New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-11-17
PUBLIC MEETINGS.
BOARD OF COUNTY CANvAsSERS.
IA Roa,d Of County Csnvsseers met yesterday

W, N Eylsrs commenced his Argument against
,.iss b hind the retaDs by definition Of the duass
~ The hard Various concurrent modes OF putting
sb.ek on fraud, he said were provided In sontrs-
dc,;op between the poll lists and the number OF the
ballots the law provides that the ballots should be
made 70 conform 70 the polLhss. II the poust' ana
the number Of votes hswever agreed, nothing NJ
named TO be deae but TO count the votes. And what
certain me,hsd could be employed in the aosencs
at eountns mach ne than those sworn encers, 30
eli q Of the people who had received the woes nc
could no. see he force OF tee reasoning wnich sh
Why employ this board TO count the toSs "nS9
could be dore as well by the clerk 81 the desk WY
empoy at lsrge salaries men 10 count the goid az tae
mint Because il was situation OF great responsiony-
Al not this sitasdon OF mhnteiy gres'er respon
sibnity much greater as the VIII OF me peopie va"
more Important than be money OF the nabon VSa
tIemen would notice hat, though they were aldermen
.uperysors and magistrates OF no mean powers, yet
here they cane under the statute which was ther
warrant and at the same tane limited tneT powers
This hoard n ioht be made entirely OF assessors,
without a single supervisor, and II II were the board
., Supervisors the mayor sud recorder 'ould nave
seat In il. The members came because tnsy nsd
received individually certain charge. Ihey cams
because the inspectors were directed 70 oe iser .ae
result of their canvass to the supervisor OF The ward
within twenty four hours Af er il was made out. lie
law provides living and sctive officer to whom tue
return was be delivered a. once, for the sake oil
preventing any possibility Of frand. hscn e1sa'ses
was the voucher for the genuineness OF what ne
btoush ne was responsible for it, and they had no
more ri. ht TO question his retdrn than they Red 70
inquire into any other of his acts as member Ihey
had no discretion with or without evhenee 70 st'er
the crossing of a or the dottng OF en- l. but they
must in ease of error, send the return back TO the
ward canva.sers-seryely return them If they choose
10 COL sioer il SOTO be corrected and the retsrn
mus. on its face show that it was erroneous. ,
Mr. WAsExAs inquired if the return, although
priza face q true one should be declared by the
inspectors who made it cut to be doubled, whether
theIe could be ne remedy.
hr. EvARTs-The Board Of County CanvaeSeS are
10 count returns a. they are broa ut to them, and
inspectors lose their power over the returns when they
60 out OF their hands.
Mr.. WAKEmAS-Suppose it is conceded to be
forgery
sane as in other cases OF forged documents. The law
had provided for its transmission from the party Who
made il TO the party who brought It here. II they
could find charge Of forgery here they couid nnd
loOphoe in the law, but he could no see any IL 'no
torgery were by the conniyance OF the supervisor ne
could be dealt With according 10 law. IL was very
Important offices should Lot be rendered vacant
by any judicial interference. The board was to meet
and to adjourn for never more man three DAYS, 70
finish their count and n nd it to Albany within twenty
da,s Who would the offices if the fifty eight boards
of canyessers TO costume the year 10 the sdudi-
cation of judicial questions. There were no parties
here but people and the intruder; the parties were
could not agree even if it were their desire TO arrange
a syision of the emoluments of office. The question
was one of more moment; it was the ascertanment OF
the will OF the people. they went into the proposed
investigation they would be interfering win inc pre-
alone had jurisdiction over the regularity OF election
of their me bes and not even tie Supreme Court q!
Washington dare interfere with it. Inc duties OF the
board were ministerial Suppose this protest were
tue. Read TO the Supreme court, 1t would draw
tbarn
should sign certificates for Messrs. shepard, Whlest,
kagg and Selah. The lpreme court would have no
power TO grant the pro:estants their remedy snt TINS
was dore They were told not to allow declslon oil
the court of appeals 10 be shaken them. II by
that il were ntel ded to be represented rs unmany TO
fear the law, that Was very wrong. Ito VINO ala not
revere the majesty of the law and fear to infringe 1t,
was not good Wing nor 9 good Republican, neither
good Democrat nor good American.
PETER Y Cutler, who appeared for Thos. y. Barr,
commenced by reading the protest OF Mr.. Barr. lie
thought that was sufficiently specific. Frauds were
alleged, actual forgery was alleged; for when in-
spectors mace ieuin which they kne" 70 De no re
turn at ALL no estiu alton Of the votes actually cast,
what other could it be than forgery. Toe gentle
nan who had Just down had as said that even II the
io gerry the board had no rgat TO reject
it. If that was the law OF this State, II was law
VII Oh never could stand; he deed any gen tenan to
produce eny decision bearing toward such an inter
eLce Whenever any arbitrary measure was to be
forced down the throats OF people, whenever any out
rage vas to be committed, the lie ter of the law was
appealed to and not the spirit. lie Appealed 10 eaeh
individual member OF the board 10 know whether he
could adop forgery, and then 20 home and tell his
constituent he had done his duty. When any other
paper than the return was examined, they went
bey ond the return; when they looked at the poll list
they went beyond it. In case OF forgery they
could go beyond the return and also when
the poll let did hot coincide with the re-
return in number of votes. Suppose now that the in
spectors should ax to their that thinking that
a. Of dlpial m ha nj
est of the community, they had taken one hundred
votes from his number and given them to {. d. cOuli
they lot then go behind the returns lie would
rather have Louis Napoleon for dictator than submit
TO such election returns had had this Fall. IL
WIS said that this board might be composed.entirey
Of ssstssos. Ii cOnd II all the supervisors should die
come year. every Of them. Thqr were super
vsoIs, but obfclo county canvajsers Just a. tho
judges Of the Supreme court were eI oticto Jusges OF
the court OF ApIeals. Why was this s.rug
gle Could they 20 to the Supreme count
and get m8ndsmus to put them into Office
They could do 10 such thing. l. would be 4
long csse and very costly one, for law wa,
cash article il this city. Inc candidate would be
argued case in this city which WAC twenty one years
CID. A man who sent to the stae prison for five
yesrs sued out witt Of error-he persisted in it aud
he wOp but il was whole year after his sentence had
expired. In 1853 this board hal listened TO protest.
and stfdayits were offered. Supervisor S.urtevan.,
WHO loyal to the majesty of the Inspectors re-
turns as anybody here now, moved that they be rs
iected. Ten members voted agsirst this and out five
in favor and these and alidaylts were real,
ard he CAGE aterwerd determined upon. II in 1854
the board had oecded differently, one decision
ss GOOD rs the other. Ii affirmed, and admitted by
the OF poste party that the returns were false and the
question now wss whether they would declare those
returns to be the true returns. ] time allowed ne
might allude to the manner in which the elective
franchise had been destroyed in other countries After
the battle of Pharsslia and wheE Caesar emperor,
he reta ned the Lame Of Consul and tne laws who he
u sfe were Ddorsed by the Senate. ), It was, too,
IL the Italian republics-.te letter Of the hw was ad
hered to- bur tee spirit crushed.
JAS. W. GERARD, in reply said thst he should sOt