Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1881-10-28

brothers, was slightly wounded. The
others were unhurt.
WANTS TO KNOW.
Tho Circular OF Secretary Quay.
Harrisburg Patriot.
Secretary Quay is in search of valuable
political information. In circular ad-
dressed to republican committee men
throughout the state he wants to know
(irst) show many votes will be cast for
Wolfe in your county" (second) Gin
what proportion will they be taken from
the Republican, Democratic and Green
back parties" and (third) "what plural
ity will Baily have over Noble, or gics
rers0 ?" Lastly, the secretary Of the com.
monwealth urges that the reply be sent
him by November 1, and that in answering
the mterrogatory Noble be given 1.-THE
benefit Of every doubt.
Colonel Quay seeks these problemati-
cal election stats tics doubtless for the
qualification of his own curiosity As the
official statistics are deposited in the Office
of the secretary of the commonwealth he
would like to compare them after the elec-
tion with the estimates of his correspon-
dents, merely to see how near they can
come to. the true result. This is very
laudabie curiosity Oh the part of Colonel
Quay, and shows how great an interest he
takes in election statistics. He wants the
information no later than November 1.
II he got it earlier it might be subject to
subsequent modification, so rapidly is the
vote of Noble gaining in certain portions
of the state, and that of Wolfe in
others. If lie got it later he might as
we'll wait for the official returns. But
by receiving the returns on the first Of
November he will be in possession of COM
plete information concerning the election
q whole week in advance of all tho rest Of
the state. If he were 4 betting man that
kind of knowledge would be of immense
advantage to him. Cautious estimates
from fifty-twO counties more Or less,
"giving Noble the benefit OF every doubt, I"
would be- almost as useless for that pur
pose as playing "draw" with pack of
stocked" cards. It would give the pos
SCISSOR a decided advantage over an out
slider, who should act merely in accord
ancc with his wishes, political predilec-
tions, or the loose hints that he might
gather. But Of course the secretary Of the
commonwealth does not seek the informa-
tion for any such object.
A suspicious newspaper. the Pittsburgh
Dispatch, observes that this circular of
Secretary Quay bears a:strong resemblance
what familiar in the political annals of
New York. It was charged that Boss
Tweed wanted his estimates of the result
in the rural districts in order that returns
might be manufactured in the strong Dem
tio tr;C Ctc i,,f fGo oitu fn c,,c,,ea
Democratic victory. But the present
situation is very different. Secretary Quay
is not Boss Tweed, and the trade ofrcpeat-
ing, ballot box stuffing, and manufactur-
ing false election returns has become
extremely prccarious in Philadelphia.
In that city there is u Democratic
mayor who 80 far from eucourag-
ing or winking at frauds upon the ballot
box, will exert all his official power to
prevent and punish them. There is u
non partisan police force who on election
day will be instructed to arrest all re-
peaters ard FOUNDERS that may present
themselves at the polls, instead of pro-
tecting and plotting them in their infamous
work, as in the past. Besides these Off
cial defenders against fraud in Philadel-
phia there is the committee of one hun
drcd, volunteer organization of citizens
that is terror to the repeaters and
ballot box suffers and their employees,
and that will have its agents in
all the wards and divisions ready to pounce
down upon every perpetrator of fraud
upon the ballot box. For tho first time
in many years fair election is promised
in Philadelphia. Corrupt election officers
here and there will no doubt undertake
to sell their opportunities, if they can find
4 venturous purchaser, and attempts will
be made at bargaining and betrayal. But
what the Democrats have to fear far more
than the corrupt practices of their oppo-
nents is their own apathy. II they bring
their own votes to the polls there is no
fear that they will not be fairly counted.
So the information which Secretary
Quay seeks could not be used for an ille-
gitimate purpose, even if he were so dis
posed. Such estimates rs his correspond
ents may furnish him are not to he de-
pended upon. The thousands of quiet
votes that will be cast this year will
battle the shrewdest calculatOrs of the
ring. The more estimates Colonel Quay
gets the less lie will like them. He
might as we'll wait one week longer when
he will receive complete official informa-
tion of the election of Orange Noble and
the utter collapse Of the machine OF
which he is one of the brightest orna.
mentS.