The Kanzas news., 1857-10-24
Proclamation of Gov. Walker and Sec.
Stanton, in Regard to the Oxford
Frauds.
To the People Of Ran=as:


To the People Of Kanzas:
LEcoMPToE, Oct. 19, 1857.
By the Send Section of the Organic Act
establishing this territorial government, it
is provided in reference to the election of a
delegate to Congress, that "the person hav-
ing the greatest number of votes shall be
declared by the Governor to be duly elected,
and certificate thereof shall be given ac-
cordingly."
By the 18th Section of the act of the Ter
ritorial Legislature of Kanzas, entitled ''an
act to regulate elections" it is made the
duty of the Secretary to examine the re-
turns in the presence of the Governor, and
to 'give to the person having the highest
number of votes in their respective dis
tricts, certificates of their election to the
Legislative Assembly"
Under these two provisions of the laws
prevailing in this territory, the recent gen
eral election has presented for the joint con-
sideration of the Governor and Secretary, a
question of the gravest Importance, not on
" to our own people, but also to those of
the whole Union. This question arises
upon the extraordinary returns made from
the precinct of Oxford in the county of
Johnson. What purport to be the returns
of the election held at that precinct on the
5th and 9th inst, have been received by the
Secretary, containing sixteen hundred and
twenty eight names of pretended voters, or
nearly one-half the number given in the
whole Representative District The dispo-
sition to be made of this supposed vote is
rendered all important by the fact, that the
political character of the Legislative Assem-
bly, will be controlled by the addition of
three Councilmen and eight Representatives
to the strength of one party or the other,
according to the adoption or rejection of the
returns in question.
In point of fact, it is well known, that
even the whole County of Johnson, COM
lprising, as it does, part of an Indian re-
serve, which, upon examination of the law,
we find is not yet subject to settlement or
pre-emption, can give no such vote as that
which is represented to have been poIled at
this inconsiderable precinct of Oxford. But
while this unofficial knowledge, well estab-
lished and universal as it may be, could
not become the ground of decision and ac-
ton upon election returns, In themselves
regular and authentic, the legitimate effect
of an apparent enormity, such as that in
question, would necessarily be to induce a
close examination of the paper presented,
and to require for its acceptance a perfect
compliance with all the essential provisions
of the law. Such an examination of this
document, conscientiously and impartially
made, has brought us to the conclusion that
the returns from Oxford precinct In John
son 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 imperasiYely required by the stat
ute, to secure the Impartial discharge Of
their duties according to law
End. 1t does not appear that the paper
presented to us was one of the two Original
poll books kept at the election, as re-
quired by law; but, on the contrary, it does
appear, from unmistakable internal eyi-
dence, that the paper is either copy Of
some other document, or has been made uE
! for the occasion, and is not the genuine rec
ord Of the votes taken at the. election. The
law requires one of the poll-books to be re-
turned TO the Secretary, the other to be de
posted with the Clerk of the Board oi
Commissioners of the proper County.