<TI)r iCrntre iSfe. Democrat.
SIU OKRT * FOUNTIIIt, Editor*.
VOL. 2.
Site (Tenter 30 rawrrat
Turin* 81.50 per Annum, in Ailvnnoe.
s, T BHUOFHT and R. H. FORBTEH; Editors.
Thwß'lay Morning, January 22, 1890.
Centre County Democratic Com
mittee-—IBBO.
MdTAirr#. NAM**. f. o
R. llcf.mte, N. W . William i#all>ritltli Itoltefonte,
.4 XT W I* lletrtlc IHlrfontr.
•• \\ W...W1111.un llr|M*r.. HH It* ton to.
Milctfliiirff Flunk Y. IliMo
UnlonTttl* •••** J Mrßonwrtl
fl.nAPl A J.(l*rhicr ..!l<>w*nl.
Phi In* I, org C. O llot linger .. Plitlti-H.iirg.
>1: i the tin J. II Rrlkn.n or ...Mill holm.
t UHllißlini I Mlflwti
B.H.* J** V. Al ' Uiu.. Mil—lmm.
Kdrn]<t*~ llfppl** I*l rtr ISlritQ.
UUHUiitf...
. ■ ■ . D*M Motif Ho* nJ
}>igUMB, I* .Pitil lirinhelMii SUlobl|<>g.
S |' ti. M. sliwta Ptormntown.
, lrrg g 1.. M IU*M -.. Spring Mill#.
<l*onco KoUfor AnfrmulAirjr.
Ilalfinoon John Worl Ftirmtown.
Hah'* Snniiiol Ihl**r HoalnHirg.
||. w *r>l IWurUI TAliror llowhH.
HopD-n— -H (1 UhrorUtor.. Martha.
141--rty- •...#-* II
Marion. J bn .rr % Jr....- WiUlrvi
Mil-a. ...-.Sniil K. feu* Mlttiftim
pttfrot M. llnml srrM ... Kllltnor*.
p..tti*r N I* U. F l.iuo Contr# 11*11.
j*. F <J W Npuiiglor Tii*ytill.
j. . William OMIM* Fbllipsbvrg.
MI w Nh* ... Juhl G. |bt Hlu.a.
S. r W't* fcrflofonlo.
Ta*i*r -l Fowler
| 81. ti J. S. Fru'10r1rk*......... Fir mliiK.
fa SNMMI DM k r
M rth K. Millimiia Foil
J. L. hI'AN'iLI.K. Clmirmmi
iitiß K. Bifti.it. f*oi-rt*rv
DEMOCRATIC CO. COMMITTER ROOM*,
BELLEKOXTK, Jan. 21, 18*0. /
Tlicre will be s meeting of the Demo
cratic County Committee nt the Court
Hou-p, in Rollefonto, on Saturday, January
24. *t 1 r. M.
ISuones* of importance will tran<art
c<l. Hy order of the Chairman,
J 1.. SPANGLKK.
F. K. lit lit. K, Secretary.
"ANOTHER revolution in Maine" is
what it may be called. Backed hy the
opinion of a partisan Court, Blaine has
got a substitute into the Governor's
(hair at last.
IN the hist legislature a hill was
introduced aud very earnestly pressed,
providing lor an appropriation from
the treasury of the Mate of four mil
lions t'O pay the damages of the Bitts
burg riot*. It failed, and the liabili
ty remained upon Allegheny county.
These damage* are now compromised,
uitluuit trouble, at 82,500,006, and it
i- not difficult to see where the money
wa- to come from to pay the large and
active lobby for procuring the passage
(>f the bill. *
HY counting out Democrat# duly
elected, and hy counting in vote* never
cast, on the allegation that they should
have been given, because they were
negroes, and ought to count whether
polled or not, the Republican* stole
the Presidency and seated a Fraud.
This the Radicals call "Purifying the
the ballot-box." But, counting out
alleged Republican member* of the
Maine legislature, according to the
law- ami precedents enacted by them
selves, these same consistent radical*
denominate " Fraud and scoundrel
isnt."
