Year: 1879

1he foll0wlng letter was sent 10 the GoV-
ernor and Council, yesterday, by Orville ID.
Baker, of the firm of Baker & Baker:


AUGUSTA, December 3, 1879.


To the Honorable Gorernor and Council Of


the State of Maine:


As duly authorized counsel, holding pow
ers of attorney under seal from each of the
senators and representatives-elect, whose
names are appended, we respectfully submit
that, as your Honorable Board is we'll advis-
ed, the law of this State gives to senators and
reprcsentatives-elect, in explicit terms the
right to correct the return from any town in
respect to the number of votes, and the
any informality in said returns by duly at
tested copy of the record of such town, and
that the same law requires application for
such correction to be made within twenty
days after the opening of said returns, ac-
companed by a specification of the error to
be correctcd that your Honorable Board
passed an order on the 18th of November.
1879, declaring that the twenty days referred
to in said statute should begin from that date,
and but one day of that time still remains by
the terms of the order aforesaid. We beg
also to remind your Honorable Board that
you have persstently denied every applica-
ton by us our clients, for permission to in
spect said returns, even in your presence, to
discover if any such corrections were needful.
And now on the eve of the last day allowed
us by the order above referred to for making
such corrections, before your Honorable
Board shuts out our clients finally from their
plain and undeniable rights, under the exist
.,... -. tat,,
which your Honorable Board has sworn to
execute and obey, we must respectfully urge
that if you still deny us all access to the re-
turns, you will at least inform us whether
there are any errors, defects, or intormalities
in any return of votes cast for any senator or
representative-elect herein named, and if any,
that you will in each instance specify in what
particular, and in which return they occur.


We also beg to remind your Hon. Board,
that on the 22d day of November last you
made public an order that the Governor and
Council would be in session from December
lst to December l3th for the examination of
returns and for hearings on the same. Six
days out of the twelve thus given will have
passed away with tomorrow. No examina-
ton has yet been permitted. no hearing has
been vouchsafed to one of our clients. Shall
we be told that your Honorable Board has



we beg to ask Upon returns we are not
suffered to see! Upon errors invisible to us!
Upon defects known only to our opponents!
Upon testimony and secret papers whose i'm
port reaches US but by rumor! Setting aside
for the moment the statute of 1877, we are
informed that your Honorable Board assumes
the right to decide what is or is not valid
return under the Constitution. Will your
Honorable Board kindly indicate to us in
what way we are to be heard on the rdiidty,
under the Constitution, of return which is
sealed to us though open to you! Debarred
by your Honorable Board from all access to
the evidence on which the case of our clients
is to be decided, we respectfully urge that
you will inform us whether defects of any
kind, under the Constitution, exist, or are
claimed in any return of votes cast for any
senator or representative-elect herein named,
and if any, that your Honorable Board will in
each instance specify in what particular and
in which return such defects occur.


We should lack in our duty to our clients,
if we failed to call the attention of your Hon.
orable Board to another fact. Widely cir
culated statements purporting to come even
from His Excellency the Governor of this
State, have reached our clients, that certain
senators or representatives, or both, were to
be deprived of the certificate to which the
vote of the people and legal return thereof
entitled them, by secret and ex-parte affda-
Wits given at times and places, and by per-
sons to us unknown, charging the candidate
with bribery in his election, and thus render
ing him ineligible to office under Revised
Statutes, chapter 4 section G1. Section 32
of the same chapter as amended by chapter 2
of the public Laws of 1873, provided that no
person Ineligible shall be declared elected,
but it concludes as follows: provided,
however, that nothing contained in this Sec
ton shall be construed to give the Governor
and Council any authority to determine ques-
tions of eligibility in cases of senators and
representatives to the legislature


The reported utterances of His Excellency
stand uncontradicted in the public prints. In
the teeth of this statute we cannot assume
them to be true, we dare not assume them to
be false. Whether true or false is known to
your Honorable Board alone. If no such
secret evidence has been received or consd-
cred your Honorable Board will gladly unite
with us in refuting the slanderous tongue
that asserted. But if such evidence is to be
used against our clients and against the law,
their character is at stake, as well as their
political rights and we know your Honorable
Board will never assassinate both without
confronting them with the witnesses.


We therefore most respectfully pray your
Honorable Board to advise us if any state
ments, sworn or unsworn, have been received,
or will be considered, relating to the inelgi-
bility Of any senator or representative elect
herein named, and if so, that your Honorable
Board will not deny us specification Of the
nature of the charge, with the names OF the
party threatened and the party accusing, to
the end that we may be heard before your
Honorable Board at some appointed time
most convenient to yourselves-frst on the
right of your Honorable Board to violate the
statutes of this State-second on the base
less and utter falsty of the matters charged.
We crave the indulgence of your Honora-
BILE Board moment futher. A published in
terview with member of your Honorable
Board .imputes to him the uncontradicted
| statement, that in determining whether to
count or reject return under the constitu-
ton, your Honorable Board have received
and will consider secret papers unknown to
the constitution, forming no part of return,
seemingly unveritied even by oath, sent by
unknown persons, said to contain protests
against counting certain returns because OF
alleged informalities which the return itself
either contradicts or fails to show.


1t is permitted us to hope that your Hon.
oroble Board, which has persistently denied