Morning journal and courier., 1880-01-29
.rHREE TIMES AND OUT.

Inc fuSlOQ1SLS or Ma1n0 nave SQOWu uO WIS dom during the whole course of their outrageous proceedings, but they were peculiarly foolish when they asked for third opinion from the Supreme Court, as they doubtless now realize. The Court does not entertain their questions, but in view of the fact that it must know for itself whose enactmentsit will recognize as laws of binding force, whose levies of taxes 1t will enforce when brought judicially before it, whose choice of a prosecuting officer before the Court it will respect, etc., it deems 1t es- sential to decide which is the Legislature of Maine, and this it does briefly and clearly. The Court has pronounced the certificates is- sued by Garcelon to the counted-in members illegal and void on the Sd of January. This decision was not needed. Consequently the body which met on the first Wednesday in January was not legal Legislature, as no steps were taken to act in harmony with the yer dict of the Court. Moreover, the simplest laws of equity and parliamentary proceed ings were defed. Hence, there was no Legis- lature. The body which organized on the 18th of January contained 8 majority of the mem- bers prima facie elected by the people. 'No essential defects anywhere existed in this LegisIaturel, but only such departures from ordinary forms as circumstances compelled, :" and for these circumstances the fusionlsts are responsible. The Court then pronounces the judgment that 'sthe Senate whose presiding officer is the Hon. Joseph A. Locke, and the House of Representatives whose presiding officer is the Hon. George E. Weeks, consti- tute the legal and constitutional Legislature of the State" Smith says he has got through playing Governor, and will go home The rest of the fusionists who do not want to fall into the hands of the police will give up the contest, and before long all will be quiet in Maine.
 Now that the conspiracy has been crushed, it is well that the responsibility for it should be placed where it belongs and kept there. This responsibility belongs to the Demo cratic party. The purpose of the plct was to secure the electoral vote of Maine for the Democrats, or to so vitiate it as to furnish an excuse for its rejection by Congress. Their plan, if they had been permitted to control the Legislature, was, it is said, to avoid the Presidential question du- ring the regular session and provide for an adjourned session in October, under the pretence of completing the new State valua- tion At tha. session they expected to have the choice of two courses. If the September election proved a Republican deluge, rolling up majority too big to be tempered with, then they would forestall the November cleo ton by tbe Legislature taking the choice of electors away from the people and electing outright 8 full quota to cast the vote of Maine for the Democratic candidates for President and Vice President. If, however, the Sep tember elections were close enough to make the juggling of the returns feasible, the scheme would be to count in the Democratic electors in November by the same arts employed to make Legislature last month.
 The wisdom displayed by the Republican leaders in this crisis cannot be too highly commended. They have done nothing vio lent or hasty or allowed their supporters to. They have held carefully to the law in all their acts, and have steadily resisted the temptation to right matters summarily. As a conse- quence of this even Democratic Congress can find no excuse for interference in the affairs of Maine, and the victory so judicious | Jv oained is secure.