The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1880-03-25
Disclosures Of Fusion Rascality.

l. "A AcSiSlatlNe SOInnllUtee IN MAINE,
having, after some difficulty, obtained
possession OF the original returns upon
which Governor Garcelon and his
fellow-conspirators 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 q 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
ltering figures, forging signatures, and
iexecuting other details If the plot, the
committee seems to be collecting the
material for a most sensational report.
\ The plea put forth by the Governor
land Council in excuse for their action
was, that the law required them to
throw out all technically defective re-
fturns; and that there was no warrant
for correcting clerical errors and in
formalities by the town records. 1t il
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
Buckfield there was 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 Au-
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
Brownfield. 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 name, or the use of wrong mid
die letter were corrected after the re-
turns reached Augusta, when the
change was necessary to elect a 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
OohCSUOlO, tHC pdDtIS WcIC Scub W luC
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 a
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 ap-
pears to have been substituted for the
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, a man named
Bowler; and he confesses that he made
out a 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 A. 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 candidate; the
town records show the same thing; and
the alterations in the first tabulation are
plainly visible. 1t would not be sur
prising if criminal prosecutions of some
of the Fusionist politicians should follow
the legislative inquiry.
One of the most active persons in the
plot was Frank NJ. Fogg, of the Gov
ernor's Council; and some interesting
letters addressed to him were among
the documents recently discovered at
Augusta. 1t 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.-M. Y. Tribune.