Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-03-26
The Fusion RascaIIty in Maine.


The Fusion Rascality In Maine.
A Legislative Committee in Maine,
having, after some difficulty, obtained
possession of the original returns upon
which Governor Garcelon and his
| fellOw-cOnspirator conducted their
fraudulent canvass, is making a series
of highly interesting discoveries.
When the lawful authorities moved
into the State-House, the returns were
missing. A long search resulted in
finding them hidden on top of tall
bookcase in Governor Garcelon's
private office. With the help of these
documents, the testimony of various
town officers, and the confessions of
several of the persons employed in al
| tering figures, forging signatures, and
executing other details Of the plot, the
committee seems to be collecting the
material for a most sensational report.
The plea put forth by the Governor
and Council in excuse for their action
was, that the law required them to
throw out all technically defective re-
turns; and that there was no warrant
for correcting clerical errors and in
formalities by the town records. 1t is
shown, however, by the returns, that
such corrections were made whenever
they were necessary to elect a Fusion
ist. For example, in the Town of
Buakfield there was a Fusion majority
of one hundred and thirty-two. The
Town Clerk and Selectmen all ac-
knowledged that in making up the re-
turns they forgot to fill the blanks for
the names of the town and county,
and, when the document reached Au4
gusta, there was nothing to show
whence it came. The defect was sup
piled, however, by some person un-
known, and the votes were counted.
The same thing was done with the re-
turns from the Greenback Town of
Brownheld. But, whenever similar er-
rors were committed in Republican
| towns, Governor Garcelon pronounced
the returns fatally defective" In
the same way, mistakes in the spelling
! of a name, or the use of wrong mid
die letter were corrected after the re-
turns reached Augusta, when the
change was necessary to elect Fusion
ist, but the most rigid technical accu-
racy was exacted in Republican towns.
The use of ditto marks instead of fig-
ures was one of the defects upon which
Republican returns were thrown out;
but it appears from the testimony that,
when the same irregularity was found
in the returns from the Fusion Town of
JonesbOro, the papers were sent to the
Town Clerk, and he was instructed to
make out fresh ones. Mistakes In add
ing up the total number of votes were
held TO be fatal when there was Re-
publican majority; but, in the Demo-
cratic Town of Addison, the Clerk tes-
titles that he made the blunder of add
ing together the votes of two candi-
dates on the same ticket, so that the to-
tai number Of ballots appeared to be
467 when it should have been 299, and
he was afterward required to make
new return, under threat of losing his
office if he refused.
But, besides these evidences of unfair
ness, there are disclosures of positive
fraud. In one case a blank return APP
paper actually sent. In Lincoln Coun-
ty, Andrew R. G. Smith, Republican,
was elected by a majority of one hum
dred and sixty-three over Isaac I. Hob
son, Democrat, A whole town was
thrown out but, after tabulating the
returns, it was found that Smith still
had twenty-three majority. A letter of
instructions, accompanied by a blank
return, was thereupon sent from the
Office of the Secretary of State TO the
Town Clerk of Somerville, aman named
Bowler; and he confesses that he made
out new return, and signed to it the
names of all the Selectmen, none of
whom were present or knew anything
of the transaction. In this fraudulent
return the name of the Republican can
didate was purpOsely miswritten, An
drew 4. r. Smith; and his votes were
consequently thrown out, the tabulation
being changed to correspond. The tes-
timOny of the Selectmen who signed
the original and genuine returns shows
that the ballots were correctly cast and
| counted for Andrew r. q. Smith, which
was the true name of the candidates; the
town records show the same thing; and
the alterations in the first tabulation are
Plainly visible. It would not be sur
pfising if criminal prosecutions of some
Of the Fusionist politicians should follow
the Legislative inquiry. -It l..lj
One of the most active persons in the
plot was Frank NJ. Fogg, of the Gov
ernors Council; and some interesting
letters addressed to him were among
1.-THE documents recently discovered az
Augusta, Il has always been suspected
that the Maine conspiracy was organ
lied with the aid of persons outside the
State, and Fogg is now shown to have
been in correspondence with Denis
Kearney.-N Y. Tribune.
BISHOP HUNTINGTON has declared
that the Onondaga indian reservation
is q plot on the face of the State of New
York, and bill has been introduced in
the State Assembly which proposes that
the Governor, Comptroller and State En-
| gineer and Surveyor be constituted a
commission to secure the dissolving of
the present treaty relations of the State
with the Onondaga Indians, provided
the assent of majority of the Indians
can be obtained. Should this bill be-
come law the Indians would be made
citizens of the State of New York as far