The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-10-03
AMENDMENTS ID TIE
 CONSTITUTION CARRIED
LITTLE INTER EST AND 4 LIGHT VOTE THROUGHOUT
 THE STATE.

Edwin w. Higgins, Republican, of Nor
 wieh, Elected Congressman to Sue
 eeed Frank B. Brandegee-AIayO
 Thayer, of the Same City, His Demo-
 cratic Opponent, Makes Good Run but
 is Defeated by Majority of About 500
 Complete Turnover in Waterbury.
 The little town elections of Connec- ticut yesterday were greatly complicat- ed by the entire state voting on the question of adoption of two constitu-l tional amendments, and of the electors in the Third congressional district choosing a successor to Frank J. Bran degee, who in May last was elected United States senator by the general assembly. In the latter instance Ed win W. Higgins, lawyer of Norwich, republican, was elected to congress over Charles F. Thayer, mayor of the same city, who had the democratic nomination, the majority with several towns missing being about 1,S00. The interesting feature of this contest was that Mayor Thayer carried his own city, which is strongly republican, and which went that way i'll the two elections by 546 votes majority on most of the town officers. Mir. Thayer ran well in many of the smaller towns, but his margins in these were easily wiped out by the large margins in towns which stood fast by Mir. Higgins. Two years ago Congressman Brandegee car- ried the district by over four thousand votes, while last fall his majority was nearly two thousand larger. The vote In the district to-day was light and the republicans suffer more in this re- spect than did their opponents. The vote over the entire state was light
 Both constitutional amendments were carried according to the incomplete re- turns, that permitting the use of voting machines at state and national elec- tions being adopted probably by a ra- tio of to 1, while the vote on the sec- ond question--that of having binennial elections of town officers being fairly close, but not to the extent that would indicate it's rejection, So indif- ferent were most of the towns on the amendments that the count of these ballots was delayed until the last thing by the officials, and the indications were that the total vote would not be known until the results are officially canvassed at the state capitol on October IT, when the governor will proclaim the changes in the state constitution.
 Many of he towns had questions of their own to decide-loeal matters af- fecting either town finances or town administration-but most of them vot- ed on the question of acceptance of the act providing for free text books for public school scholars. Many towns did not like thi S idea and rejected the proposition, the burden of argument of the opponents being that the giving of free text books meant the raising of more money by taxation.
 Two towns, which are within the lim- its of the city of the same name-New Britain and stamford-voted on the matter of consolidation of town and city governments which in effect means the abolition of an old fashioned form of dual government. New Britain de- cided to wipe out the town government while Stamford decided adversely as the result of long period of agitation against consolidation. In the town election in New Britain Samuel Bas- sett, democrat, mayor of the city, who has been first selectman of the town as well was shorn of half his political honors by being defeated for the town office.
 One of the biggest surprises of elec-
 (Continued on Sixth Page.)