Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1882-03-30
OLD.TIME INCONVENIENCE.
ELECTION RETURNS IN YEARS GONE BY.


On the day after the last November
election, when the telegraph had sub
stantiaIly announced the result in the
State, IA Young man who then cast his
first vote. asked me to tell him, II
could. in some future number ot the
Freeman. how long "A time 1t required
before the telegraph came into general
use to ascertain the vote OF the State,
and how the election returns were re-
ceiyed. | told him | would do so. and
will now not only fulfil that promise,
but refer, in addition. to some matters
not Immediately connected with the
subject.
NV earliest accurate recollection of
the incidents connected with political
campaign goes back to the memorable
contest tor Governor in 1898 between
Jos. Ritner and David X. Porter, the
first named having been renominated
by the anti Masonic party, and the other
Porter being the Democratic nominee,
This was six years before the first telc-
graph line in this country-that between
Washington aud baltimore was erected
by Morse. its inventor. in the face OF
almost insurmountable difficulties. The
Ritner and Porter campaign was, 20 far
the most exciting and hotly contested
one that has ever occurred in this state.
1t became so in consequence OF the win
dictive and bitter attacks made upon
the personal character OF Porter by the
Ritner press, and also from the settled
and deliberate determination Of Thad-
deus Stevens, then one of the Canal
Commissioners, who was the power be
~. al IL. 81 -
itself, and OF Thomas II. Burrowes, Sec.
retary OF the Commonwealth, and Chair.
man of the Rltner State Committee, to
carry the election at all hazards, by fair
means. if they could, but in any event
to carry it. The amount of money
staked on the result was enormous.
Betting became aperfect mama all over
the State, and it was rare thing to
meet a man who had not wsgered some
thing on the success of his candidate.
II il was not money, it was a coat, hat,
or a pair of boots, and often a horse, a
COW. or an OK.
Two four.horse stage coaches, forming
the line between Pittsburg and Harris.
burg. passed through this place each
day, one going east and the other west,
and the waybill, in addition to the list
OF passengers, contained the first aud
subsequent result of the election in the
different counties along the route. Be-
fore the stage left P,ttsburg, on the day
after the election. the agent of the line
in that city wrote on the way.bill what
he then knew about the vote in Ale
gheny county, and gave what was re-
garded as the probable result in that
county. When the stage arrived at
Murraysville, in Westmoreland county,
Gen. Murray, a veteran Democrat, at
whose hotel the stage stopped, added
on the waybill the returns from that
county, as far az he knew them with his
estimate OF Porter's majority In the
county. At Blairsville the vote OF In
diana county, as far AS received, was
noted down and when the stage reached
this place the vote OF Cambria, then
containing ten election districts. was
added. and in all the other counties a.
the stage passed on to Harrisburg. The
way.biII from Harrisburg to Plttsburg
was used for the same purpose. aud by
Thursday night the returns on one way.
bill going east aud those of another
going west were known here; but, n
they were very mrAgre. no intelligent
opinion could be formed of the general
result By Friday night, although the
way bills contained a great many addi
tonal returns from the northwestern
and remote eastern countie., they did
not afford any decided encouragement
10 the friends of either candidate; still
they formed the material out of which
the adherents Of each built iunumera.
hle castles in the air. IL was believed
that all doubt would be removed by
Saturday night, when the stage arrived
from the east, and such proved to be the
case. There was general rush to the
hotel when the sound of the stage
drivers tin horn announced his near
approach-even the small hoy Of that
day participating in the excitement, and
forming large and important part Of
the anxious crowd. Among the stage
passengers was the late John g. Miles,
Esq, of Huntington. on his way to Pitts.
burg. lie was known to all the citizens
~ our town, and both Michael Dan
Magellan, a Ritner man. and DR.. Smith.
Porter man, Immediately undertook
to interview him. Mr.. Miles, who was
strong Whig or anti Mason, was evi.
IDENTIFY not just then disposed to tell all
he knew, and therefore kept the excited
crowd for short time on the ragged
edges of hope and fear; hut at length
he announced that the returns received
at Huntingdon that morning from Brad
ford and the northern tier Of counties.
showed that they had given Porter ma.
.jorities 30 largely in excess Of what had
been anticipated, so as to render his
election certain by about FIVE thousand
majority. And thus the long agony
was over on the nh night after the
election.
As an indication Of the extremely
bitter feeling that marked the contest,
| recollect that as soon as Mr Miles
made the statement that Porter was
elected beyond all doubt. prominent
Ritner man in the room avowed bis
willingness 10 bet ten dollars 10 FIVE
with any Loco Foco" thst Porter would
he in The penitentiary before the end Of