National Republican., 1880-01-01
Tho neal Points at Issue Avoided.


AUGUSTA, Me- Jan. 1.-The following arc
the questions propounded by tho Governor to
tho Supreme Court aud sent TO tho Chief Jus.
tico late last night:
First--When the Governor and Council de-
eide that tnore Is no return from city on
which representatives can be summoned to at
tend and take their seats In the legislature, Is
it their duty to order now election or is IL
competent for tho House of Representatives, If
it shall appear that there was an election of
such representatives, to admit them to seats,
though no return thereof was made and de-
livorcd into the Office of the Secretary ofStatc
Sccond-I8 1t competent for the Gov
ernor and Council to allow the substitution of
other evidence In place of returned copies of
such lists as are provided for in article 4,
part l, section 5, Of tho Constitution TO enable
them to determine what persons appear TO be
elected representatives to the legislature by a
plurality of votes returned2
| Third-ls n return signed by majority of
tho selectmen of town or aldermen of u city
valid within tho requirements OF the same
section?
Fourth-Is q return by aldermen of n city
which docs not give the number of votes cast
for each person voted for rs member of the
legislature and does not show what persons
wero voted for as such members in any one
| of the several wards of such city, II valid re-
turn within the requirements of the same
scction2
Firth-Are the returns from towns or cities
which are not attested by the town or city
clerk valid within tho same section?
SiXth-Have the Governor aud Council q
| right to reject returns of election of members
of the legislature required by the same eloc.
tion from officers of towns which wore not
made, signed or scaled up in open town meet
ing2
| Seventh-Is the return of two persons pur.
porting to ho tho sclcctmen of Il town valid
aud sufficient evidence of the vote of the town
when it appears that there were at tho timo of
meeting at which the election was had, but
two seectmen of that town?
Eghth-Can person who is not a citizen of
the United States ut the time be legally elected
or constituted selectman of towh2
| Ninth-lf n ballot has distinguishing
mark in the judgment of tho Governor and
Council, such as would make it illegal under
the statute, have they authority to disregard
it in their uscertuinment of what persons ap-
pear to be elected, where 1t appears by tho
official return of the officers of tho town that
such vote was received by tho seIectnon, sub
iect to objections, and its legality referred to
the Governor aud Council for decision
| Tenth--lfthe names of persons appear in
the return without any number of votes being
stated or carried out against them, either in
words or figures, is it tho duty of tho Cover
nor and Council to treat those persons as hay
ing the same number of votes as another per-
son received for tho same office. and whose
name is placed first in the return, ii they find
dots under the figures or words set against
such other persons named?
Eleventh-Have the Governor ind Council
tho legal right to decide what kind of owl
dcncc they will receive, and what the mode
of proceeding before them shall be, to enable
them to determine the genuineness of the re-
turns required by the article and section OF
the Constitution above mentioned
Twelfth - Ii tho Governor and Council
have before them two lists of voters returned
from the same town, differing materially from
each other in the number OF votes returned
as cast for the same persons, but identical in
all other respects, both having been duly re-
ceived at tho Secretary office, and they have
no evidence to enable them TO determine
which is the true and genuine return, are
they required to treat either of them as
valid, and If So which