Or p. friend Haves Grier of llto Co
lnm!iia i I.incawter i Herald says iu re
ference to a new election in this ('on
gressional district, that the democracy
ran make a sure thing of it hy nomin
atiug a good, sound democrat—one
*ho can unite the whole vote. That
h precisely what the democracy intend
to do, and the man they mean to place
the head of their column is the Hon.
Andrew G. Curtin, and they will send
him to Washington, hacked hy n ma
jority unprecedented in the |mlitical
history of the 20th Congressional dis
trict.
•'VAR- IN.T HIT msn in civil life BAN done
Ainsrican |>noplfl greater service than
John NUcrrnan, but be i doing at this mo
nient p'rhaji* tbe greatest of all his .nrvices
i" Manding forward as a Presidential randi
•Jaie against Grant and Diaine.— Springfield
"'l'uhliran.
I'erltaps he is doing good service in
the manner indicated, hut he has done
greater service to John Sherman liim
*'li than lie has to the country during
hi* public service—rising from very
J"'*! crate means on a very moderate
ralary to immense wealth. It is the
Democracy, however, who are expect
♦"d to do the great service to the couu
try by "standing forward" and defeat
ing the victor of these stalwart rivals
for the Presidency,
"XqtAl. AND XXACT JUSTICE TO A 1.1. MEN, or \V If ATKV Kit BTATfc Oil I-KKSL ANION, KKIJOIOUn OK POI.ITKAL."-Je(r*on
The Election of President.
The proposed amendment to the
Constitution of the United States in
regaril to elections of President and
Vice President, receutly introduced
into Congress by lion. Geo. A. Hick
nell.of Indiana, has received a favor
able report from a sub-committee of
the select committee to which it was
referred by the House of Representa
tives for consideration. It is expected
that at some time during this week
the amendment will come back to the
House with the endorsement of the
entire committee. I 4 proposes a radi
cal change in the manner of ascertain
ing and declaring the number of elec
toral votes that each candidate for
President shall receive in each State
in which votes are cast for him, and
prescribes the manner of counting the
votes and determining questions of
contest. In another column will lte
found a synopsis of the changes to be
made, and from it we copy the follow
ing in relation to the way in which
the number of electoral votes that
each ]H*rson shall receive is to be as
certained :
'•Ttip electoral votes and traction there
of of each perron voted for as President in
iiiiv State Miall he ascertained by multiply
ing his entire popular vote therein by the
number of the State's electoral vote*, and
dividing the product by the sum of all the
votes given in the State for President, and
the ipiotient shall be the number of elec
toral votes and fraction thereof to be as
signed to such person, using for such frac
tion three decimals only.''
It is to bt the same for Vice Presi
dent, and to explain this proposition
as we understand it, we will take the
result of the lust Presidential election
in Pennsylvania. The total vote east
for President in 1*76 was 758,910,
divided among four candidate* as fol
low.-: Mr. Haves received 3*4,184
vote#; Mr. Tildeo, 366,204; Mr. Coop
er, 7,204, and Mr. .Smith, 1,318. Of
course under the preseut system Mr.
Hayes received the entire twentv-uine
electoral votes of the State. By Bick
uell's method of computation, what
would have been the result ? Taking
the vote of Hayes (3*4,184 1 ami mul
tiplying it by 29, we have for product
11,141,336. This product divided by
the entire vote (758,910) gives us a
quotient of 14, with a fraction in deci
mals of .6HO. Tilden's vote of 366,-
204, treated in the same Way, gives a
quotient of 13, with a fraction in deci
mals of .995. ('ooper'a vote, hy the
same process, makes the quotient a
fraction in decimals of .275, and
Smith's vote a fraction in decimals of
.050. The result may then be stated
as follows :
Haves receives 14.0*0 Electoral vote*.
Tildcn " la.ts.i.', h
Cooper " ... .276 " "
Smith •' .060 '
Total, 29.
This apjiears to lie a somewhat dbin
plicated method of computing the vote,
but still it may lie a better system
than the one under which we now elect
the highest officers of our government.
For years there has been a growing
dislike to the present electoral system,
and strong reasons against it have
lieen urged by many wise and thought
ful statesmen. Home object to it on
the ground that it is too far away from
the jieople, and gives a majority party
in a Slate absolute control over all
the electors, cither through the power
to select them by the legislature, or
by (lecting them on a general ticket,
thus practically disfranchising the
minority, however large it may lie.
