Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1917-02-01
CLOSE ELECTIONS.
Many Great Events Decided by a
Narrow Margin.
HISTORY MADE BY ONE VOTE.

In Several Instances In the Life of Our
Nation, Notably In The Hayes-Tiiden
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 we'll as in the nation
at large itself. In the latter class the
Tflden-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 one
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 a cen
tury.
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
for 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 III. Benton was elected to
the senate by a single vote. The loss
Of that n vote not only would have
cost him his career of thirty. years,
but would have meant the loss to the
senate of n Of it's strongest and most
famous members in a 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. If 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-
souri, compromise, and perhaps even no
war between the states.
The Walker tariff passed the senate
by a single vote. Taft lost the vote Of
Idaho through a tie in the precinct Of
Boise. If n more man had voted for
Taft Roosevelt would have lost con-
troll of the state.
There is at least one 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
FL. Koch was unanimously chosen. A
miss is said to be as good as q mile,
and under some conditions one vote is
as good as a million.
On the other hand. a majority of
100000 may be worthless, as was ac-
tually the CASE in Indiana. At the gen
eral election in November, 1900, a pro-
posed amendment that 1.-The general as
sembly shall by law prescribe what
qualifications shall be necessary for
admission to practice law to all courts
of Justice" was submitted to the cleo
tors.
Nearly 100000 more votes were cast
for the amendment than against it.
But 1t did not receive a majority Of
the votes cast for presidential electors
and governor. The supreme court held
that it hadsnot been carried by the con-
stitutional majority required for the
ratification Of a proposed amendment.
That was a case where an actual ma
sjority at the polls lost in the courts.
There would be no end to the prece-
dents regarding the value of a few
votes If the search were extended to
foreign history. One example will suf-
fee to show that the count Of the votes
is as important as the, casting of them.
In 1911 the Monis ministry fell in
France because it was thought to be In
a minority of fourteen, when in fact it
had a majority Of five. According to
the contemporary cablegram:
The crisis arose over an Interpolation
regarding the attitude of the government
as to the chief command of the army in
the event of war, and the official list
showed 23S votes against the government
and 24 In favor.
M. Monfs was still on q sick bed as the
result of an accident and his colleagues
decided on resignation.
The curious fact has now been brought
to light, however, that at the moment Of
the fateful division there was consider
able confusion in regard to the votes for
and against.
A number Of deputies announced that
their names had appeared on the wrong
division list. An official ~rectif1cation was
made. with the result hat SO far from
having been defeated the government
had the narrow majority mentioned above.
Though this discovery may be the
source Of much personal satisfaction to
tho ex-prernier, it is, OF course. too late
to affect the fate of his ministry.
These are cases merely of misadven-
ture In the working Of the machinery
/ Of5yOting. The cases Of ma1iciOuS f9lSi-