488 



MAINE. 



davits were being taken, and cases were gotten up for 

 the purpose of throwing out Bepublican towns. 



In all cases affected by such causes, the results in- 

 variably counted out Eepublican candidates and count- 

 ed in Fusion candidates, and this to the extent that 

 the majority in each House of the Legislature was 

 illegally changed from the Republican side to the 

 Fusion side. 



In reaching this result the Governor and Council 

 refused to allow Eepublican errors in the returns to be 

 corrected by the records, although such correction was 

 offered repeatedly by Eepublican candidates or their 

 counsel. 



The different rules of law laid down by the Gov- 

 ernor and Council as their guide in tabulating the re- 

 turns, and in certificating from such tabulations, were 

 applied in different ways, as they were enforced where 

 they would throw out a Eepublican candidate, but not 

 enforced where they would throw out a Fusion candi- 

 date. 



Many of these rules were contrary to law, and must 

 have been made solely for the purpose of securing a 

 Fusion quorum in each branch of tlie Legislature. 



The illegal and fraudulent acts before referred to 

 were a part of a premeditated plan, and the con- 

 spiracy^, the object of which was to secure a quorum 

 of Fusion members in each branch of the Legislature. 

 embraced the members of the Executive Council, and 

 the Governor of the State must have been in some de- 

 gree in complicity with them. 



Both Governor and Council must then be held ac- 

 countable for the fraudulent practices under which the 

 election returns were changed so that the will of the 

 people was set aside, and illegal certificates issued to 

 Senators and Eepresentatives in sufficient numbers to 

 change the political complexion of both branches of 

 the Legislature. 



Eelative to misappropriations of the public moneys. 



Your committee conclude 



That the different appropriations by the Legislature 

 have been diverted from their legitimate purposes, and 

 in many cases have been overdrawn and exhausted ; 



That the public funds have been withdrawn from 

 the Treasury of the State by Governor Gai'celon and 

 his Council without warrant of law, and have been 

 applied to unauthorized uses, and for unlawful pur- 



That a large sum of money belonging to the State 

 remains in the hands of Governor Garcelon and other 

 officials of last year, which should be recovered and 

 put back into the Treasury ; 



That the _ recklessness of management disclosed in 

 the transactions of the past year, tends to destroy pub- 

 lic confidence, undermine the public credit, and intro- 

 duce practices which, if unrebuked, will prove fatal 

 to the future progress and prosperity of the State. 



ANDEEW HAWES, ) On the part of 

 AUSTIN HAEEIS, f the Senate. 

 EUGENE HALE, "] 

 A. A. STEOUT, On the part of 



CHAELES V. LOED, I the House of 

 C. C. SPEINGEE, Eepresentatives. 



SILAS W. COOK, J 



The following brief minority report wa8 sub- 

 mitted : 



Silence on the part of the undersigned would be 

 construed as an assent to all the positions and conclu- 

 sions of the majority report, as well as to the state- 

 ment of facts. 



The undersigned are unwilling and unable to give 

 their assent to all of the arguments and conclusions 

 of such majprity report, though they can not deny 

 that the recital of facts in the report is substantially 

 in accordance with the evidence. Mr. Moody, of the 

 Council of Governor Garcelon, was before the com- 

 mittee, but he failed to explain the irregularities which 

 had been proved. 



Governor Garcelon also testifies, at a later period in 

 the investigation, that he had no previous knowledge 



of much which has been shown by the testimony to 

 need explanation. 



A letter, courteous in its language, was addressed 

 by the clerk of the committee to each of the other 

 members of Governor Garcelon's Council, saying that 

 an opportunity would be granted them to appear and 

 testify. 



The undersigned regret that the members of the 

 Council have not seen fit to appear and explain the 

 irregularities which seem to exist. 



The evidence being uncontradicted, the undersigned 

 can not make a denial of the facts proved by it, and 

 can only withhold their assent to the conclusions ar- 

 rived at by the majority of the committee. 



HENEY INGALLS, 

 GEOEGE F. HILL. 



Charges of bribery, or attempted bribery, 

 induce certain persons returned as elected 

 the Legislature not to take their seats, were 

 also the subject of an investigation by a com- 

 mittee of the House of Representatives. There 

 were three cases examined by the committee: 

 that of Bartholomew Wentworth, of South 

 Berwick, said to have been offered $500 in 

 gold and $10 a day for forty days by one Charles 

 E. Rick, of North Berwick ; that of Thomas 

 B. Swan, of Minot, who alleged that Wallace 

 R. White, of Winthrop, had paid him $1,000 

 to resign Ms seat in the House, in order that 

 the u Fusionists " might fail to have a quorum on 

 first assembling; and that of Moses Harriman, 

 of Kennebunkport, who charged that Wallace 

 R. White had offered him $100 for the same 

 purpose as alleged in the case of Swan. Ma- 

 jority and minority reports were submitted on 

 the 18th of March. The majority, consisting 

 of four members of the committee, declared 

 that the charges were not sustained in any of 

 the cases. The minority, consisting of two 

 members, agreed with the conclusion of the 

 majority as to the case of Wentworth, but dif- 

 fered from it in regard to those of Swan and 

 Harriman, and declared themselves of the opin- 

 ion that the charges were " fully proved and 

 sustained." There was also an investigation 

 into the disappearance of the State seal, and 

 certain documents and records of the office of 

 Secretary of State. It was found that Mr. 

 Prince A. Sawyer, who claimed to have been 

 elected Secretary of State, had taken them 

 away. In the course of the investigation they 

 were returned, and the committee reported 

 that " Prince A. Sawyer deserves the indigna- 

 tion of the members of the Legislature and the 

 people of the State of Maine." 



The Legislature adjourned on the 19th of 

 March, having passed 191 acts and 71 resolves. 

 The total amount of appropriations was 

 $1,368,957. The rate of taxation was fixed at 

 five mills on the dollar. One of the resolves 

 adopted authorized the Governor to appoint a 

 commission of sixteen persons, one for each 

 county of the State, to prepare a " full, just, 

 and equal valuation " of property and enumer- 

 ation of polls as a basis of taxation ; and an- 

 other provided for an amendment of the Con- 

 stitution, so as to require only a plurality of 

 votes for the election of Governor. The latter 

 provided for the submission to a vote of the 







