Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1856-07-22
-.sROMEROY. TlgEsl AY.. \ JULY %. 1856. !.

JLY. 90. 1856. .aaz
other a resident Of another precinc. Of tha,
District. The polls were then opened, and
oil the Mssourians were allowed 70 vote
without being sworn. .'if tsa, a
After the polls were closed. and the re-
turns made out, FOR the signature Of the
judges. Mr.. Che ,nu, refused 70 sign them. as
he did not consider them correc, returns Of
legal voters. t. 2 -
Col. Golfer, a. resident of, Missouri, bu,
elecied 10 the Kansas Legislature from tina.
District at iha, eieclion, sndeavored with
Others to induce Mr.. Chesnu, by threats to
sign the returns, which he refused TO do,
and lei, the House. On his way home he
was fired q, by sons Missourians, though
no, injured 9l434 There were three illegal
q pn5 |esaI Fc.a siysn ,hsreahas day 9l44,S
..> I'1 ts4tt pseeI1eI he jqdfes op.
pointad and p'5es8dod Is open no polls. i.
ter being duly sworn. Afier few votes
had been received, parry Of Missourians
came into the ysrd Of the house where, the
election was held. and unloading wagon
filed with arms, SACKED their guns in the
yard, and came up 10 the window and de.
manded TO be admitted 10 vote. Two Of the
Judges decided 10 receive their votes, where.
upon the third judge, Mr.. ]. M. Arthur, re.
signed, and another was, chosen in his
place. Col. Young, citizen Of Missouri,
but candidate for and elected TO the Ter
ri.orial Legislature Council, was present and
voted in The precinct. He claimed ,ha.,,a
Missourians who were present on ,he day
OF election We're entitled 10 vote. But thir-
~ or forty Of the citizens Of The precincl
were present, and many of them did no,
vote sl45.s A. The Little Sugar precinct, the
election seemed 10 have been conducted fair
ly. and there a Free State majority was
polled l9l46.i From the testimony, the
whole~DisIrict appears 10 have been largely
Free State. and had none bu. actual settlers
voted, The Free State candidates would have
been elected by large majority. From
careful examination Of the testimony and
the records, ws find ,ha, from 200 TO 225
legal votes were polled, out Of 855, The TO-
,al number given In ,he precincts of the Vsh
District. OF the legal votes the Free State
candidates received l52.
.rr VIrH DIsrRIcr-FoRr Scorr.
A company of citizens from Missouri, mostly
from Bates County, came into this District the
day before the election, some camping and 9TH
ers putting up at the public house [147l. They
numbered from 100 to 200 [l48], and came in
wagons and on horseback, carrying their pro-
visions and tents with them, and were general
ly armed with pistols. They declared their pur-
pose to vote, and claimed the righ to do so.--
They went to the polls generally in small bodies,
with tickets in their hands, and many, if not all,
voted. In some cases they declared that they
had voted, and gave their reasons for so doing.
Mr.. Anderson, Pro-Slav cry candidate for the
Legislature, endeavored to dissuade the nom
residents from voting, because he did not wish
the election contested T149l. This person, how
ever, insisted upon voting, and upon his right
to vote, and did so. No one was challenged OF
sworn, and all voted who desired to. Out Of
800 votes cast, not over 100 were legal, and but
81 of those named in the census taken one
month before by Mr.. Barber. the candidate for
Council, voted. Many of the Free State men
did not vote, but your Committee is satisfied
that, of the legal votes cast the Pro-Savery
candidates received q majority. Mr.. Anderson,
one of these candidates, was an unmarried man,
who came into the District from Missouri a few
days before the election, and boarded at the pub
lie house until the day after the election. He
then took with him the poll-lists, and did not
return to Fort Scott until the occasion Of q
barbecue the week before the election of Octo-
Der /, 1855, and after it left, and has not since
been in the District. S. A. Williams, the other
ProSavery candidate. at the time Of the election
had a claim in the Territory, but his legal resi-
dence was not there until after the election.
&, u. tv. 10 VIITH DsrRlor. ia1.
From two to, three hundred men from the State
Of Missouri came in wagons or on horseback to
the election ground at Switzer's creek, in the
7th District, and, encamped near the polls, on
the day preceding the election. They were
armed with pistols and other weapons, and de-
clared their purpose to votes in order to secure
the election Of Pro- Slavery members. They
said they were disappointed in not finding more
Yankees there, and that they had brought more
men than were necessary 10 counterbalance their
vote. 4 number of them wore badges of blue
ribbon, with a motto, and the company were
under the direction Of leaders. They declared
their intention to conduct themselves peaceful
ly, unless the residents of the Territory attempt
ed to stop them fiom voting. Two of the Judges
of Election appointed by Governor Reeder, re-
fused to serve, whereupon two others were ap-
pointed in their stead by the crowd of Missouri
ans who surrounded the polls. The newly-ap-
pointed Judges refused to take the oath pre-
scribed by Gov. Reeder, but made one to suit
themselves. Andrew johnson requested each
voter to swear If he had claim in the Terrific
ry, and If he had voted in another District. The
Judges did not take the oath prescribed, but
were sworn to receive all legal votes. The
Missourians voted without being swoTn. They
supported H. J. Stickler for Council, and NJ. w.
McGee for Representative. They left the even
ing of the election. Some of them started on
horseback for Lawrence, as they said they could
be there before night, and all went the way they
came. The census list shows SO legal voters in
the District. 1853 votes were cast; Of these 26
wereTesdents; II or whom were in the District
when the census was taken 1851. Some Of the
residents present at the polls did not vote, de-
claring ii useless: Candidates declined to run
on the Free State ticket, because they were un-
willing to run the risk Of so unequal aconteSt,
it being knownsthat great many were coming
up from Missouti'to vote [161]. Nearly oil the
settlers were Free State men, and % of'the 81
: legal votes given were cast for the only Free
State candidate running. Mobiller McGee, who
was declared elected Representative, had q
claim-a saw mill and. "a house in the Territor,
land he was there part Of the time. But hi
legal residence is now, and was then. nea
Il NY a l. .,.1