The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1880-01-01
MAINE N LOUISIANA.

The Republican editor who sits
down and indites an editorial de-
nouncing the action of Gov. GARcE-
LON of Maine, in his disposal of the
election returns in that State, as
"villainous" and an outrage" and
in the same breath justifes the Loui-
siana scoundrelism, is a narrow, big
oted party slave, or an ass of the
greatest magnitude. In the[Maine
canvass Gov. GARcELoN cites the
Constitution and laws of the State,
and proves that he has been guided
thereby in the whole matter, while
in the Louisiana and Florida cases,
nothing of the kind was done. The
Maine canvass was made in accord
ance With the "forms of law" but
the Louisiana count was against
law, honor or decency, and nobody
knows this better than the blatant
HAMLIN and the rampant, clustering
and cowardly jim BLAINE. To be
sure, as the New York Sun remarks,
the law did give the Returning
Board power to determine judicially
concerning the validity of polls
where intimidation or violence pre-
vailed and materially affected the
result. But no such questions arose
in regard to that election. No such
question could arise except upon the
certificate of the supervisor, support
ed by the affidavits of three electors,
transmitted with and attached to
the returns; and in no single in
stance were such certificates or aft
davits made. The election was alb
solutely peaceful. There was nc
charge or suspicion of riot or bull.
doing. There vas not even q knock
down reported from end to end Of
the State. Although the State and
Federal officials and the election Of
fcers were all Republicans, and
were supplemented by deputy mar
shals and soldiers, not a single ar
rest was made on that day. Tht
returns, made out by Republican of
%ficials, we're regular, formal,ean un
.eontested, and they footed up from
eight to ten thousand majority TO,
TILDEN electors. The Returning
Board had no power or right to in
stitute any inquiry concerning an!
J one of these thousands of votes, be
cause from not one parish or pre-
cinct did the accusing certificate o
, the supervisor and the necessary al
idavits Of three electors accompan,
the return. But the Fraud was OF
dained; the visiting statesmen wer
on the ground to witness and encour
age it; the hope of wealth and office
and the promise of protection, wer
held out to the four knaves who ha
the votes in their clutches; and te
thousand citizens of Louisiana wer
disfranchised by a tribunal whic,
had no jurisdiction to hear-a charge
much less to exclude n vote.
N--
There is no kind of similtude be
tween that case in Louisiana an
this case in Maine. WELLS an
the notorious rogues associated wit
, him threw cut the TILDEN votes al
} %bitrarily, corruptly, and in the yer
teeth of the law which made them
Returning Board. Gov. GARoELo
and his Council, on the other hant
reject Mr.. BLAINE's returns becaus
they are "fatally defective" nc
merely irregular, but illegal, again:
, the statute, and barred by the Cor
stitution. What else could they dc
Were they to admit returns whic
were not returns? Were the Const
tuition and the laws Of Maine to /
set aside in order to put Mr.BLA1NE
I friends in office? Or weretFhe, Stat
officers bound in this, as in oil 9th,
instances, to obey theiroaths and 4
their sworn duty? They did NO
T. like WELLS and ANDERSON, unde
take to inquire into the charges
+ bribery and intimidation, becaus
e ike WELLS, they had 70 legal rigl
e to do that. Had the case been OIL
1 erwise, however, and had the law d
rected them to deal ~judicially wit
these questions, the judgment won.
certainly hsve cut deeper and hu
W orse. MI. BLAINE should be than
full that he comes off so easily; l
should, at all events, compose hin
v self sufficiently to speak the trut
b when he has SO little to gain by pc
verting it.
sSs-
The Senate will be Democrat
certainly until after the 4th
March, 1883. What about tt
uo,ao of -bo,