Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-11-11


CARROLL COUNTY cOHUNDRUM.
Auspicious as the campain Of 1874
has closed in Tennessee, it has not
passed without lesson here and there
upon the disasters of disorganization,
confirming those of 1872, which so i'm
pressed the people generally, A case
in point is the tie vote for Representa-
tive in Carroll county, between Curtis,
Democrat, and Brooks, Republican,
each receiving l326ballots. The Code
of Tennessee, section s72, provides as
follows: m a9l
IF there is tie vote between two or
more persons having the highest mum.
Der Of votes for the same Office, IN all
cases where the Office is filed by the
votes Of a single county, the returning
officer shall give the casting vote be-
tween such persons.
sThe returning officer" is the Sheriff
of the county, and it SO happens that
Carroll county elected the whole DEM
cratic ticketlast August with hesingle
and striking exception of the Sheriff.
A multiplicity of candidates, with no
Democratic convention or nomination,
very naturally resulted in the loss of
this most important county Office, a
Republican, named Williams, being
elected. Now this Sheriff has the power
to decide the complexion of CarroI's
representation in the State Legislature,
and by returning Brooks. who was a
member of the last House, render nu-
gatory the glorious revolution IN that
county.
So much for the blunder of August.
Again, IN November, the same unfor-
tunate want of harmonious co-opera-
ton existed. Otherwise, instead of a
tie vote, the Democratic candidate
would have been elected to the Legisla-
trIre by few hundred majority. Moth
ing but petty personal figures and dis
satisfactions, for which freemen ought
to blush, prevented this result. The
four or five hundred absentees from the
polls, the great mass of whom are al
ways Democrats, may now see their
wishes oontravened by Republican
Sheriff, when a single additional vote
would have determined the result more
to their liking. & .zslrs 8. a.
If Sheriff Williams be disposed to do
the fair thing, as an officer of the
whole people, and not mere partisan,
he viii endeayor to make up for the
neglect of the stay-at-homes, by giving
his casting vote in accordance with the
viii of the non-voting majority. But
they have no right to expect it, and it
is not the part of wisdom to depend on
political opponents for such exhibit
tons of magnanimity. Possibly, he
may decline 70 act IN the
premises We do not under
stand the section Of the Code to
be obligatory. We fail to find any PEN
atty attached for refusing to give the
casting vote. 1t would certainly be
something new in our system to compel
a mans vote. In case he should de-
cline the responsibility, We presume
new election would be IN order. The
additional expense that would be thus
incurred, may seem unnecessary, from
a political standpoint, IN view of the
overwhelming Democratic majority IN
the coming Legislature. Yet the fact
remains that Carroll county has as per
feet right to be properly represented
as any of her sister counties. Besides,
many non-poltical questions, Of vast
importance to the State, are liable to
arise in the Legislature and 50 divide
it that Carroll county's vote would be-
come highly important to us all.