The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1878-10-24
THE BALLOT BOX sTUFFING AT
MASSILLON,

At last drew forth the Repository, and
that machine organ explains it "wery
satisfactory and very easy" True, say
the wise men of the Mckinley Saxton
organ, "here Oere 475 UOieS polIed, 475
names entered on The poll books, and AIS
tickets no more, no LesS-lsere found in tht
bor. The only error 1OaS that The clerks laI'
lied 30 vOtes too many for the Democratic
ticket, and the Judges failed 10 discover thC
error until after the returns aOere signed ana
sealed up."
This explanation is simply no expla'
nation at all. How came these clerks to
tally 30 more votes than were in the bal
lot lboxP This is what we "want to
know" The Rep says the error gave 80
more ballots 10 The Democratic candidates,
This is not the question. How and why
did the error occur2 The votes for Pro.
bate show 80 ballots too many, and for
two or three others 81 too many. Neither
clerk is a Democrat and the Reps ex-
planation only makes it. worse for both
Judges and clerks. Did the clerks pur.
posely tally 80 more votes to the Demo.
cratic candidates than they we're entitled
to- Ifso, why2
"And The judges failed 10 discover the er-
ror until after The returns we're signed and
sealed up." How soon after2 And then,
why did the judges not open and correct
the returns2 Orappear before the board
of canyassers to explain?
"Ihe error is clear loss 10 The entire Re,
publican ticket of 3OvoeS." Indeed Who
says SO? The Repository, No judge or
clerk of the election says so. And such
old Republican sharpers as S. G. Bowman
and S. A Conrad permitted as judges, "a
clear loss of 80 to the entire Republican
ticket"
all this is only little more 8tu6ing,
and poor stufing at that, 1t will not 60
down.
I" Lest folk suspect your tale untrue,
Keep probability in view"
Now, this matter is serious. 1t shows
the law was not obeyed, for if it had
been it never could have occurred. The
law commands that the tickets shall be
taken out one at time and read aloud
to the clerks, who shall tally; and that,
when as many tickets have thus been
taken out of the ballot box as there are
names on the poll list, the judges shall
stop and no more shall be taken out and
tailed.
Where then did the these thirty or
thirty'two tickets come from? How
came they to be counted? If they were
takel out of the ballot box, how did
they get in? If there were but AIS
tickets in the ballot box-no more, no
less-as the Rep says, how came the
clerks to tally, in one case, 5O7, in other
cases 5O6, and in others sos?
If 80 more names had been added to
;he poll list no suspicion would have
1een aroused on canvassing the votes
md this would have. been as rational an
operation as the extra tallying.
The young gentlemen of the Rep are
10 doubt anxious to try their skill in ex-
ricating their party, and such leaders as
Bowman and Conrad from the difficulty;
'ut their explanation is no explanation,
'nly making the matter look worse.
hey see that the enquiry may naturally
rise, was not the same thing done in
ther places, and more successfully
The Repository fully admits our state
lent Of the facts in the case, and had
'e not exposed the matter in the DEMO
RAT, the geniuees Of the Mckinley Sax
IN organ would never have peeped
bout it, no matter what side got the 80
audulent ballots. 1t is something for
he Rep 10 admit The fraud in The case. The
lassillon Republican organ has not at.
'mpted an explanation. This was left
n the inventive scribblers of the Repos-
Ory! !