Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1855-06-01
The Oath-The Infamy!


allegations have to prove them, or suffe
the consequences
1, is repeatedly asked, "What can mel
mean by this wholesale defamation of near
ly onc-thirdOf our voting population-l5t
out of i92 voters ?" Why, they onl,
swear the charges are "true and correct.
to the best Of their knowledge and belief
AMI we suppose that having hunted cve'
the old assessment-rolls and tally-lists OF
file in New Berlin, sud fancying they de
tccied minor defalccs against some, and
having heard of or imagined real or tech
meal Irregularities against others, they
made up by hard thoughts enough to make
out the affidavit, and have thus put them
selves on record And that is the loose,
reckless code of morality by which political
matters have been managed at New Ber.
lin-by which the Railroad was mangled
and by which they hope to strangle Di-
vision, Truly, is it not time that the seat
of justice were removed from that COM
munity? Are jury boxes-are public pa
pers safe among such men? Reared in an
atmosphere of duplicity, and lost to self
respect themselves, they seem free to ac-
cusc others of heinous offences without fear
of check, and with the sole hope of disco
vcring some accidental errors through the
long and inquisitorial examination they
thereby create ,!
Butnot Lcwisburg alone is thus assailcd,
aud branded before the county and the
world. every Division township except
Buffaloe is charged with similar offences,
involving the integrity of their election
officers and the purity Of the ballot-boz, ,on
the oath of these immaculate New Berli-
ncrs 1t is true that they swear "to the
best Of their knowledge and belief" that
they knoc very little of what they swear
about, seems eviden: from the tenor Of
their sweeping oaths but what right have
they to declare they Jcliere 2225 men voted
fraudulently, and that the election officers
of 10 or l. districts committed perjury in
effect? If they had not reasonable posi-
tiee knowledge on the subject docs their
ncyatirc knowledge-their want Of know
ledge-permit them to charge positive
wrong with impunity' The legal maxim,
"every man is presumed to be innocent
until he is proved guilty." is in spirit re-
versed by those who swear they believe
man is guilty until he is proved innocent
We ask the people of Union county to
look at it. Is it to be allowed that the
Office brokers in and around New Berlin |
shall handle, unauthorized, in their secret
cabals your election and assessment papers,
and if they find some apparent irregularity
in district of which they have not perso-
nal knowledge of every man, shall they !
be tolerated in sreoring thcy tclicre 9 on
.traud and haul you, by scores,
to the Court of Quarter Session as Grimm
ais A? Must the people of White Deer,
Chapman, and other townships, in addition
to the oalhs of election officers, the known
penalties for illegal voting, and the uni
form laws on the subject, make pilgrim
age to New Berlin, and Proue to Baum,
Scebeld, Svineford & Co. the right to vote
of any or every man in their district or /
run the risk of being branded as felons? /
No-no! The people of the several
Boroughs and Townships are at least as
honest and as intelligent as those Of New
Berlin! Election boards are composed Of
men most likely to hnow who are and who
are not voters, and with the penalty hang
ing over their heads they dare not be dis
honest if they were so disposed. And what
would be thought if other districts were
to swear New Berlin fashion ? Suppose
there were 90 or so men in Buffaloe hav-
ing no more "visible means of support"
than those of New Berlin, and who should
get hold Of all the election and assessment
papers Of the Beavers, and finding some
voters not assessed in those townships, and .
others who did not vote at some prior elec-
ton, and some young men who had not been
assessed at all suppose they should hear
some idle story tha. there were 200 or 800
illegal votes given in: would that justify
them in swearing they believed there were
2 or 800 fraudulent votes cast in the Bea-
vers Would not the people Of the Bea-
vers say they chose men for election ofiic-
ers whose business it was to ascertain the
qualifications of voters-that they had
confidence in them-and that the Buffaloc
men had no right to presume wrong un-
less they had what they bclicved to be un-
doubted knowledge? The truth is, every
district is capable Of guarding its own
election boxes and there is no law, GUS
tom, nor reason requiring the citizens of
other districts to 60 to New Berlin, cap in
hand, and explain or defend to their vari-
Gus cliques the rights of those admitted to
the voting privilege. 1t is an impudent
assumption on the part Of the "Netropoli-
tans," and has aroused against them more