The Portland daily press., 1888-10-03
The Percentage Racket.

The Boston Herald which is the champion
Democratic ,figurer on the Maine election
and still continues to serve up consolation
to the crestfallen Maine Democrat at two
cents copy, has been comparing the total
vote thrown at gubernatorial elections in
Presidential years in this State for the past
twenty-eight years-not including 1SSO-and
finds that this year the Republican vote is..a
smaller per centage Of the whole vote than
in any one of the previous years.
OF course 1t did not take the trouble
to examine the Democratic vote. If
it had done SO it would have discovered that
the Democratic vote this year was 421 per
cent. of the whole vote, which is smaller
per centage than any Democratic vote since
1864, with the single exception Of 1884. the
year in which. according to the Argus, the
Democrats had no money and no organiza-
ton and made no fight. In 1868 the per cent
was 42.6, in 1872 44.2, in 1876 AL. in 1880
49.8, in 1884 Ala. and in 1888 al. As
the Herald considers the showing this
year Democratic victory. it would seem to
follow that the Democracy have won victo-
ries every presidential year, with one excep-
one of them has been bigger victory than
this one. What pity the Boston Herald
fgurer was not born earlierl Here were a
half dozen opportunities for grand celebra-
tions neglected because the Democracy were
too stupid to recognize them. The 'cold
truth" is the Democratic proportion of the
whole vote is this year the lowest with one
exception-and that the year in which they
made no fight-of any presidential election
since the war.
Now there is another cold fact which the
Herald either does not know, or which if II
does know it carefully couceals from its read
ers, and that is that an increase in the total
vote, though the difference between the two
votes may remain precisely the same, always
increases the percentage of the party which
throws the smaller vote. For instance. If
the total vote is 100 and the Republicans
throw 60 and the Democrats 40 the Repub-
lican percentage of the total vote is 60 and
the Democratic 40 Now increase the total
vote to 200 by adding 80 to each side This
will make the total Republican vote ITO
and the Democratic 90. Now ITO is
90 per cent. Of 200 while 80 is 40
per cent of 200. That is, the Republican
percentage of the whole vote is 55 and the
Democratic 49, The increase of hundred
votes in the total, though divided equally be-
tween the two parties, has lost the Republic
cans per cent and gained the Democrats s
per cent 1t is this popularity of percent
ages that has deceived the Herald, or enabled
1t to deceive its readers. Now take actual
election figures. In 1864 the total vote thrown
in this State for governor was Ill 1885, of
which Cony (Rep.) received g, 1888, and How
ard, (Dem.) 46,403 The difference between
these two votes is, in round numbers, 1900.
Cony's percentage of the total vote
is 58.5, and Towards 41.5 Four
years later the total vote was 13l, 1872.
of which Chamberlain (Rep.) got rs, 523 and
Pillsbury Dem) 5000, majority in round
numbers the same as in 1864, namely, 10000.
1t will be seen that the Republican vote had
increased 10000 over 1864 and the Democratic
vote almost precisely the same amount But
the Republican per centage of the whole vote
was only $3.50 as compared with $3.50 four
years before while the Democratic per centage
was 42.6 as against 41.5. There was a differ
ehce Of more than two per cent in favor of
the Democrats as regards the percentage re-
lation of each party's vote to the total vote,
and yet the actual increase in the votes of
the two parties was precisely the same. 1t
will be seen therefore that this percentage
business is delusion Now let us see
what the next trick Of the Democratic
fgurers will be.