Des Moines courier. ([Ottumwa] Iowa) 1848-1854, 1850-09-13

reports, we make the following extracts
as indicating the opinion and feeling of
that committee upon this transaction.
..Ordered by the board Of commission
ers of Monroe county, and State of Iowa,
that that portion of country called Pot
tawatomie county, which lies directly
west of Monroe county, be organized
into township; and that Kanesville be
precinct for election purposes in ssld
township; and that the election be held
al the council-house in said village; and
that Charles Bird, Henry Miller, and
William Huntington disappointed judges
of said election; and that the bounda-
ries of said township extend east as far
as the east Nisnabotna."
Acting under this order, Charles Bird,
Henry Miller, and William Huntington
opened poll al the council house in
Kanesville, at the general election on
the 9Th August, ls4S, at which 493
votes were given for Daniel F. Miller
for representative from the first Con-
gressional district, and thirty votes for
William Thompson. A certified copy
Of the poll book was forwarded TO the
clerk Of the board of commissioners of
Monroe county, in the manner and with
in the time prescribed by the statutes of
the State for election returns; but the
clerk refused to receive it and submit it
to the board of canvassers, as required
by law. The poll-book was then ta-
ken from the clerks Office and retained
by some persons not entitled to its GUS
tody until after this investigation was in
progress. Your committee would not
be understood as justifying the conduct Of
the clerk Of the board of commission
ers of Monroe county, or of those who
distracted the poll-book and subsequent
ly detained it; ON THE CONTRA
RY, WE THINK 1T MERITS THE
SEVEREST CENSURE. The clerk
had, under the law, no authority to re-
fuse to receive that which purported to
be return from an election district
Ii was his duty to receive the return and
lay 1t before the legally constituted board
of canvassers, Of which he was men,
Der.
The above extract is from the report
of the political friends OF Thompson,
who were disposed to screen or excuse
the whole transaction as far as possible.
Our next extract is from the minority
report on page l6 and IL, and merits
the most serious consideration.
Nor do the committee see that either
the contestant or any of his friends can
be charged with any unfairness in this
matter. The entire board of commits
sioners of the county of Monroe were
the political friends of the sitting men,
Der. A majority of the election officers
at Kanesyille were also his political
friends. A number of other influential
friends of his went long distance TO
Kanesville prior to the election on an
electioneering campaign in his behalf;
while the actual sheriff of Monroe coun-
ty, a political friend of his, did the same
thing, and was at Kanesylle and voted
there on the day of election. The con-
testant, itseems had political friends at
Kanesville; but it does not appear that
either he or any of his friends from a
distance ever visited Kanesville at or be-
fore the election for political purposes.
No question was raised at any time by
any one against the correctness of the
proceeding, until after the election,
The balloting seems 10 have been con-
Quoted, ana the pol-book kept with more
than usun care and regularity.
The poll-book in this case was duly
made up and delivered by the proper Of
ficer to the clerk of the board of COM
missioners of the county of Monroe, as
the law requires, whose duty it was to
receive it, and at the proper time, with
the assistance of two justices of the
peace, to open it, and make an abstract
of the votes of that and other precincts.
and transmit them to the Secretary of
State, to be counted and canvassed by
the board of canvassers. But the clerk
of the board of commissioners of Mon
roe county, without calling to his aid the
two Justices of the peace, as the law re-
quires, but under the advice of j. G. Hall
Esq, one of the attorneys of the sitting
member, land who travelled a hundred
miles TO give such advice refused to re-
ceive or take care Of the Kanesyille poll
book: and il was actually carried away
by some one, but no one knows who or
:low, except that through some unknown
agency it was in the carpet bag Of Mr..
]. G. Hall before he got home. as he
now tells us in his evidence. Mr. J. C,
Hall gaze the poll book to the siding
member IN The spring Of ls49. Uho in
the t0infer Of that gear, disputed the er-
isfenee Of such poll book before the
committee; but, on the 10Th day Of jan
uary last, Judge Mason, another Of the
attorneys of the sitting member, in at
tempting to serve, at his own office, a
notice on the contestant, to take testimo-
NY in the case, accidently, as is supposed,
served on him the original pollbook of
the Kanesville precinct!-which the con-
testant, after duly examining it in the
presence of several other persons, re-
turned. This poll-book was, OF course,
never before the Congressional canvass
ers. h,,f the cnmfr1iffna fhink that under