Another objection is, that the |>olitical
party controlling the legislature of a
State, instead of acting from motives
intended to promote the general wel
fare and basing changes upon princi
ples of public policy, may at each
succeeding Presidential election, with
the nid of a sympathising Executive,
change the manner of choosing elect
ors exactly as party necessities may
require, and just as the Republicans
now propose to do in the State of New
York. This looks like a dangerous
[tower to trust to a State legislature,
and the abuses that may flow from it
arc clearly exemplified In what is now
11KLLEFONTE, PA., THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, IHHO.
threatened in the Empire State. A
had precedent there will certainly he
followed hv others elsewhere just as
bad.
NN hethcr the remedy found in the
proposed amendment of Mr. Bickncll
is the best that can be devised we will
not pretend to assert; hut surely the
subject is one that should command
the serious attention of the public us
well as of law makers, and we trust it
will receive it, to the end that when a
new system is actually adopted it will
be the result of mature thought aud
calm deliberation ujx>n some plain,
practical measure that will meet the
ends for which it is intended, rather
than of hasty and inconsiderate action
upon crude aud speculative theories
that may only increase existing evils.
Curtin vs Yocum.
IT would perhaps he expecting too
much to look foe an honest, truthful
discussion of any matter of public in
terest in the columns of the Philadel
phia Prem. It has been gradually but
surely falling from its high estute as a
newspaper until it has now reached
such a degree of journalistic degrada
tion as to render its opinions 011 nnv
subject absolutely worthless. Its edi
tor has the reputation of being n great
statistician, and lie certainly did much
fc> enhance bis fume by the skillful
and dexterous manner in which he
made figure* lie in his at tide on the
Curtin contest in the of the 19th
instant. He was cautious enough to pre
face his remarks by the statement that
the testimony was *0 voluminous and
complicated as to be unintelligible,
except to the immediate counsel in the
case. Thus fortified he proceeded to
demonstrate his dense ignorance of the
whole matter by stating that there
were 335 illegal votes cast for gov
ernor Curt in mid only 20 for Ynvuro,
thus making the lntter's majority 379.
Warming up to his work, the ex-chief
of the Bureau of Printing and the pres
ent compiler of election figures in Jay
Gould's Tribune Almanac boldly plun
ge* into the unregistered vote, ami
airily asserts that it was alleged by
both side* .that there were 11 large
numlier of unregistered vote* cast, but
that neither party offered any evidence
to show for whom these unregistered
voters cast their ballots. And this in
the face of the fact, that Gov. Curtin
qualified every such unregistered vo
ter in the districts which gave him a
majority, where the voter could he
reached by a subpoena. 'Che law in re
gard to unregistered voters is so plnin
that he who runs may read. It is not
directory hut mandatory. It doe* not
seek to deprive the legal voter of his
right of suffrage because his name has
been omitted from the roll of registra
tion, hut it clearly ami decisively
marks out the manner in which he
shall prove his legal qualifications to
the board holding the election. Wher
ever this necessary proof was wauting
in precincts giving Gov. Curtin a ma
jority the voter himself was placed
u|ion the stand and his qualifications
established. This was not doue by
Mr. Yocum anil houce a large unregis
tered vote was not accounted for be
fore the Committee. The number of
illegal votes proven to have bceu cast
for Mr. Yocum was largely in excess
of those shown to have been polled for
Gov. C'urtin, a preponderance in fact,
which would have wiped out Yocum's
majority twice over. There is not the
slightest doubt that the Committee
would have seated Governor Curtin
ou the equities of his case, instead of
remanding the matter to the sovereigu
power of the people for adjudication,
had he no wished. But his counsel ill
the fiual argument actually suggested
a new election as the best and inoet sat
isfactory solution of the vexed ques
tion. The /Vess further stultifies itself
by making an obviously unfair and
unjust comparison between the vote
cast for Mr. Dill and Governor Cur
tin iu the six counties composing the
20th district. It does not see fit to
remember that Mr. Dill ran largely
ahead of his ticket in his own county
of Union unci also in Clearfield coun
ty where ho ha* influential Republi
can relatives. It is to IK: hoped, that
hereafter when the J're** assume* to
pans upon the merits of a controversy
it does not understand, the editor will
call into consultation his invaluable
"office hoy" and thus prevent a repe
tition of the stupidity and ignorance
which marked Mr. Mcpherson's effort
on the Congressional contest of tint
Twentieth District.
