Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1879-03-14
POTTER COMMITTEE REPORTS.
Minority Report.

Committee, Hiscock, Cox and Reed, presented
their report this afternoon. In it they dissent
from the views presented In the report of the
majority, both as to the peTtinence of the
same to the investigation and to the conclu-
sions expressed upon the testimony taken.
| They then referred to the origin Of the com
mittee, pointing out that the original esolu-
tions for It's appointment did not ask for gen
| eral investigation of all frauds connected
with the last Presidential election, but only
what might be found in the acts of officials
and persons of one political party in only two
| Of the States in which fraudulent practices
were charged. They took this view in the
| committee and treated the investigation as
one wholly unnecessary, made without proba-
! BILE cause so far as the individuals named were
aimed at, and likely to add nothing Of value
! to the public information on the general sub.
| iect. They confined themselves, therefore, to
the task OF trying to make the inquiries insti-
| tuted by the majority something more than
| Democratic investigation of Republicans,
| so that whatever was put before the world
might have some of the elements of an ex-
! animation OF both sides. This would eX-
plain why they did not move for original
| Inquiries beyond those commenced by the
majority, and did not ask for new inves-
LEGATIONS of the frauds In Oregon, South
| Carolina, Mississippi, and the other States.
When the Florida investigation was be-
| gun they offered a resolution that alleged
| frauds at the ballot-bcx, as well as those
charged upon the canvassers and Returning
officers should be examined This was voted
| down by the majority, although it was mat
| ter OF notoriety, and was by them brought to
the attention of the majority, that both kinds
| of charges we're made. They understood the
majority to base their action upon the limita-
tions they thought were put to the investiga-
| tion by the original resolutions and did not
quarrel with their judgment, though this would
| show the original resolutions to be unfair and
| partisan in their character. They have con-
Quoted the examination on the interpreta-
lone NHrN1 IlV,N
and what they desire most emphatcally to
dissent from was the action of the majority
| in affecting to report for whom the vote OF
| Florida was actually given, after they have
thus refused to examine both sides Of that
| very question.
While their work was in progress a publ
| cation was then made in a leading Journal of
cipher dispatches. The startling character of
the revelations made in the action of the
minority appears singular In this case, but
| they quietly waited to see what course the
majority would feel it necessary to take.
They had learned that the majority treated
esss hes pttr g9G 65r Of H 90
regard it. A report upon the frauds of Flori-
da with the cipher dispatches omitted
would be like the play of Hamlet with
Hamlet left out: The facts were too
notorious to be left out, and therefore
they dissented from the method of
making up the report suggested by the other
side. The majority report that they would
have preferred to sit with closed doors, but
yielded to the wish of the minority. This was
| true, and they saw no reason to regret their
course. They thought the same also of the
cipher investigation, that publicity was
necessary, and that the public Judgment is
| just. Upon the cipher dispatch investigation,
the minority report that they present their
views under the disadvantage of not possess
ing any indication of what the views of the
majority will be. They would confne them
selves to the investigation they themselves
had made, with regard to which it might fair
| ly be said that the whole investigation rested
upon what the enterprise and wonderful skill
of the translator brought to light. The orig
inal subject of their investigation was the
honesty or dishonesty of the election in Flor
ida, Louisiana and South Carolina for two
years prior to October, 1878. Mr.. Tilden and
his agents, in season and out of season, had
iterated and reiterated charges that the Can
vassing Boards of the doubtful States had
acted fraudulently and corruptly in discharge
of sworn duties If these charges had been
fortified by any proof the characters of those
who made the charges would be of no conse-
quence whatever. But in fact the whole in
| vestigaton, with its 5000 pages of hearsay
and falsehood, had not afforded the slightest
proof of what was asserted. No man had
come forward to say that any bribe was ac
cepted, or that any member of any Canvass
ing Board indicated any desire to betray his
trust Every intimation of that kind had
been traced to some Democrat and there ends,
and that Democrat had never been brought
before them. Mr. Mcl4in, to whose testimony
Mr.. Tilden referred, although goaded by sick
ness and imaginary wrongs, never for mo-
ment admitted improper conduct at the time.
He only thinks from after knowledge that he
may have been mistaken.
AS to the South Carolina Board, the full,
free and uncontradicted testimony of Mr..
Dunn satisfied every man who heard it of the
absence of fraud in South Carolina. These
charges, then, of fraud and corruption with
] which Til1an re nod hn air p
were nothing but the unsupported assertions
of litigants, against whom the courts have de.
cided.
The next question to be considered was
whether either the Florida or South Carolina
Returning Boards were for sale. The South
Carolina part is quickly disposed of. The tes-
timony of Dunn, uncontradicted, clearly shows
that Smith Weed was played with by shrewder
men than himself for purposes entirely proper,
and in a manner entirely justihable. AS to
Florida, Woolley had not been called, and
Marble had probably not given the full facts
of his attempt SO far, however, as he indi-
Gated the source Of his proposition (or dan
ger signals"), it ended this way Mr.. Dyke,
the party named telegraphs that he never
knew anything aboutit himself. He was told
by Mr. Robertson that Republican Con-
gresham said they could be bought. Mar
ble's statement amounts then to this: A man
told him that man told him that third
man told him that the Canvassing Board
could be bought. This may not he consistent
with his preparations for bribery, but 1t is all
the evidence he vouchsafed. The truth was
that all this clamor about fraud was made be-
cause the canvass changed the "face of the
returns.n Now there was nothing sacred
about the "face of the returns" The very
existence Of the Canvassing Board implies
that the face of the returns are not safeguard
or final arbiter of elections. In Florida the
"face of the returns gave but ninety-one ma
iority to Tilden on their most favorable con-
struction. The fact that the final count gave
the State tie other way surely could be nc
ground for charging corruption without other
evidence. AS to whether there were any Re
publican dispatches similar in character tC
those Of 1flden's agents the report says there
J is little evidence on which such an inquiry
can be founded. But from the first there has
been going on a kind of shadow hunt fol
some dispatches supposed to be destroyed
This hunt has not been successful.
In reference TO the election in Florida the
report reads: 1.-THE Democratic party wa
composed in main of native white voters o.
Florida. On one side was arrayed the North
ern emigrants, many of whom were UnioT
soldiers, and the lately enslaved coloreC
men; on the other side the former masters
Confederate soldiers, or contributors to thu
lost cause, and II Florida elected TildeI
Electors the colored men must be wol
} to their support, and we desire most EN-
phatically to deny that it was even at
tempted by peaceful methods, Resolution
of conventions for Northern consumption
n were passed, but fraud and violence were re
a sorted TO and even death inflicted. We asser
! that the supporters of Tilden to carry tina
election did resort to the most open illega
voting, fraud, and personal Violence" Afte
reciting the duties of the Returning Boar
j the report goes on to criticise the conduct q
A the Florida Board. Threats of personal vic
lence II states were made against membe
!, of the Returning Board by Democrats and h
h was followed by armed men at night to hi
= house from sessions OF the canvassers, and
/ distinguished representative of the Demo
cratic party endeavored TO influence his actio
by an offer Of money.
% AS TO the result of the Florida election
IT adopting the rule contended for by the majo
.. ity repSrt, that the Canvassing Board coul
al only canvass county returns by aggregatin
the vote appearing upon their face for the r
spectiye candidates, the Hayes Electors ha