Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1917-01-04
CLOSE ELECTIONS.
Many Great Events Decided by a
Marrow Margin.
HISTORY MADE BY ONE VOTE.

uloIUh1 MADE 81 UNE WI [.
In Several Instances In the Life of Our
Nation, Notably In the Hayes iieen
Presidential Contest, a Single Ballot
Turned the Scales.
There have been many close elections
In the cities, counties and states of this
great nation, as well as in the nation
at large itself. In the latter class the
T1den-Hayes contest was the most
sensational. In that memorable cleo
ton the result turned upon the single
vote OF the fifteenth member of the
electoral commission, who was chosen
by four Judges Of the supreme court.
Our history abounds with instances
In which the course of events has turn
ed upon single votes, and some of
them may be conveniently selected
from the compilation made by Speaker
Clark for one OF his Chautauqua lee
lures.
General Jackson was elected major
general Of Tennessee militia by M
majority. Without that one vote he
could not have fought the battle of
New Orleans, and politics would have
been different for a quarter of u cen
fury.
+. Martin Van Buren,, won the presi-
dency through his defeat by one vote
on the confirmation of his nomination
As minister to England.
John g. Calhoun, as vice president,
cast the deciding vote which gave to
Van Buren, what Calhoun never got
Tor himself, although his claims were
not inferior.
Edward Everett lost the governor
ship of Massachusetts by one vote, and
that took him out OF the list of avail
ables for the presidency.
Thomas I'll. Benton was elected to
the senate by a single vote. The loss
OF that one vote not only would have
cost him his career of thirty years,
but would, have meant the loss to the
senate. OF one of it's strongest and most
famous members in Il most trying era.
One of the great characters Of Ameri-
can history might never have emerged
From %obscurity.
Henry Clay cast the deciding vote in
the constitutional convention which
admitted Kentucky to the Union as a
slave state. 1t Kentucky had entered
the Union as a free state it is hardly
doubtful that Missouri would have
done the same, and it is conceivable
that there might have been no Mis-
e0uri compromise, and perhaps even nj
war between the states.
The Walker tariff passed the senate
BY 9 single vote. Taft lost the vote of
idaho through Il tie in the precinct of
Boise. IL one more man had voted for
Taft Roosevelt would have lost con
ttrol OF the state.
There is ut least n case In which a
single vote was the entire election. AT
the primaries for the Prohibition nomi-
nation for judge in Schuylkill county,
Pa, one vote was. cast. There being
no other candidate or voter, Richard
"a. Koch was unanimously chosen. A
miss Is said to be as good as q mile
and under some conditions one vote is
rs good as a million.
On the other hand, a majority o,
100000 may be worthless, as was &c
tuRlly. the case in Indiana. At the gen
eral election in November, 1900, n pro
posed amendment that "the general as
sembly shall BY law prescribe wha
qualifications shall be necessary 70
admission to practice law to all court
OF Justice" was submitted to the cleo
tors.
Nearly 100000 more votes were cas-
Tor the amendment than against il
But 1t did not receive a majority 0
the votes cast for presidential elector
and governor. The supreme court he'll,
that 1t had not been carried by the con
etitutional majority required for TIL
ratification Of a proposed amendment
That was a case where an actual mi
5Oritysat the polls lost in the courts.
There would be no end to the prece
cents regarding the value of a fey
votes II the search were extended t
foreign history. One example will sui
nee to show that the count Of the vote
u ID important as the casting of then
In 1911 the Monis ministry fell /
France because 1t was thought to be |
minority OF fourteen, when in fact
md q majority of 1--WE, According t
the contemporary cablegram:
The crisis arose over an interpellatto
1egarding the attitude Of the government
" To- the chief command Of the army !
~ event OF war. and the official lis
showed 238 votes against the government
~ IA In favor.
II Aonis was still on q sick bed as tn
tNsult :of an accident and his colleague
necided on resignation.
The curious fact has now been brough
. light, howeuer, that at the moment 9
NJ fatefuls division there was consider
able confusion In regard to the votes 70
against a
Asnumber OF deputies announced tina
1heir names had appeared on the wron
4tttsion list. Am official r~ectification wa
MA1de.%with the result that SO far fror
haying been defeated the government
! tbs marrow majority mentioned above
%9sss Though this discovery may be til
.of much personal satisfaction I
~ex-pretnter, It is, sof course. too lat
10RaAsc thu fate OF his ministry.
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