The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1859-10-21
TheFirst Republican Measure Proposed

cessity of change in the affairs of the gov
eminent, failed to specify the remedies
which they proposed to administer, or in
any way. to indicate the particular features
of their policy. This we regarded as a
cowardly course for any party to pursue,
whose organization aud projects embraced
an entire State and we so expressed our
conviction during the contest. But, we
must acknowledge that, since the election, the
anticipation of victory leads them to reveal
their partizan schemes with the most COM
mendable promptness and dispatch. As,
for instance, the Times, in felicitating itself
over the prospect of Republican Senate,
says:
The gain of one Senator in Ramsey, one in
the AnOka district, one in LIE Sueur and Blue
Earth, and one certain and perhaps two in
Houston, give the Republicans that branch of
the Legislature. We especially congratulate
the defrauded Republican Senators of Fillmore
Countrywide were legally elected last year.
upon this glorious result. Their rights will
now be promptly indicated in spite of Chat
field ballot box stufing and partisan Supreme
Court writs of mandamus.
To show the character of the measure to
which the Times is committing its party, in
advance, we recapitulate the facts connected
with the Fillmore county canvass of the
Fall of 1858, at which time the Senators
were elected who will take their seats in
the coming legislature. AS soon as the
result of the election in Fillmore county
was made known to have been in favor of
the Democracy, the Republican candidates
raised the cry that outrages had been prac-
ticed by the Democratic inspectors of cleo
ton in Chatfeld-that the ballOt-box had
been stufed-and that the Republicans had
been defrauded out of votes which were
legally cast for their candidates. The Re-
publican board of county canvassers as.
sumed this charge to be true; and upon
such assumption, threw out of the canvass
the vote of Chatfeld, the largest precinct
in county declared the Republican legis-
lative and county candidates legally elected,
and ordered the Register of Deeds himself
member of the board, and one of the Re-
publican candidates-to issue them certifi-
Gates of election. The certificates were
accordingly issued, emitting the Republican
candidates to take possession OF their several
Offices gu the first of January, 1859.
The Democratic candidates for the county
Offices, knowing that the Republican charges
were false, and believing that they were
preferred only for the purpose of defraudiug
them out of their rights upder a legal and
fair election, instituted proceedings before
Judge WILSON, of the Third Judicial Dis
trict, for their vindication. The examina.
ton of the cases was held at Chatfed, being
removed from Preston, the county seat, to
that place, for the purpose of affording every
opportunity to the Republican defendants to
substantiate by testimony on the spot the
alleged stufing of the ballot-box. Upw rds
of one hundred witnesses were examined be.
fore Judge WILSON, for the defence, but not
single fact was elected justifying the action
of the county canvassers, while the testi-
mony produced by the Democratic contest
ants demonstrated as clearly as it was possible
to prove negative, the utter falsity of the
charges of fraud preferred against the elec-
ton officers of the Chatfeld precinct. Upon
this state of facts, Judge W1LsoN-who had
been bitter Republican politician, and who
was elected to the judgeship as such-de-
cided that the action of the county canvass.
ers, in throwing out the votes of the Chat
field precinct, was Illegal that the Demo-
cratic candidates for the county officers were
duly elected and thereupon issued an order
authorisiDg them to possess themselves of
their Offices, and enter upon the discharge of
their duties. Under this decision, rendered
by Republican Judge, upon full hearing
and examination of the cases on their merits,
the Democratic candidates for county officers
at the election of 1858, are now holding
their positions in Fillmore county, undis.
turbed and unquestioned.
Concurrently with this movement on
the part of the Democratic candidates
for county officers, before Judge VIII.
SON, the Democratic candidates for the
Senate, Messsrs. BRYANT and OFERRALL,
commenced proceedings before the Supreme
Court of the State, for the issue of per-
emptory writ of mandamus to the Clerk of
the Board of Supervisors of Fillmore county,
requiring him to issue to them certificates of
election as Senators for that county. The
Supreme Court, after full hearing of the
case, awarded the writ, and it was obeyed
by the officer to whom it was directed.
Here were two judicial decisions, rem
dered upon precisely the same state of facts,
at the same time, without the possibility of
concert--the one rendered by court of Re-
publican politics, and the other by court
whose Judges were Democrats-and both
concurring thatIthe Democratic candidates
were duly elected. 1t would seem that if
any subject of controversy, whatever, had
been fairly and fully investigated, deter
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