St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-09-17
THE ELECTION IN MAINE.
A Very Close Vote.
THE RESULT IN DOUBT.


The election in Maine on Monday
last, was one of the most exciting and
extraordinary that ever took place in
that, or any other northern state. The
election was for five Representatives to
Congress. a Governor for two years,
thirty-on state Senators, one hundred
and fifty-one Representatives in the
Legislature, and county officers in six
teen counties, besides voting on two
amendments to the constitution of the
state.
Dispatches up to Wednesday, state
that an official count would be necessa-
ry to decision. But enough is already
will be largely Republican, and that
three of the five Congressman chosen
will be Republicans. The Boston
Journal states that Reed, in the First
District has 147 majority; Fry in the
Second, 1900 and Lindsey in the Third
not far from 500.
Ladd, (Fusion) is elected by about
1900, and Murch by about 800 MAORI
ty.
324 towns give Davis, Republican,
63,44O; Plaisted, Fusionist, 6I,O97 !;
scattering, 316. The same towns last
year gave Davis O,O85; Smith, sc, 753 !;
Garcelon, 18, 1862; scattering, 254. Da-
Wis majority is 2037 against I7l6 last
year-a Republican gain of 321. At
midnight, Tuesday, there were still
over IFS towns to be heard from, most
ly small and remote places.
So far as anything is known as we go
to press, the Fusion party, or more
properly the Democratic party, have
carried the election by small MAORI
ty. While we are sorry that things
have gone this way, we are not inclined
to howl over the matter, for perhaps it
is the best thing that could happen for
final Republican success. The first bat
tie of Bull Run at first seemed like a
terrible defeat; but there is no doubt,
horrid as it appeard, but it was bless
ing in the long run. And so we are dis
posed to look at this case in Maine.
The action here, we hope, will redOuble
the Republican effort in other doubtful
states, and cause signal triumph of
the party next November. We have
thought all along, in a state where the
vote has been so close, that Republicans
were little too confident. and have
Dragged little too much about big ma
jorities. 1t is true, we had hoped for
better things, yet it is not as bad as it
might be after all. The Legislature
will be Republican in both branches,
and three out of the five Congressman
will be Republicans.
There is really only one strange thing
about this whole matter, and that is,
how the people of Maine could ever al
low such proceedings in the face and
eyes of all that happened there last
year! No one pretends to deny but the
Garcelon works were a disgrace, not
only to Maine, but to the whole country.
1t looks to us as though the trouble
here has been chiefly caused by the
Democracy outside of the state, and
we think it will sometime so be seen.
The Fusion party is only weak mon
grel at best, and it has never made all
this hullabaloo alone. Evidently there
is something rotten in Denmark" but
if the skirts of the Republican leaders
are clean in these matters, we ought to
be thankful for so much. But let us
just say here, and we ask the candid
reader to keep it in remembrance, that
the Democratic party in this country is
tremendously desperate, and they will
leave nothing unturned to carry their
ends. If things cannot be carried by
fair means they will be by foul.
The following dispatch from Mr..
Blaine to Gen. Garfield, explains the
situation somewhat:
AUGUSTA, Me-, Sept. IA, 1880.
Gen. James A. Garfield, Mentor, Ohio.
The net result of yesterdays election
as nearly as can be stated at this hour
q pm. Tuesday, is about as follows
The republicans have carried the first
second and third congressional districts,
while the fusionists have carried the
fourth and fifth. The republicans have
carried both branches of the legislature
by a strong majority, reaching perhaps
two-thirds of each house. On the pop
ular vote for governor, Davis and Plais-
ted have each over $4,000 votes, with
the probabilities in favor of Plaisted
coming out few hundred, perhaps a
thousand, ahead. The result is unde-
niably surprise to US, and equally Sc
to the mass of the democratic party in
Maine. Our canvass was never more
accurately taken, and it showed or
Wednesday last total vote for Davis
of a triBe over 10000, with an assured
majority of 5000 at the minimum. In
the four days preceding the election we
lost 1000 votes by means well known
to the managers of the national demo.
cratic campaign, and which do not call
for further specification from me. The
total cost is variously estimated at from
$4,000 to 500, 900, and the money al
came from beyond the State. Sucl
scenes were never before witnessed il
Maine. j. G. BLAINE.