Quasqueton guardian. (Quasqueton, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1856-1858, 1857-11-05

of Oxford. But while this unofficial
knowledge, well established and univer-
sal as it may, could not become the
ground of decision and action upon cleo
ton returns, in themselves regular and
authentic, the legitimate effect of an ap-
parent enormity, such as that in question,
would necessarily be to induce close ex-
animation of the paper presented, and to
require for its acceptance perfect com
pliance with all the essential provisions
of the law. Such an examination OF this
document, conscientiously and imparti-
ally made, has brought us to the conclu-
sion that the returns from Oxford pre-
cinct in johnson county must be wholly
rejected for the following reasons /:
1st. 1t does not appear on the face of
the document presented to us, or in any
other manner, that the judges Of election
took the oath imperatively required by
the statute, to secure the impartial dis
charge of their duties according to law" ;"
Cd. 1t does not appear that the paper
presented to us was one of the two origi-
nal poll-books kept at the election, as re-
quired by law but on the contrary, it
does appear, from unmistakable internal
evidence, that the paper is either a copy
OF some other document, or has been
made up for the occasion, and is not the
genuine record of the votes taken at the
election. The law requires one of the
poll books to be returned to the Secreta-
ry, the other to be deposited with the
clerk of the Board Of Commissioners, Of
the proper county.
Sd. AS the vote of each elector was to
be recorded for each one Of twenty two
candidates, and in more than hundred
cases, for twenty five, and that by piya
0oce vote, it was physical impossibility
that the number of votes pretended to
have been taken on the second day, being
more than fifteen hundred, with the name
of the voter written, and each of twenty
two candidates properly designated, could
have been taken and recorded within the
time prescribed by law.
4th. 1t is an extraordinary fact, tend
ing to throw distrust upon the whole pro-
ceeding, that of the sixteen hundred and
twenty-eight votes, only one is given to
the delegate elect to Congress and only
one hundred and twenty -four are record
ed as having been cast for the local candi-
dates of the township.
Influenced by these considerations, and
impressed with the grave responsibility
resting upon us in regard to the fairness
of the election, and its freedom from all
fraud susceptible of detection and preven-
ton within the scope of our duties, we
deemed it essential to truth and justice
that we should ascertain every fact calcu-
lated to refute or confirm the conclusions
derived from the face of the papers Ac
cordingly we went to the precinct of Ok
ford, (Which is village with six houses,
including stores, and without tavern,
and ascertained from the citizens of that
vicinity, and especially those of the hand
some adjacent village of New Santa Fe in
Missouri, (separated only by a streetand
containing about twenty houses, that al
together not more than one tenth the num-
her of persons represented to have voted,
were present on the two days of the cleo
ton, much the smaller number, not ex-
ceeding thirty or forty, being present on
the last day, when more than fifteen hun
dred are represented as having been Civ
en-. The people of Oxferd, as well as
those of the neighboring village of Santa
Re, were astounded at the magnitude of
the returns and all persons of all par
ties, in both places treated the whole affair
with derision or Indignation, not having
heard the alleged result until several days
after it had occurred.
In the course of our journey to and
from Oxford, we passed over much the
larger part of this county of Johnson. and
We became thoroughly satisfied that there
is no population in the whole county from
which more than one third the vote Of
that single precinct could have given
We learned that some very few persons,
having cabins on the reserve in Johnson
county, and claiming a residence there
in, though generally absent. had voted at
some OF the precincts in that county /; but
We are convinced that no inconsiderable
number. not reaching, we believe, one
hundred of Missourians or other persons
having no admitted right TO vote. did
claim or attempt to exercise that right,
anywhere within that county. The peo-
pie of Missouri cannot be justly charged
with any interference in the late election,
nor are they in any degree complicated