Morning journal and courier., 1891-07-17


sight Of, that at no time need the demo-
cratic party of Connecticut have waited
more than thirty days for the seating of all
their officers, if justice was on their side,
provided they had had faith enough in
their case to be willing to leave it for set
Element either by the regular courts, or by
q fairly constituted special tribunal, or by
the legislative investigation of both
houses of the assembly working in con-
| junction.
That the senate did not long ago agree
| to some one of the many fair propositions
offered by the house, thus settling the
matter amicably and relieving the state Of
| it's embarrassment, is due, in my opinion,
more directly than to any other one cause,
| to the false hopes and expectations which
were from time to time raised in the minds
of certain democratic leaders by yourself!
Since your open letter appeared you have
been accused in the public press of holding
previous to the last election-one or
more conferences with Chairman Davis of
| the democratic state central COMMITTEES;
and Mr.. Herbert E. Benton, chairman of
| the republican state central committee
| said in an interview in the New Haven
Register, ri am satisfied that the steps
| taken to secure majority in the senate
| friendly to the interests of the Consolidat-
ed road and other corporations materially
affected theresult of the election in at least
| five senatorial districts and that the repub-
| lican party suffered therefrom."
For confirmation of my statements as
| to the conduct of the committee, I refer
| to Mr.. Gardiner Greene, jr., chairman of
| the committee.
And for support of my statements as to
| the meeting at the Allyn house, January
81, I refer to Messrs Charles J. Cole and
John R. Buck, who were present.
You took a week to compose your
"open letter" and wrote my answer in a
day; but have delayed its publication to
verify certain dates and to be able to
produce the draft you submitted to the
committee, which is herewith appended.
10 Sincerely yours,
JOHN ADDISON PORTER,
Editor Hartford Post, and Member House
Committee on Canvass of Votes.
Mr.. Harr1son's Review of Mr.. Por-
ter's Review.
NEW HAVEN, Conn, July 16, 1891.
Mr.. John A. Porter, Hartford, Conn:
Dear Sir-Your open letter of this date
| is received. Permit me to call your atten-
ton to the direct issues in the controversy
| raised by your paper and my letter of July
liberal and fair opinions concerning the
minor state Offices until the evening of
January 81. do not understand from
reading your letter that you have denied
this, which in itself is quite honorable.
The first serious complaint made against
| you is that after holding these views and
| after report had been prepared on GER
| tain lines of fairness and equity, to which
you assented, you changed that report and
| brought before your associates on the COM
| mittee report which was presented to the
house, and by the adoption of which Dr..
| Alsop and Mr.. Phelan were deprived of
offices to which they were elected. This
charge you have denied by interview, and
upon page of your letter you seem to
continue to deny it, although by inference
| from your statements rather than by direct
denial. Upon this issue between US I call
your attention specifically to a telegram
| which you filed at the Office of the Western
Union Telegraph company at ten minutes
before 10 of the night of January 2T. 1t
is addressed to me and reads as follows:
On revision we have thought best to modify
| final result and our reasons.
| 1t is unfortunate that you did not think
best, on revision of your letter this morn
ing, to go to the Office of the Western
Union Telegraph company in Hartford,
read your telegram and materially modify
portions of your letter. The reasons fol
material notifications in your letter
would be understood by the public with,
out explanation on your part, and the
final result for yourself would have been
better.
If you will call upon the senior repre-.
sentative from Hartford, who is a member
of the present house, he will tell you that
at 2 o'clock in the afternoon of January
81 you met him on the floor of the house
and when he inquired why the report OF
the committee had not been made that
day, you told him that the report had
been all ready to put in on that morning
except only matter which the committee
had decided to set forth in the schedules.
Any disinterested friends of yours will
tween us may be treated as concluded.
The most important charge have made
against you, however, is that in conse-
quence of the adoption of that changed
report, two gentlemen who were elected
last November have been wrongfully de-
p1ived Of their offices. had reasons fol
believing for several months that notwith
standing the blunder which had been com
mitted by making that report, the best
views of Mr.. Judson and Mr., futile Of
your committee would finally prevail and
that justice would be done, either
with or without an investigation. It is
because trust the wrong may yet be
righted that I have called public attention
to the matter, and shall not cease to dc
SO. At the proper time and in proper
ways it will be demonstrated to the
people of the state of Connecticut
that the republicans, since the examination
of large number of ballot boxes in May
have no possible case under which they
can claim the minor state Offices. Yor
unfortunately seem to be joined to YOU
idols and fear you are past repentance.
In your letter you attempt no defense
and make no reply to the positive asser
tons that DR.. Alsop and Mr.. Phelan were
elected, and that they are entitled to thei1
Offices. Your silence upon the subject il
a confession that am right, and you may
as well understand that there are tens
of thousands of republicans in this state
who will not sustain you in any attempt
you may make to further continue the mis-
taken course which has been followed up
on this subject.
1t is true that attended the meeting al
the Allyn house at which many promi
nent republicans were present. The prin.
cipal question which was discussed were
the best methods for securing the election
of General Merwin. Nearly all of the
the controversy that the republicans
should stand firm upon the ground that
they had taken, insisting upon the duty of
the general assembly to investigate and
inspect the returns. One of the gentle
men you named in your letter stated that
in his judgment it would not be wise at
that time to admit that mistake had been
made in relation to the minor Offices be-
cause it would lay the party open to the
charge before an investigation had been
made that it had tried to steal certain
state offices.
1t was stated by some of those present
that the ballot boxes would be opened in
May, if no investigation was had before
that time, and that then the facts would
be better known. It was the opinion of
many members of the party during the
spring that nothing more should be said OF
done by the house in relation to the minor
Offices, unless the senate would act, until
information could be obtained in May. To
obtain that information. Mr.. Benton has
sent out circulars to every town in the
state. 1t has been discovered now that
the "double ballot business will not fur
nish the evidence some republicans hoped
for. Two or three of the gentlemen pres
ent were anxious then for an adjournment
sine die. I opposed that, and the sense of
those present was that it was the duty of
the house to continue in session and en-
deavor to bring about sentiment on
proper principles.
I did make an expression of opinion in
| al 70 f1a eko2 IL