The Portland daily press., 1880-03-17
Boston Advertiser.
Another Innocent.


ried on in his own house and under his very
nose has been more than matched. In all that
qualities person to be an unsuspecting and
confdng instrument in the hands of wicked
men, nobody has appeared who can "hold
candle" to Ex-Governor Garcelon of Maine. 1t
is to be hoped that Mr. Hale will find words
adequately to set forth before the people of the
State the delightfully."- simple and trusting ma
ture of the gentleman who was their Governor
last year, but we doubt if the thing can be done
properly. If we take Governor Garcelons
word for it, he is now learning for the first
time that there was fraud of the most open and
disgraceful character in making up the returns
of the last September election. But he has
learned it. He has admitted that the rules
which were supposed to govern the Governor
and Council in making up the result were not
followed when the consequences would be in
convenient to his own party. Let US endeavor
to construct from the Governors own testimo-
ny a statement of his connection with the
count,out.
He supposed, after the election, that the Re-
publicans had carried the State. AT the Octo-
Der meeting of the Council he added two mem
bers to the committee on elections, because
''the general impression about the State seemed
to be that the committee, as originally made
up, were hardly we'll known and reliable men
enough for this important trust" He saw and
heard talk to the effect that there was to be
counting OUT but II took no cognizance of
it, any more than would of the idle whstling
of the wind.' He went to Augusta and found
some excitement prevailing Thinking the
requests to see the returns were improper, he
refused them. Afterward it was voted that,
under certain restrictions, the returns might
be examined, but only one Republican was al
lowed the privilege, the reason being that he
"behaved in gentlemanly manner" The pre-
sumption is, of course, that others were ungen-
tlemanly. Meantime the returns had been
tabulated and the lists made up. Governor
Garcelon, having full faith in his Council, dis
regarding all the requests that were made that
there should be real examination of the cases
where Republicans alleged that the arbitrary
rules of the Council had been wantonly disre
garded, approved the list, and certificates were
issued. Then the Governor went up and down
the State, declaring that the duty of counting
the returns had been performed carefully and
faithfully, and that he was proud of what he
had done. On the 2Sth December he told those
who went to hear him in his own city OF Lew
iston, that he had done things which it now
turns out he had not done.
In such matter as this it is best to be specif-
ic. One case out of many will suffice. In one
of the Aroostook county districts the candi-
dates were Alfred Cushman, Greenbacker, and
j. Burnham, Republican. The return from
one town spelled the name of the Republican
candidate Burnam, and was rejected. The re-
turn from another town spelled Mr.. Cushman's
first name Afford, and was counted. If both
had been counted or both rejected, Mr.. Burn
ham would have been elected. The fact that
a certain rule had been followed in one case
and disregarded in another was known. 1t was
in the power of Governor Garcelon to find out
in three minutes whether the charge was true
or false, but such was his faith in his Council
that he did not even look to see what was the
truth, but traversed the State affirming what
now turns out to be untrue. This case was on
ly one of a score There was but one rule es-
tablished by the Council which was not disre-
garded for the benefit of Fusionists, and that
related to the cities which were all Republican.
The Governor now admits that he was de-
ceived. He has seen the return from the town
of Somerville, which was counted, and knows
that all the signatures are in one handwriting,
that of the clerk who affixed them as he him
self testifies. He has seen other returns where
names were wrongly spelled, but were counted
nevertheless. The Fairfield return, which he
never examined before, gives evidence OF hav-
ing been tampered with, which Twas gross
VIOLATION OF rlgnt. he even goes SO iar DIS 70
say that he now supposes the reason why rule
followed in one case was disregarded in anoth-
er was ''to get representatives of the right
stamp"
Governor Garcelon counts for very little in
this matter. When he said on Friday, 81 sup
posed that was acting honestly and intelli-
gently, although have been called natural
born fool by the opposition papers" he sug-
gests the most charitable explanation of his
conduct. He had ample opportunity, to know
that majority of the people believed a great
wrong was in contemplation. He knew that
specific wrong acts were charged. He could
discover the truth about any one of the cases
without calling witness He did nothing OF
the sort, but permitted the wrong to be done,
assumed the responsibility for it, proclaimed
that it was right; and now with what cannot
be pleasing SURPRISE" confesses that his in
nocent trustfulness was his ruin. Perhaps he
would rather admit, also, that the opposition
papers have described him correctly than to
take the only other alternative.