The Portland daily press., 1880-03-19
ALTERATION AND SUBSTlTU-
TI0N 0F RETURNS PROVED.
Suits Against Garceloneand Pills
bury Recommended.
The Minority Substantially Admit the
Councils Villainy.
ITO the Associated Press.l

The Hale committee on counting out report
ed this afternoon. After recapitulating he
result of the election and the circumstances of
the count the report says the returns were re-
ferred to the election committee October 2Sth
and the unusual course taken of adding two
members, indicating apparently that some un-
common burden was to be laid on them. Moody
the chairman, disliked this addition and surren-
dered the custody of the returns to Fogg. Up
to Nov. 18th this committee had exclusive con-
troll of the returns, which they opened, and
with Pishon's help tabulated. Nov. 18th q
Republican committee applied for permission
to inspect the returns, which was refused
Nov. 22d the Council voted to hear parties
from Dec. LIST, but no Republican saw the re-
turns till Dec. 9th The final tabulations and
lists made by the Governor and Council are
marked with erasures and substitutions show
ing the steps by which the conclusions were
reached and affording evidence of crooked
ness. The first report drawn up shows re-
peated cases of erasures, interlineations and
substitutions which were made before the list
could suit and so that it should show the
requisite number of representatives of the
right stamp. In the Gouldsboro district the
substitution was such an outrage that an in
terrOgation mark was inserted. The corrected
returns are in all cases made out on official
blanks, but in all cases the envelopes which
would show at what date the returns were re-
ceived are missing.
A sufficient number of cases have been ex-
amined to establish the fact beyond contro-
versy that this ipractice of suppressing defec-
tive returns from places giving Fusion majori-
ties and the substitution of others by the
Governor and Council for the purpose of re-
iecting certain returns disclosing Republican
majorities was resorted to-where it was found
to be necessary to the election of Fusion men,
bers The testimony in the cases of JonesborO,
Fairfield, Gouldshoro, Hebron, Berwick, Day
ton, Wells, Brownfeld, Buckfeld, Perkins,
&C., is then reviewed. The committee cannot
avoid the conclusion that these suppressions
and substitutiOns, eraSureS and forgeries We re
made in the chamber of the Governor and
Council at Augusta. The blanks used were
official, the returns were sent to the Secretary
OF State and their contents known to the Off
Gals. The erasures indicate o well-defned
plan. If any of these officials shut his eyes to
what was going on he must have been wilfully
negligent. The contingent must have been
the result of a premiditated conspiracy. The
secrecy was unprecedented. as heretofore the
retarnS and canvass have been open to public
inspection. No Republicans was allowed to
see returns or know the facts until the result
had been determined. All the alterations and
substitntions were made before the canvass
was completed as the results are based on
the changes.
were securing corrections of their returns on
information that mnst have been furnished
from the State House. James r. Talbot testi-
fes heireceived such information from Adiu-
tant General Leavitt. The conspiracy must
have had its seat at Augusta.
The committee review the improper use of
public money under the late Governor and
Council and show serious dereliction of duty
on their part. Money belonging to the State
is now illegally held by the late Governor
and has been paid to E. f. Pillsbury and B.
F. Lancaster without any vouchers. The
attention of the Attorney General is call
ed to this, and he is asked to take measures to
protect the public interests. The committee
say they have requested the attendance of all
the officials and clerks. Only ex-Gov. Garce-
The others have avoided or excused them
selves.
OF Gov. Garcelon the committee say that he
seemed ready to>diSclOSe everything that he
knew. His memory was at times infrm and
when confronted with acts on his part for
which he had no warrant of law he failed to
give satisfactory reason for his course, He
is shown clearly to have become committed to
a course beset with infraction and bold viola
tions of law, and to have shrank at nothing in
pursuing that course He turned deaf ear to
all the applications of legally elected mem
the law and facts. In accordance with this
spirit of perversity was the refusal to
accept the first opinion of the court, which he
solicited. Notwithstanding he had every op-
portunity to know the facts and his official
position required this, yet he has constantly
defended the counting out and even boasted Of
it. But when the evidence was laid before
him he ceased to longer defend it, passonately
declared his own innocence, and declared that
Judas among the Council had done the vii
lainy. In conclusion the committee say:
l. That the returns were kept from candi-
dates contrary tn usage.
2. That during such time alterations, eras-
ures and forgeries were made upon them for
the purpose of counting out Republicans.
3. That during this time defects in Fusion
returns were surreptitiously corrected and
affidavits secured to throw out Republican
towns.
4. In all such cases the results invariably
counted out Republican candidates and count
ed in Fusion candidates.
5. This result was reached by refusing to
allow Republican errors to be corrected.
8. The rules laid down were strictly applied
to reject Republican returns and not applied
to count out Fusion returns.
Z. Many of these rnles we're evidently in
voked to secure Fusion legislature.
8. These illegal and fraudulent acts were
Governor and legislature, and the Governor
and Council must have been parties to it,
9. The different appropriations by the legis-
lature have been diverted from their light
mate purposes and in many cases have been
exhausted. The public funds hav g been with
drawn from the treasury by Gov. Garcelon
and his council without warrant of CLAW and
have been applied to unauthorized purposes
and for unlawful ends. A large sum of money
belonging to the State remains in the hands of
Gov Garcelon and other officials of last
year, which should be recovered back into the
treasury. The recklessness of management
disclosed in the transactions of last year tends
to destroy the public confidence, undermine
the public credit and to introduce practices
which if unrebuked will prove fatal to the fu-
ture prosperity and progress of the State.
ANDREW HAwEs,
AUSTIN HARRIS,
EUGENE HALE,
A. A. STROUT,
CHAs. V. LORD, of the House.
CHAs. G. SPRINGER,
SILAs w. COCK,
Minority Report.
The undersigned a minority of the commit
tee of investigation appointed by virtue of an
order Of the House dated Feb. 5, 1880, beg
leave to submit the following brief minority
report:
Silence on the part of the undersigned would
be construed as an assent to all the positions
and conclusions of the majority report as we'll
as the statement of facts The undersigned
are unwilling and unable to give their assent
to all of the arguments and conclusions of
such majority report though they connot deny
that the recital of facts in the report is SUBJ
in accordance with the evidence
Mr.. Moody of the Council of Gov Garcelon
was before the committee but he failed to ex-
plain the Irregularities which had been proved.
Gov. Garcelon also testified at a later period
N the investigation that he had no previous
of much which had been shown by
testimony to need explanation. A letter
courteous in its language was addressed by the
clerk of the committee to each of the other
members of Garcelon's council saying that an
opportunity would be given them to appear
and testify. The undersigned regret that the
members Of the Council have not seen fit to
appear and explain the Irregularities which
eem to exist. The evidence being uncon-
radicted the undersigned cannot make
lenial of the facts proved by it and can only
withhold their assent to the conclusions ar
lived at by a majority of the committee.
(Signed) HENRY INGALLS,,
GEO. F. HILL.
Both branches of the Legislature authorized
he printing of large number of copies of
both reports and also authorized the Hale
committee to sit after adjournment of the
legislature.
The Newfoundland Fisheries.