Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1857-11-07
AN OFFICIAL KANSAS SHREK.
Gov. Walker ON the Inst Fraud.
70 the People Of Kansas /:

LECoMPToN, October 10, 1857
By the 32d action Of the organic act establish
ing the territorial government, it is provided in
reference TO the election OF delegate TO Congress
that 1.-The person having the greatest number of
votes shall be declared by the governor to be
duly elected, and certificate thereof shall be
given accordingly"
BY the 10th section of the ac, Of the territorial
legislature of Kansas, entitled ian act to regulate
elections, it is made the duty Of the secretary to
examine the the returns in the presence of the
governor, and to give to the persons having the
highest number Of votes in their respective dis
ticts certificates of their election to the leeisla
tive assembly"
Under these two provisions of the laws pre-
valllng in this territory, the recent general cleo
ton has presented for the joint consideration Of
The governor and secretary a question of the
gravest Importance, not only to our own people
Out also 10 lnose uf the wnoe Union. his ques-
ton al ises 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 al the precinct on the 9th and 9Th
instant, have been received by the secretary, con-
tanning sixteen hundred and twenty-eight names
OF pretended voters. or nearly one half the num-
Der given in the whole representative district
The disposition 10 be made OF this supposed vote
is rendered all important by the fact, that the
political cha'acter OF the legislative assembly will
be controlled by the addition OF three councllmen
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, comprising. as it does,
part of an Indian reserve, which, upon examina-
iion OF the law, find is not yet subject to set
llement or pre-emption, can give no such vote as
that which is represented TO have been polled at
this inconsiderabe precinct of Oxford. But
while this unofficial knowledge, well-established
and universal as il may be, could not become the
ground of decision and action upon election re-
turns in themselves regular and authentic, the
legitimate effect Of an apparent enormty, such
as tha, in question, would necessarily be TO in
duce a close examination of the paper presented,
and 10 require for its acceptance perfect com
pIiance with all the essential provisions of the
law Such an examination of this document,
concientiousy and impartially made, has brought
us 10 the conclusion that the returns from Ok
ford precinct in johnson county must be wholly
rejected for the following reasons:
lsl. 1t does not appear on the face of the doc
ument presented TO us, or in any other manner,
that the judges of election took the oath mpera.
lively required by the statute to secure the sim
partial discharge Of their duties according TO
law"
2d. Ii does not appear that the paper present
ed to us was one OF the two original poll books
kept at the election, as required by law; but, on
the contrary, it does appear, from unmstakabe
internal evidence, that the paper is either 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 re- |
quires one of the poll-books to be returned tothe
secretary, the other to be deposited with the |
.l. nf hna nfu a.
er county.
Sd. As the vote of each eeclor was to be re- |
corded for each one of twenty-five candidates,
and in more than hundred cases, for twenty |
FIVE, and that by riud poce vote, it was a ply |
sical lmpossbiliiy that the number of votes pre-
tended to have been taken on the second day, |
being more than fifteen hundred, with the name |
of The votes written, and each Of twenty-five can.
didates properly designated, could have been ta-
ken and recorded within the time prescribed by |
law.
4h. 1t is an extraordinary fact, tending to
throw distrust upon the whole proceeding, that |
of the sixteen hundred and lwenty.eight votes,
only one is given to the delegate elect to Con
gress and only one hundred and twenty -four
are recorded as having been cast for the local |
candidate of the township.
Influenced by these considerations, and i'm
pressed with the grave responsibility resting up
on us in regard to the fairness of the election,
and it's freedom from all fraud susceptible of de-
lection and proven lion within the scope of our |
duties we deemed it essential TO truth and JUS
lice that we should ascertain every fact cacu-
lated TO relute or confirm the conclusions deriv. |
ed from the face of the papers Accordingly we |
went to The precir ct of Oxford, (Which is vii
lagc with six houses, including stores, and with
out tavern,) and ascerained from the citizens
RI