The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1875-06-11
ELECTION Frauds In Carroll Parish.

Nicholas Burton ct al. VS.. Chas. Hicks ct
al, after disappearing of the custom of
allowing counsel to take the records of
cases pending on appeal from the clerks
Office, and reviewing the law to the
duties OF the commissioners of election,
says:
Now, what are the facts? In SO far as
poll No. ! at least is concerned, the COM
missioners of election occupied room, the
window of which was more than six feet
from the ground. 1t through this
window that the ballots were handed to
the commissoners. The window itself was
barricaded with Stats running up and down
some three inches apart. A very large
numbe of ballots were handed to the COM
long pole no voter who was Oh the outside
Of the room could deposit his own ballot i'll
box provided, dia,, for that purpose, or see that
where voters, when they handed up their
ballots, called out fos 'greenbacks' in
replacing the ballot on the end Of the pole.
A majority of the court seem to consider
that this portion of the testimony is absurd
and incredible, and that il is c0ntradictcd
by nearly every witness who testified in
regard to what occurred at that precinct.
witness whose evidence is in the record.
and do not find it contradicted. Ifdenied
at at; AL It is negative denial that is the
testify that everything was conducted
properly. But the position OF the ballot
to by every witness, and when men toll mo
that everything was fair, aud in the same
s breath no; say tina, two opposing candidates
tense that they were voting other peoples
ballots. and that one did it because the
ir"ess. And NO wen " eo as't %1,S,S q" of
elections under whose eyes such proceed
inss We're carried on, tell mo that there
fnrced to say that do not believe them.
A majority OF the court Sc m to think that
these were mere Irregularities resulting
from q want of information on the part Of
the officers OF the elect ion. In my opinion
they are eri,ninaIi,ies for which they should
be punished, and which render their acts
void. When the polls closed the votes
were not counted recording to law. The
| placed were given to the clerk Of the court
their proper custodian. On the trial plain
titfs obtained subpoena duces tecun, upon
the clerk, ordering him to produce them.
| He answ cred hat they not in his pos
session; that he had given them to Il. X.
INN for that purpose. SEA- snib i then
| issued TO Anderson, the return upon which
was that he could not he found.
| When the return made. plaintiffs
defendants admitted that tho returns
were not made out and sworn to rs the law
requires, and the ballots in the boxes from
Ward will not show the same results as
the returns
Plaintiffs rested their case. Defendants
then attempted to prove the result of the
election by parole, and il, order to lay
foundation therefor examined David Jack
son, who swore That he had made ditigcnt
search sen c for the boxes ; ana returns hut had
had looked in the only place where lie had
any idea they could have been placed: that
lie had inquired of different parties whether
they knew anything about where the ballot
boxes or returns were, and that he had
of the trial to got tho boxes and returns
Now. jackson was the clerk Of the court,
and was, by law, tho custodian of these
ballot boxes and returns. lie Ind himself
given them to Anderson. On his cross
examination he says he supposes they were
in Anderson's possession, and that he had
not asked Anderson for them since the
commencement ofthe suit. Thus it appears
hat he asked every ono about them except
the only man i'll whose keeping they had
, been put. The possession by Anderson of
these boxes was his Possession, and think
co"ld not produce them or cause them to
be produced.
There process by which the defen-
dants, after his testimony was given. could
have forced the produc: ion Of those boxes
They did not SEQ tit to avail themselves Of
resort to secondary evidenced. Indeed
what object would they have i'll producing
boxes, which according to their own atluiss-
sions, would show that the returns We're
not properly made? And what becomes of
their assertion that tho election was not n
the ballots i'll the boxes of Ward | would
not show the same RESULTS as the returns :?
In my opinion these admissions destroy
| the defendants ctsc. How is the result OF
any election to be known except by the
! returns of the proper officers appointed Tor
| that purpose And who can say that u fair
election has boon held when it il admitted
| that tho ballots east would not show the
same c-ultS as the returns? am not con-
| tending that every infnrmality in the con
| duct OF an election will nullify the election
or that Il police law with regard to the man,
| iler i'll which an election is TO he held if
! unconst itutionnl ritiatcS the elect ion
which WAS the question before the court in
Suuccr's c,sc, Is A., sol. Nor do I contest
the principle laid down in Cooley and cited
by the Chief Justice in his opinion that
election statutes are to be tested like o, her
utes, but with Il tcainE to liber,lilv in
: view of the great public PURPOSES which
they accomplished. lmL l do say that
where the law specifically prov ides that nm
election shall he held in Il part ic,lnr man
ucr and not othcrwisc--.,S in my opinion
the election laws of Tho State dot must
h" held in accordance with the law and
that If the ballots have not been kept ~
required by law, and surrounded bv such
seen rii ics as The law has prescribed with Il,
view to their safe prcSerV:,t ion, as he best
evidences ct the election. it is impossible to
dcterminc who OF the candidates. before the
people were legally elected. Hero it is
admitted tina; the requirements of the law
wrr" not complied with. \ jury taken
from the body OF the people and selected
according t,' faw-fHrninE themselves a
poriinn of ih" voters of the parisit--hayc
declared that there was no legal election in
the parish, and the testimony IN tho record
satisfies me That their conclusion was n lust
, and proper one.
! l think the Judgment of the Dist riot
Court which sets aside the elect ion shouli
q "a y