♦• -
Tho Congressional Contest.
The argument* on the contest from
this Congressional district Itefore the
House Committee on elections, were
concluded last week and all the evi
dence went to the sub-Corninittee for
its consideration. It is understood
the Committee has agreed upon a re
port declaring the seat of Mr. Yocum
vacant; but at this writing, (Wednes
day noon) no officiul advices have
been received from Washington that
the Committee ha* rejiorted its con
clusions to the House. Of course .so
tar the nature of the report is only a
matter of conjecture, hut the best in.
formed newspajior corresjmndent* at
the National capitol, all agree in in
ferring that a new election will be
ordered, although a special to the
Pittsburg Commercial-Gazette, of the
21*1, indicates a different view. It is
probable, however, that before thi*
issue of the DEMOCRAT reaches all it*
reader* in Centre county the commit
teowill have submitted the rejort,aiid
of its speedy adoption hy the House,
there is little questiou.
Sheuld it he decided to declare a
vacancy, an election fill it will be
ueoawnry, ami it i* probable that the
prdAamatiou will lie issued for it to
Is Jpid on the 17th of February, the
f nojFffa r itay' for holding the borough
ami township elections." The time be
ing very short, prompt nnd efficient
action ti[s>n the part of the Democra
cy of the various counties of the dis
trict will he iudispettsuble. In this
county tho Chairman of the County
Committee has issued a call for a
meeting of the Committee for next
Saturday, in orffer that he may be
fully empowered to act with the
expedition the exigencies of the case
require. Under our party rules and
the precedent* of many years stand
ing it will be necessary to re-convene
the County Convention of last Sep
tember to make a nomination. An
early day will no doubt he named
for the assembling of the Convention,
when our candidate will he placed in
nomination. So far as we cau learn
in our county there is hut one senti
ment, and that demand* the reuomi
nation of ex-Governor Curtin, should
the acfion of Congress as above indi
cated require a candidate to he placed
iu the field. Wc are also informed
that this sentiment i* re-echoed in
every portion of the dirtrict, thus
placing the nomination of Governor
Curtin beyond a peradventure.
IT may lie as well for the
Intelligencer, and the nfficiou* pa [Kirs
outside the 20th Congressional Dis
trict to know first a* last, that the
Democrat* of Union, Mifflin, Clear
field, Elk, Clinton and Centre coun
.tie*, are fully equal to the nomination
of an acceptable candidate for Con
gress, without dictation or advice from
newspaper* foreign to the district. We
think county a sufficiently
prolific field politically to engage all
the great abilities of our contempo
rary without slopping over with un
asked suggestions as to party action
elsewhere. The animus of tho Intel
ligencer is easily uuderstood and very
lightly considered. If it become#
necessary to nominate a candidate for
Congress, our people have no second
choice. The mantle of the nomina
tion will fall upon the shoulders of tho
man who demonstrated to a Congres
sional Committee that the electiou
held on the 6th of November, 1878,
was illegal.
AH it is understtsxl tliut we are. like
ly to have a special election for u
member of Congre-s from.this district,
there are many inquiries in regard to
the luw governing such elections. The
election, if one is held, w ill he govern
ed hy the act of July 2, 1839, which
provides a- follows:
Bsc. JU. Kvcry writ which thall be u
nued lv the Governor of ibis Common-'
wealth in pursuance of the Constitution of
the I niled States, to supply a vacancy in
the representation of the people ~f 'this
Common wealth in the House of Represen
tatives ot the United States, shall be di
rected to the Sheriff of the county or coun
ties composing the Congressional district,
and shall particularly express the day on
which the election shall be held to supply
such vacancy.
SEC. 40. if such vacancy shall happen
during the session of Congress, or if C< n
gress shall be required to meet at some
time previous to the ne.xt general election,
the Governor shall appoint a time as early
n* may be convenient for holding such
election; otherwise, he shall direct the
election to be held at the time appointed
for holding the general elections.
