That Compliment to Owen

We alluded a day or two ago to Major Breckenridge's compliment in the convention to “Sweet Owen,” the county that polled more votes in the Major's last race than the assessor could find white males over 21 years of age within her borders; but it seems we did not “do justice to the occasion.”  We did not, it seems, represent the compliment as strongly as it was given.  A Democratic delegate to that convention, writing to that bitter sag nicht journal, the Louisville Courier, represents that compliment as follows:

“Mr. Breckinridge paid a high compliment to Owen County.  He said they would give any majority wanted.  When Major Harris was a candidate for Congress, he told them in Owen he only wanted 800 majority.  They said, if you want 1,500 just say so, we'll do it easily.  Breckenridge said verily he believed it was the truth - if any county in this state could give her full majority, it was Owen, and if a little more was needed, he believed she could do that too.”

Exactly.  The Democracy of Owen told Major Harris they could give him a 1500 majority if he needed it, and give it as easily as 800.  Let us see.  There are about 600 Americans in Owen'; and therefore, in order to give 1,500 Democratic majority the county must poll 2,700 votes, or six or seven hundred more votes than she has white males over 21 years.  Still, we do not doubt that the boast was true, and the Major's compliment deserved.  Owen can do pretty much what she pleases in the voting line.  If she hasn't got the voters, she knows where to get them.

from the Frankfort Commonwealth, January 15, 1856.