Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1875-01-14
statement by the Louisiana Returning
Board.

Tho Returning Board, in closing tn
,.hor of canvassing and compiling tn
az" .,o of the State of Louisiana, given {
,sa election on the I'd Of November las
says:
!, is Int i,,,5 and proper that the returnin
.scers should give a statement of the diff
"i,;as attendant on their labors, and tn
e..;n,irles laid down, drawn from law, to d
pet hem in the discharge of their dutie:
IT, me rst place. the election was very loose
iiraeonducted by the Commissioners of Elec
,ion. SO much so that ut one-tenth OF tn
Ills in the State the forms required by Law
t,,re not observed. The law requires the Su
,eryisors of Registration to forward to tn
Stunning officers, first, list of the votes KEEP
Nv the Commissioners of Election; second,
statement of persons voted for, and the mum
sor of votes received by each; and, third
lIvsheets, all of which the Commissioner
Of Election are required to furnish the Su
nsryjsors, and they to forward them to the re
furning officers. In many cases no lists O
voters we're kept by the Commissioners; or
n they we're. they were not forwarded to the
returning officers by the Supervisors, and
many that were forwarded to the Returning
Board were not signed or sworn to as the law
reouires In many cases there YVES no state
ment of persons voted for and the number OF
votes received by them forwarded to the Re
turning Board, and many that were re-
turped were neither signed nor sworn to; and
in many cases there were NO tally-sheets for
warded to the Returning Board to enable
them to test the accuracy of the statement
Of votes In some instances only the tally
sheets were returned to the Returning Board,
with list of the voters or statement of the
votes, and they not signed or sworn to as the
a. hp IF ha hapo ma
necessary that papers received from polling
places should be carefully examined. There
were over $50 polling places in the State, and
there was long list of candidates. So it be-
came a very laborious duty, which occupied
the Board nearly month, laboring from IL
a. NJ to .. m, and from Z to II q. M, every
day.
The law requires that, in such canvass and
compilation, tie returning officers shall OBJ
serve the following order! They shall CON-
pile statements from all polls or voting places
At which there shall have been fair free and
reaceabe registration and election. When
ever from any poll or voting place there has
been any riot, tumult, acts of violence, in
tmida1on, disturbances, bribery, or corrupt
Influences, which prevented or tended to pre-.
vent a fair, free and peaceable vote of all
qualified electors entitled to vote at such, the
returning officers shall not canvass, count or
compute the statement of votes from such
poll or voting-place until the statements of all
ther polls or voting places shall have been
canyassed and compiled. The returning off,
ters shall then proceed to investigate the
statements of riot, tumult, acts of violence,
fntimidation, armed disturbances, bribery or
torrupI influences at any such poll or voting
lace
The Board has followed this requirement OF
the law, as it was their imperative duty to do,
End, in examining the proceedings of Com
EiSsioners of Election forwarded to it by the
Supervisors when either of the counsel APP
pointed by the political parties objected to
he count Of any poll, and laid before the
Board any evidence to sustain such objection,
lch polls were passed over and not can
asSed until the Board had compiled the vote
rom all polls not objected to. Ia the progress
the examination large number of polls
were objected to, including some twenty
] ven parishes. The grounds of objection TO
ONE of the polls were the failure of sub
fantial compliance with the law in conduct.
I1g the election and making the returns to
(he Supervisors. In others that returns of
1he Commissioners had been changed after
they had been made to the Supervisors; that
! greater number than there were voters had
! een returned registered, or that those voting
We're compelled to vote differently from what
they desired.
Had the Board decided that anything like
ttrct compliance with the forms of the law
holding the election and making returns
= the Supervisor would be required, the
u lect would have been that so many of the
ols would have been thrown out that there
would have been no election in the State
he Board then adopted rule that when a
supervisor had returned any evidence show
Bg that an election was held, although it be
sheet 10
The absence of any evidence Of fraud or in
midation it would compile the vote as shown
such evidence or documents. This decision
sposed OF good many protests TO the re.
Reption Of polls, but when the substantial
rms OF law had not been observed and evi.
ence Of fraud or intimidation was produced,
De failure of substantial compliance with the
orms OF law was considered badge Of fraud
and he poll was rejected. We believed this
f De lust and reasonable rule, and the
board strictly adhered to it in the cases OF
aFroll, st. Helena and st. James parishes,
shere 1t was charged and proved that the re-
4fns made by the Commissioners to the Su
eNlsors had been changed after they had
one INTO the hands of the Supervisors. The
BOARD took evidence to ascertain the true
gate OF the vote, and made the compilation
acordingly
Inc question raised against the greater
-noer OF polls was the charge OF intimida-
-oh TO prevent voters from voting, and fore
mem to vote against their wishes. To es-
4OAsh this charge a great mass OF affidayits
ere taken, some applicable to whole parish.
ana some to particular polls and a mass
counter affidavits were also fled The
.suerai facts proved on this point establish
LAt about May, 1874, military organization
N-g"n as the White League was established
me State, which extended 20 every parish
.le State and permeated every neighbor-
'o1i mat the object of this organization was
- prevent colored men from voting unless
could be controlled to vote the Demo
% "a &c uchet, and prevent them from holding
nee and, further, TO compel Republicans
.uihg Office under the present State Gov.
-athl TO abdicate their offices, and to pre-.
-. 'He Republican party in this State from
.1aHIng with view of concentrating their
w.? al 4, The late election, and TO expel the