SEC. 41. Every writ for holding a spe
cial election a' aforesaid shall be delivered
to tiie Sheriff, to whom the same may be
directed, at least fifteen days before tiie
day appointed for such election, who shall
forthwith give due and public notice
thereof throughout the county at least ten
days before such election, and shall send a
copy thereof to at least one of the inspec
tors of each election district therein.
It will be seen from.the aliovc that
should a vacancy occur in our district
at any time within a week or ten days,
hy reason of the pending contest, the
election can beheld on the 17 th of
February, the same day ou which the
borough and township election* are
held, provided the Governor will issue
his writ fixing that time and deliver
the same to the Sheriff* of the counties
fifteen day* before the day he desig
nate*.
COKGBEHH does not apjicar to have i
put in any very active work yet. All j
parties *ccm to shrink from approach- j
ing the disturbing question* of finance. |
The rc*olutiou of Mr. Bayard to do- i
prive the greenback* of their compul- ;
sorv legal lender character wa* repor
ted adversely from the finance eom-|
mittee —the minority also making a |
report. The whole question will pro
bably come up for discussion uext
week on the adoptiou of the report,
when we ntav expert to obtain much j
information ou this dark subject from
the view* of the Senators who partici
pate. Although the laws relating to '
finance have Wen agitated in every
liaiulet and |Kilitical parties run mi 1
the crude view* of individual* to
obtain selfish results, still thA War- \
ing* of the law* upon the pro*|erity of
the country and to what extent they 1
accord with our institutions, are hut lit- 1
tie understood, and we look forward
to tW honest official views we may ex- |
jx-et from such men a* Bayard, Wal
lace, Thurmau, and other statesmen, |
to dispel the cloud overshadowing the
subject.
A PETITION was presented in the
House last week hy Speaker Randall,
signed hy Gov. Hoyt, Auditor Schfll,
and Treasurer Noyes, asking the pas
sage of a hill for the recomputation of
the accounts Wl ween the United States
and the several States and the City
of Baltimore, growiug out of moneys
expended in the war of 1812 with
Great Britain.
Th Rending hlagle has a story that
Keinholdsville, Lancaster county, is
very much excited over the strange and
mysterious death of the wife of Henry
Fisher, who resides a short distance
from that place. The family reside in
a small house, snd the dead body of
the woman is now laid out in one of
the lower rooms. The husband is em
phatic in his statements that his wife
died from the effects of being bewitch
ed, and an old woman is named as the
person who bewitched Mrs. Fisher.
The old witeli has quite a reputation in
the neighborhood, and is said to per
form the most mysterious things. She
does business with quite a large num
ber of people, who copie from all di
rections. It is asserted that an enemy
of Mr, Fisher visited the witch, paid
her money and had certain spells cast
over ber which resulted in death. Mr.
Fisher died in violent spasms.
Certain sections of McKean county be
ing afflicted with wolves, which are kill
ing the sheep in great numbers, Charles
Jones, ot K*ne, an old and successful
hunter, offers to clean out the vsrmints
for 850 a head for old ones and S2B a
head for young ones,
' Central Grant Is expected to sail from
lltvana lor Mexioo February 13.
TKHMN: Kl.oO per Anniiiii, in Advance.
GENERAL NEWS.
Kxtensive purchase* of iron ore fields
; in West Virginia have Keen uncle by
( the Cambria Iron Company.
Vincent It. J'oil, until recently Collec
-1 tor of Custom* for Detroit, Mich., >•om
| milled Filicide by shooting himself
jthrough the head.
A Coroner in New York is blamed
witli neglecting to investigate the case
jof the death of an infant until five
j month* after the occurrence, the body
: meanwhile remaining unhur ed.
Judge John V. Painter. of Kittan
i ning, Pennsylvania, died on Wedne*-
| day of last week, after an illness of
' several months. He won cansiderahle
I prominence at the bar and on the
1 j bench.
James Cain, millwright at the Veu
viu* Iron Works, Allegheny, while ad
! justing n belt on a pully fell sateen
j feet, alighting on his head on a pile of
• metal, breaking his neck. He was 4■>
, years of age and left a family.
