Evening star., 1932-10-23
BY JOHN CLAGETT PROCTOR.

BY JOHN CLACETT PROCTOR.
4 ONE were to ask the question, How long
will We have to wait after the polls are
closed on November before we know
who has been selected to be the next
President of the United States?" the reply
would probably be Positively not later
than midnight of that day. And yet, this
may prove not to be the case
The present generation, of course. expects
quick results, and through modern methods of
transportation and of transmitting news
the wire and through the air-usually gets
what it seeks But with all of our mar
velous modern conveniences and facilities, no
one can positively tell the hour or the day that
this information will be given to U.s. for,
although it is certainly safe to predict that We
shall know who is going to be our next Pres-
dent before the>cock strikes - on the night of
November 8, yet certain unforeseen conditions
may ariSe-aS they have arisen in the past
to make a positive statement along this line
impossible.
Indeed. we do not have TO turn back the
pages of ting but few years to come to that
election night in November 1916, when nearly
everybody went to bed confident that Mr..
Hughes had been elected. only to awaken the
following morning to find that it was Wilson
and Marshall who had carried California and
were therefore elected to be the President and
Vice President, to take Office when Mr.. Tafts
term expired
In the present election there appears to be no
possible way in which the selection Of the
Chief Executive could be thrown into the House
of Representatives, as done in the election
of 1900 and again in 1924. In the first of these
incidents the House selected Thomas Jefferson,
and nearly a quarter of century later voted
to seat John Quincy Adams.
WHEN the vote is very close as was the
case in the campaign of Hayes and
Tlden, there is always a possibility of one OF
the candidates losing the presidency on a legal
technicality.
OF course, we must admit that the Hayes and
Tilden election occurred only IL years after the
close of the Civil War and that the same con-
ditions are not likely to arise again-but
there's the rub! One can never tell what is
going to happen in this great Republic con-
servative as we may be.
Looking back through The Star for 1876, the
writer came across these headlines in the issue
of November 8, the day following this election:
"Tilden and Hendricks
Their Election Pretty Certain
1877 to 209 Electoral Votes Claimed!
And editorially: THE returns in our midnight
edition of The Star indicated quite surely the
elecClOn OF 1uOen, ana the QlSpatcheS received
this forenoon all 60 to make those indca-
tions a certainty"
The Democrats had been out of Office for
nearly 16 years. They had worked like Trojans
for their ticket, and the good news had Just
about driven them insane with joy.
There were three principal tickets in the field:
Rutherford B. Hayes of Ohio and William A.
Wheeler of New York were nominated as the
Republican party's standard bearers for Presi-
dent and Vice President, respectively Samuel
j. Tilden of New York and Thomas A.
Hendricks of Indiana were nominated by the
Democrats and Peter Cooper of New York and
Samuel F. Cary of Ohio by the Greenback
party.
There were 80 States voting with a tota!
electoral vote of 369, and, as usual, The Star
gave out the news as fast as it came in over
the wire
The local Republican headquarters at that
time was at 1006 F street northwest, and here
were assembled such distinguished Republicans
as Ex-Mayor Bowen Gen. Eaton, Col Mosby
Gen Whittlesey, E. B. Elliott, Simon Wolf and
others, while Prof. Daniels displayed the re-
turns on his stereopticon. The election news
was also available at the Garrick Club, 1886
Pennsylvania avenue; and at the rooms of the
Jackson Democratic Association, which then met
on Louisiana avenue between 9Th and 7th
streets, a screen was erected upon which to
show the returns, while section Of the Marine
Band was present to provide music for its