National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1880-02-17
A NATIONAL OUTRAGE.
Threatened Robbery of Minnesota
of Her VOte.i
The Scheme to Unseat Washburn and Seat
DonnelIy-A Desire To Capture Minne-
sot,s Vote for President Three
Thousand Majority to be
Wiped out - Desperate
Democrats, Sc, SC.
A Desperate aud Revolutionary Design.

A Desperate and Revolutionary Design.
The Minnesota papers received mn intma-
ton OH last Thursday that the Democratic
TO whom was referred the contest of Donnclly
VS.. Washburn, of the Third Congressional
district OF Minnesota, had determined 10 nm
scat Washburn and TO seat Donnelly, although
he failed of an election by over 5000 majority
against him. The following extracts from the
leading daily papers of Minnesota concerning
this unparalleled Outrage show how tho case
Is regarded in that State:
[FRoM TIE ST. PAUL PIONEER PREss QSD) 13rH.I
DoNNELLY's CONTEST.
1t is hardly conceivable that even the dcs.
perate majority of the present House Of Rep.
resentatives should discover a pretext upon
which TO unseat member of Congress elected
by q majority of 5000 votes. Hero IN Min
nesota II has been customary TO treat Don
nelly's alleged contest as joke or piece of
speculation. By spending the winter in Wash
ington and receiving the usual appropriation
TO rejected contestants, MIR. Donnelly could
make his time more profitable than by follow
ing any Of his known vocatons Mt home.
Very few people took his contest more
seriously than this, Donnolly at home is one
thing however, and Donnelly In Washington is
another. If the great man of a county shrinks
to microscopic dimensions In Washington IL
occasionally happens that very Insignificant
person at home gains an altogether unacc0unt-
able importance upon being transported to the
Capital Tho Democratic members of the sub
committee of the House Committee on Elcc
tiuns are actually trying to take Donnelly Sc
riously. His case has been nominally before
the Committee on Elections for some time, but
has attracted only q langud sort of interest.
few perfunctory arguments have boon made,
and the case has been left, as it was generally
supposed, to sluniber in the pigeOn.holes of the
committee. II seems, however, the Democratic
members of the subcommittee to which the
Donuelly case belongs have neither allowed tho
case to sleep nor have slept themselves. With
out consulting with the representative of the
minority or making any apparent sign oftheir
action, they have prepared report unseating
Washburn, with 5000 majority at his back,
and giving his place to DoDnelly. They reach
this result by the same process Of reasoning
that enabled Garcelon to count In Demo-
cratic legislature in Maine. They deliberately
throw ou, the entire vote Of Minneapolis, be-
cause some technicalitics of balOting were not
IN accordance with the decision of the Supreme
court of Minnesota upon quite another case,
and they got rid of the rest of tho three
thousand majority for Washburn by rejecting
O number of districts on the pretoxt of bribery
because he paid his election expenses in
stead of dead debating them.
This report of the Democrats Of the sub-com-
mittce has only a speculative interest at pres
ent as curious illustration of what PARTISAN
ship is capable of. To become effective il
must bo accepted by the full committee and
by tho House. The dispatch published this
morning indicates that action upon the case
will not be hurried. There are good many
decent Democrats in the House, and perhaps
few in the Committee on Elections. 1t
would be different matter for tho strictesJ
party discipline to dragOon these into voting
to sustain such an absurd report MS this.
[FRoM THE ST. PAUL DISPATCH tRep.l, 12th.1
PROPOSED OUTRAGE.
The following telegram from lgnatius Dom
nelly to his pet newspaper, the st. Paul DdHy
Globe is printed cOnspcuously in this morn
ings issue of that interesting sheet:
"WAsHINGToN, D. c., Feb. 1.-THE sub.
committee of the House Committee on Eco.
tions, having charge of the Donnelly. Wash
burn case will meet on Friday next and will
decide three to two in favor of unseating
Washburn and seating Donnelly. They will
report to tho full committee Tuesday, and the
case will be tried 10 the House next week."
Special kilograms to other papers and pri-
vate information received Mt the Dispatch
Office confirm the first part of the statement.
As to what the report of the full committee
will be, or MS to what will be the final decision
Of the House, Of course no one can predict with
obtained by Mr.. Donnelly In the poisonous
subcommittee of Ave, does not argue very
well for his ultimate success. STILL with q
Democratic committee on elections and with a
Democratic Congress- all things infamous are
possible Hence, rs We remarked some weeks
since, the Republicans of the Third Congress.
sional district of Minnesota msy MS well pre-
pare their minds for the possible contempla'
tion of the monumental political outrage OF
the nineteenth century,
For the unseatng of Washburn, whether
Donnelly bo seated or not, would Transcend in
sublimity OF impudenco and profundity oil
diabolism any achievement in that line
which ever the wretchcd, rotten Democratic
party has ever attempted.
Think of i'll
A dead-bcat, bankrupt political adventurcr,
who resides in the Second district, where, as
the event showed, there was some prospect OF
eloCting q Democrat to Congress, had been
ropudiated aud spewed out by that party, and
crossed over into the Third district, where the
reliable Republican majority has ranged from
1000 to 10000; forces himself upon the Demo.
cratic convention; runs mad campaign OF
lies and demagoguery; gets fairly beaten by
5000 MAJ jority; trumps up contest aggre'
gates mess of hearsay swash which he calls
Ovidenco borrows $40; doad-beats his way to
Washington; lays his swash before sub
committee, and gets vote Of three to two in
avor OF his admission.
And now lie stands impudcntly chuckling
Iver his victory
We cannot see tho end, But il we were ten
lines more an admirer of Mr.. WRshburn than
Re are. our highest wish for his personal ad
vantage would bo that Mr.. Donnelly should
mccod in his Infamous scheme. No more
certain method of placing the former promi
Oently upon the country us tho victim of NJ
unparalleled outrage, could bo devised by his
most ardent friends. No more certain means
Of securing for him unanimous reuOmina
Lion and 4 reelection next November by ter
Rgined.
Senator Ingalls, indicated.
The Senate Committee of Privileges ani
Elections, At an adjourned meeting held yes
terday afternoon, unanimously agreed upon
rnnOrt nXOnornting Senator InQalls from thI