The Farrandsville fire brick works a e
j | running night and day, with orders
I enough ahead to keep them going for a
| "ear or more. They intend to enlarge
their dry house sixty feet the coming
I spring, which will make room for more
, j employes.
Walter K. Brown, 19 rears old, the
1 son of an opulent citizen of New York,
i shot himself through the heart on the
1 step of his father's house on Friday
1 night. No cause lor the tragedy is
known, except that ho had suffered
somewhat from morbid melancholia.
The new Senatir from Alabama, Mr,
t Prvor, had never been to Washington
before last week. <n returning from
' the Capitol on Thursday he lost his way
• in the magnificent distances of Wash
p ington and had to ask-somebody to
show him the way home.
' j On the 15th instant His Holiness
; Pope Leo NTH approved the appoint
t ' ment of the Right Rev. l>r. Klder, here
tofore Bishop of Natches, to be ooadju
• | tor, with right of succession, to the
Archbishop of Cincinnati, and to be ad-
; ministrator of the archdiocese.
Richard <l. Alexander, of I'elawaro
I City, New Castle county, Iteleware, who
I bitten by a dog about six weeks
l ago, died of hydrophobia on Friday
: nigh', after an illness of five days. The
1 strength of six men waa required to
i hold him, and he had afterward to be
, lround to the bed. In lucid intervals
' he Ixqreed to be killed.
i Samuel Brunner feU dead on Maine •
! street, Bethlehem, Friilay evening, of
apoplexy. He had been Coroner of •
i the county for fifteeiureaJS, a Justice of
i J'eace lor the same length or time ami
j Town Clerk for nearly thirty years.
! Though seventy three year* old he had
i been in good health. -
| Sunday morning a fire broke out in
the engine room of the Hussel Paper
i Company's mill, at Lawrence. Mass.,
I and quickly communicated with the
( cutter, drawing and finishing rooms.
The loss on the building, stock and
i machinery is estimated at SB,OOO, which
? is covered by insurance. The fire
throws sixty hands out of employment.
The works will be repaired at once,
i The eleventh annual report of the
Railroad .Service in Massachusetts shows
that during the year ending September
I HO last only 11 mile* pi additional rail
i toads were completed in the State. The
gross income for the year of all the cor
(•orations amounts to thirty million dol
lars. The whole number of persons
injured during the year, including the
: sccident at Wollaston. was 405; fatal
I injuries, 45.
In the New York Assembly a commit
! nication was received from the Govern
: or, covering the report of the agent of
; the State relative to infectious diseases
among cattle. The Governor says
expenses amounting to $15,000 have
I been incurred, for which there was no
, appropriation; and, notwithstanding
' the recommendation pi the Secretary of
I State, be had directed the work to be
j stopped until the Legislature took fur
' ther action.
it was recently ascertained that the
Rev. Kara D. Winslow, the Boston forg
er, had been living at Buenos Ayres.
but when bis identity became establish
ed he left and his whereabouts are now
unknown. While there he became the
publisher of a newspaper, obtained a
subordinate position under the govern
ment, was a Sunday-school teacher and
a leading member in the Methodist
Kpiscopa! church, lie left behind him
a number of unpaid bills,
James KUis and bis son John were
; drowned in the St. fjiwrenoe River at
j Morristown, N. V., on Saturday night.
KUis had been across to Brockville,
! where he purchased some goods, which
were brought over in a rowboat, and
left on the edge of the ice. Ellis return ■
od home for his son, who put on his
skates, and pushed hia father before
him on a sled. In this manner they
proceeded until they reached the water
when both tell in. Cries were heard,
but assistance arrived father and
son had disappeared.
Blast furnace slag, that moat homeless
of ell waste substances, IS.now utilised
to a great extent. It ia converted into
sand, mixed with a certain proportion
of selenitic lime, and manufactured in
to bricks which possess many advan
tages over the ordinary brick* of com
merce. By reducing the slag to a fib
rous condition a material is produced
which ia usefully employed a* a non
conductor of heat in cloehing, steam
pipes and boilers. It is used in the
manufacture of glass bottles and glaaa
railway sleepers. Rut the moat recent
invention in slag utilisation ia in tbe
production of a pure, white cement of
greater atungth than the beat Portland
cement.
NO. I