A Merry Christmas To Every Reader

ot the Argus : not only a merry one but oue t'ull of solid happinoss aud pleasure. And in your own f ullneaa of good cheor and joy dou'tforget to extend the hand of kiudncss and chaiity to the unfortunate and poor into whose homes the holiday weeks bring vory little of sunshine and gladncas. John Lowki.i., of Massachusotts, has been appointed to that vaoant U. S. judgeship, and Secrotary Dovuns rmains iu the Cabinet. Blajne's resolution raising a eoinuiittee to investígate the alk-god ulection frauda in the South, amonded so as to make it cover all tho States, was adoptod by the Senate on Tuesday, only six Senators voting no. Rumor is again curreut at Washington that Senator Christiancy is to receive a judiciul appointment : that is, in plaiu Engliab, that hu is to be induced to créate a vacant seat for Mr. Chandler. In THE Senate on Munday, Siinator Matthews moved to set aside all prior and present orders and proceed to the consideration of the Toxas Pacific Railroad bilí,- a subsidy bilí. The vote stood : yeas, 26 ; nays, 32. Senator Ferry voted yes and Senator Christiancy no. The Edmunds Presidontial election bill passed the Senate on Friday last, by a vote of 35 to 20, - 15 Senators being absent. Messrs. Bayard, Merrimon, and Morgan were the only Democrats who voted for it. Mr. McPherson, Democrat, of New Jersey, would have voted yes, but was paired. The Boston Post kindly ad vises Grant's friends that Mexico will hold a Presidential eleotion iu 1880. The Post ought to know that its officiousness will be unappreciated. When Grant becoraes surfeited with traveling in the oíd world he proposes to move on Washington. Neither Bulgaria nor Mexico can capture him. We haven't a bit of doubt that Ypailanti has many " true Democrats, " we have never suspected or intimated that the body of Ypsilanti's " true Deinocracy " put out those " bogus tickets, " and we know that they didn't vote them ; but if the Sentinel is sincerely auxious for us to give the name of the prominent Democrat who procured such tickets to be printod and circulated we tnay feel disposed to gratify it. Sum i-: of tho Ohio Democrats manifest a desire to run Senator Thurinan for Governor next Ootober ; but the venerable statesman puts his thumb to his nose, shuts one eye, and says " you can't catch old birds with chaff. " He has no notiou of beiug ground to powder undor that new fangled " Ohio idea " before the National Convention of 1880. i mm-- ► ■■ !-- Dueinq the last session of Congress Senator Conkling fought shy of the financial question, in fact " mum " was his motto. And so far the present session he has fought shy of all pending questions. Blaine got no aid or comfort from him in his blast at the treraendous frauds in the South, nor did he come to the aid of Edmunds while tho latter's Presidential election bill was before the Senate. It was not always thusly with the New York Senator. TH08E tissue paper ballots ( or little jokers) used by the naughty Democrats of South Carolina at the recent election, were supplemented in Massachusetts by a ballot 7 by 14 inches, printed in four colors oa heavy paper and having on them ths portviats of Talbot and Long, the Republican candidato for Governor and Lieutenant-Governor. With such ballots nothing was left for the factory operators and mili hands but to vote tho clean thing. If that wasn't intiuiidation it certainly wasn't a " secret ballot. " Whilk engaged with tha Cominittoe on the District of Columbia on Monday forenoon last, Gen. Williams, of the Detroit district, experienced an attack of vértigo, from whiohr he was unoonscious until Wednesday morning. His recovery is not considered probable. Great sympathy is manifestod at Washington and in Detroit, and by all classes. The political opponents of Gen. Williams are as hearty in thoir tributes to his ability, integrity, and worth, as are his political friends. 'Gold sold down to 100 in New York on Tueaday, for the first time in seventeen years ; or in other words the greenback reached par, and for the first time siuee its issue ceased to be a fraud and a lie. We really hope that the " cheap money" men will not lose their wits over this calamity. Let them possess their souls in patience : a paper currency at par with gold may possibly not prove the curse they have predicted, - even though it 8hall make a wreek of that " Indiana platform " or knock the " Ohio idea " " higher than Gilderoy's kite. " There is one serious objeotion to the bill of Senator Kdinunds relating to prenidential elections, which passed the Senate on Friday last. It is the necessity it will mpose upon many of the States - Michigan amongthe numbor - to amend tbeir.oonstitutions or be to the expense of holding two elections but four weeks apart. To vote for presidential electora in Octobor and for State officers d November would split a campaign in Michigan iu two in the middi6l - a nuisauce in itself, - and doublé the cost for election boards, canvassing boards, etc. Sixty days betweeu the electiou of the electors by the people and their voting for President and VicePresidout ought to be a sufficiont length of time for tho State courts to grapplo with and determine auy and all disputed points. If dolay ia wantod merely for the purposo of delay ninoty days will be found too short. The objeotionable sootioti should be amended in the The genuine and practical teniperance ieoplo of the State of New York prefer the presuut laws whioh havo stood the tost of the courts to measuros untried and which must run tho gauntlot of all the courts. The license or excise law of Xow York pormits the sale of Iiquor8 by tho drink to hotel keepers, and tho decisión rule out the saloons in which a bed or two have boen put up. It is the liquor sellers of New Y'ork who strike hands with the prohibitiouists in favor of now legislation : though each not praying for the same. And so in Michigan the pvohibitionists and dealer aliko clamor for a ropoal ot the tax law. The dealers would be even willing to accopt the pruhibitory law of 1855, which for twenty years gave f ree and unrostrained traflic, and may aid the extreme temporáneo men in restoring it. Is such legislation dosirable ? As SOMF.ONE wil! soon get " tho job " of compiling a new " .Legislativo Manual, "' - a book which in these later yoars has grown to considerable proportions, - we desiro to point out an error that has run through aovcral editions. In tho list of Lioutenant Governors the name of Calvin iliitaiii is omittod. Mr. liritain ran for Lieut. Governor in 1851, on the ticket with liobert McClelland, and was elected. As there was no legislative session in IS.3'2 ho was not called upon to preside over any seasiou of the Senate, - uevertholoas we see no reason why his name should not appear in the list, or why his term should be assigned to another. The Board of State Canvassers met at Lansing last week and on Friday conipleted their work. The vote for Governor was officially declared as foll ows Total vote, ------ 282,765 For CharleB M. Croswell, - - 126,280: Orlando M. Barues, - - - 78,603 Heury S. Siuith, - - - - 73,313 Watson Suyder, - - - - 3,469 Scatterhig mul defective, - - - 1,200 The total vote for Governor in 1876 was 317,94ö, showing a falling off of 35,180. In this Congressioual district the vote was : For Edwin Willits, - - - - 14,312 Ira B. Oarr, 9,5."7 Levi H. Thomas, - 7,742 Adam H. Loune, - ö7