Year: 1876

cases. Nothing can exceed the rapidity with
which they tangle themselves up or the
density of the snarl into which they braid
themselves. The Psalmist must have had
Florida in his prophetic eye when he said In
his haste all men are iarsyp or possibly
he may have just risen up from the perusal OF
the testimony in a contested election case.


We have been struck since the present in
yestigation began with the wisdom, the sa-
eacity, and forecast exhibited by the persons
who designed the.great seal of Florida, with
the singularly significant and appropriate in
scription, "In God we trust" 1t recalls that
| pathetic domestic incident of the bewildered
person who at his own door at midnight, In
answer to his wife's earnest appeal, why,
Henry, oh why do you come home at this
time of night Z" responded with great serious
ness, "'Cause zis re oney place open. All
d" res shu'-up.n Whoever reads and under
takes to sift out the testimony before the
Florida Board of Canvassers will understand
that one excellent reason for the citizens put
ting their trust as indicated in the motto
on the great seal is that there's no
other place open-all trust in their fellow
man is shut up TO them. And yet there is





behavior of the Florida affant which relieves
his character from utter responsiveness There,
for instance, was the inspector, Dukes VINO
stood ready to affix his mark to any sort OF
affidavit on the subject of election returns.
He refused nobody. There is, to be sure,
little conflicting testimony-all testimony IN
deed is conflicting in FlOrida-reGarding ms
being approached"-the call it approached
in politics eyerywhere-with an offer of money
for signing some of the many affdavlts TO
which his name was attached, but III the
conflict of testimony we prefer to give
bis omiabilty the benefit of the doubt
and relieve him from the imputatlOn
of avarice and selfshness. There is no doubt
of course that he lied and swore to it. But
let MS hope he did it from an excess OF good
nature and the spirit of accommodation, and
that he only exhibited generous impulses. Age
could not wither nor custom stale the infinite
variety of that mans aflidavits. He swore
backward and forward and criss-rioSs, in
the largest and most complacent M nner, and
no doubt was astonished to learn that his con-
duct was not satisfactory to either party, IN
stead of being as he hoped perfectly satisfac-
tory 10 both Dukes seems to be a model in
SDcCtOr OF clpfllOilN' anu ~ - I'H''J
able that so much fault should be found with
him.


Then. too, the manner in which they vote
emigrant trains down there, and lead coloIed
persons into swamps with ropes around their
necks, and by such persuasive methods convert
them to Reform and the lively way they have
of dsposing of unfavorabe returns by throw
ing ont for instance, in Duval County " 53
"non-registcred men, "33 men who voted
"twice.r "16 under penal conviction
"l3 inmates of the county jail and
lot more upon the ground that the
registration list was padded and pacled"-
all these things give us n pleasing and encour-
aging view of the sociil, political, and moral
condition of the pennsular State. Upon the
whole, Florida seems to be a nice sort OF
State. great many persons from the
North go down there every year To get
cured of pulmonary diseases. And yet
there are intelligent persons who have given
themselves the headache trying to get at the
facts concerning the late election, who are
beginning seriously to doubt whether there is
any such state. This is too bad. There really
is snch n place, but it is swampy, and even
the best citizens are liable TO get mircd. There
is good reason for believing, too, tnat there
has been an election there though the yot"
for one reason and another was mostly
fraudulent A great deal of swamp land may
now be reclaimed by dumping ailidavits into it.