The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1866-07-07
THE GRANT COuN
AUE,s.

character of some Of the outrages perpe-
trated by the Abolition canvassers of
votes, we will instance the case of Grant
county. This county was under the rule
of Gov Gibbs appointees-all Abolition
lists, of. course The County Board APP
pointed the places in each precinct for
holding the polls, and two Abolition
Judges to one Democratic Judge to hold
the election in each precinct. The Board
denied the petition of Democrats for pre-
einct polls in two places where, to allow
to voters the opportunity to exercise the
right of suffrage, polls should have been
Established. These were Democratic
neighborhoods, however, and by failing
to establish polls there the Abolition
Board well knew chat many Democrats
would be necessarily prevented from vot-
ing. On the returns being finally opened
in Canyon City by two Abolition Justices
of the Peace-Whitson, and another
whose name is forgotten-and the Aboli-
tion County Clerk, on the prescribed
tenth day after the election, the vote of
Ave precincts were rejected These pre-
eincts had given an aggregate vote of
759, with majority for Col Kelly of
i119. The vote of the other FIVE pre-
einets of the county were received, which
gave an aggregate vote of 5Tl, and Woods
a majority of g. The pretenee set up
| by the rascally Justices who thus took it
three fourths of all the legal voters.
and more than three -fourths of the Dem
iocratic voters Of the county, was that the
returns were informal or irregularly made
up. When Col Kelly cited Whitson to
the decision of the Supreme Court in the
case Of an election contest between Day
and Kent in Douglas county some years
Iago. reported in lst Oregon Reports, and
pronounced by Chief Justice Williams
(the. present Senator, in which the judg-
ment of the Court Was emphatically
Eagainst such action as was taken by the
Grant county Board Of Canyassers, the
Abolition Dogberry, Justice Whitson.
replied" The fact is, Col Kelly. /
don't think the decision of the Supreme
Court very good law" The arrogant ass
and knaye thus undertook. in his capaci-
!ty as Justice Of the Peace. to set aside
and reverse the decision of the Supreme
Court. The Board threw out the votes
of four precincts because the certificates
accompanying the returns were not made
out eroctIg in the fern and language
prescribed by law, although they were
each and all substantially what the law
requires. The fifth precinct vote was re-
ljected because the returns were sent in
securely tied, but not sealed, as the law
directs. The Supreme Court says these
and other mere informalities of Judges
and Clerks Of election shall not inyalidate
or destroy the rights of the voters; the
Dogberries Of Canyon City decided other
wise. But while they were thus fast in
rejecting the votes of the Democratic ire
precincts for informalities in the returns,
they admitted the vote of Camp Watson,
which gave Woods 10l to II votes for
Kelly. The County Commissioners had
appointed the poll at the Rock Greek
House, and appointed as one of the two
i Abolition Judges one Thornbury, SUIT
Ter at Camp Watson, and an old political
trIckster from Siskiyou county, Cal.
Camp Watson is an U. S. military post,
five miles distant from the Rock Greek
House. Early on the morning of cleo
tion Thornbury called at the latter place,
where the poll books had been left by the
proper county officer, and demanded the
surrender of these books from the person
to whose charge they had been entrusted
On receiving them he left word thai
E when the other Judges came to hold tho
election there, they should be told to re
pair to Camp Watson, where he had re
IsoIved the election must be held. The
election was accordingly held inside thai
military camp where none but soldiers
and employees of the Government coulc
, ienter except by permission of the officei
lin command. Two soldiers, neither O
them. qualified electors, were appointed t,
act as Clerks, and the polls were abso
lutely under military surveillance all day
The few citizens of the precinct who wer,
. permitted to vote there, and who wer,
+ Democrats, were subjected to insult
: abuse aud outrage, by the soldiers ant
Officers, and several were deferred from
: voting their party ticket. The soldier
0 were permitted to vote for both Statean,
County offices, although several of then
were minors, and not one of them wa
entitled to vote the county ticket. Capt
: Williams company had been pushe
! through from far off post to reach tn
polls, and had not been even forty-eigh
hours in the county. Yet their CON
! mander insisted that his men should vote
and, his order being absolute there tn
votes of his men and himself were rt
ceiyed Two soldiers who voted ther
K declare that they gave to Thornbur
, Democratic tickets; yet their names al
n registered as having voted the full Abol
pltion ticket. By means of this kind th