The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1885-04-27
Can't. Chase and the Count-o,t.

We give place in another column to COM
munication from Republican who cannot
see any justification for the attacks that have
been made upon Tabulator Chase since his
appointment as collector of internal rev.
enue. Republican takes the ground that
Capt. Chase was simply the tool of the con-
spirators and that the Democratic lawyers of
the State whom the Tabulator consulted are
the really guilty parties. We imagine that
this kind of defense will not be grateful to
the Tabulator. He is not the style of man
who is likely to be the tool of anybody, and
he will not relish being called such. The
Tabulator has never acted like a man who
considered himself dupe in this matter. On
the contrary he has, as Republican" says,
"always had the courage to stand by his ac-
tion." When the Captain himself admits
that he was wrong In the count-out, and that
he was wrong because ne followed the ad-
vice of Democratic lawyers it will be time
enough to consider how much this defence
is worth. But though four years have
passed since the count-out Capt. Chase has
never publicly or privately acknowledged that
he was wrong in that matter or given the
slightest intimation to anybody that he was
led into it by the bad advice. On the con-
trary he acted while the count-out was pro-
ceeding and has acted ever since as if he
were proud of his connection with it, and
we believe that is his feeling to-day.
Republican" seems to think that it is
somehow TO the Tabulator's credit that he
had the courage to stand by his action. 1t
may in Republicans" view be creditable
for man, after he has been led into the
commission of a wrongful act by bad advice,
as Republican" says Capt. Chase was, to
stand by his action, but it seems to us that
. man who does so makes himself partici-
pator in the crime by that act alone. If the
Captain was led into the count-out by the
terminal advice" of Democratic lawyers he
ought long ago to have repudiated his con-
nection with it and placed the blame where
It belonged. We fail to see how it is to his
credit that he has not done so.
The fact of the matter is Republican is
on the wrong tack. The scheme of the
countout had its origin In Garcelon's coun-
ell of which Capt. Chase was a member and
few Democratic politicians outside of it,
The plan was to steal the State-legally if
they could-but steal it anyway. As far as
possible 1t was their intention to keep within
the letter of the law, and therefore they
consulted Democratic lawyers to see just
what could be done in that direction. We
have not the slightest respect for the law
yers who furnished the council with legal
points. They knew that these points were
bubbles and even if technically right they
knew well enough that they were wrong in
spirit. We believe that they were morally
guilty of aiding and abetting, many ifnot all
of them knowingly, one of the foulest con-
spiracies on record. But we do not believe
that the lawyers we're the originators of the
conspiracy. The council undoubtedly orig
mated it. Had it been, as Republican
seems to think, simply an attempt on the
part OF lawyers to reyer Sc the verdict OF the
people based on the failure of election
officials to comply with technical details it
could never have been carried through, for
there were not technical defects enough.
Republican" will recollect that in several
cases names on the returns were deliberately
altered. Thus in the first tabuiation of the
council the name of Oliver P. Bragdon ap-
peared as elected from Gouldsboro. Later
on this was erased and the name of the fu-
sion candidate was substituted, and on the
original return the middle initial of Mr..
Bragdon's name was changed to 'B." The
first tabulation shows conclusively that Mr..
Bragdon's name originally appeared correct
ly on the return and that it was altered to
enable the council to throw out Mr.. Brag-
don and count In a fusionist We do not
think that "Republican" will contend that
the council were misled in this case by the
bad advice of Democratic lawyers. There