that State.
The former hold that an outrage has
been perpetrated by. the Governor of
Maine in counting in members of the
L,gisl lture WHO were Dictated by the
people. The people do not believe that
politicians who have control of the re-
tarns should subvert the win of the ma
jority, as expressed at the polls, but the
politicians claim in both cases that they
are authorized by law to do so. Wish
these facts staring them in the face, is
it not time that the people, independent
of party shonld condemn snch out
RACES on their rights No law that
permits half dozen partisans to change
the result of an election should be per-
-m;tted to, disgrace the statutes of the
State in country that boasts Of
Republican form of Government, where
the will of the majority has, until of
late years, always been respected. 1t is
not sufficient for one party to denounce
the Louisiana infamy and attempt to
justify the Maine outrage, AMI for the
other to condemn the Maine infamy
and justify the Louisiana OUTRAGE, but,
irrespective of party, brand such des-
spotism with the seal of their disproval,
and declare emphatically. that despite
the efforts of scheming politicians the
will of the majority as legally expressed
at the ballot box, shall be RESPECTED