The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1880-11-19

COUNTING THE, VOTE
Some a5Interesting ; ousstions
Discussed, II
And q majority Of the Board Refuse %
| Sign the Abstracts. RI RI
!. srs,fr~ ..-ffs f'IJ u. il
| In accordance with the election law onnr
man Batterton, Commissioner Zenor anu H
| r. Z. Gleason, J. P, assembled this wees
| . Canvassing Board to count the Deer Lodge
county returns and appointed Messrs y. = D :.
| O. Bannon and R. L. Davis clerks. Inefe-
turns were all in from the precinc'' w.
Polls had been held and the transcript .neie
of a. shown on the face Is printed In 'hi'
sue. 'A'A ala f@ -
The vote, IL win DO seen, Is very close on
Clerk and Recorder and Probate Judge IL All
the returns are accepted but up TO tins VIII
inu the Board has not decided to admit All.
At Race Track the Judges certify that MO
Andrews received 40 votes and Witter max
| ING IA in all while the PoH Book, o part Oh sne
Returns, shows that only 81 votes were cast
An examination Of the returns OF Race Irack
Indicate that one vote cast for . McMaster
was certified for McAndrews"; also that
one vote cast for Thonas 81 Irvine was certi-
| fed for G. E. Irvine. II this Is a correct as-
sumption 1t would make the vote Of Mean
drews and Witter a tie and give Emersontwo
majority for Probate Judge instead Of one.
At Toner'S Rancho there was nojurat to the
| certificate; the affidavit from McCiehan
Gulch was imperfect, and with the Moose
Creek returns there was no official oath WHAT
ever accompanying.
The matter was taken under consideration
and j.. G. Robinson, ESQ., called upon Tor
counsel fy Chairman Batterton Of the Board.
He held the functions Of the Cam
| wasting Board were merely ministerial; that
however erroneous the certificate might ap-
pear, the Board must count the vote certified
up by the Judges Of election; that IL had moth
| ing to do with. determining whether 1t was
right or wronS, or whether 1t tailed with the
| poll book; in other words, that the Board could
not 90 back Of that part Of the returns.
| The Board was divided in opinion, Batter
ton accepting Robinson's theory; Zenor hold
ing the Race Track returns we're manifestly
erroneous on their face and that the Board
could not properly certify to them as correct,
while Gleason held II the functions OF the
Board were purely ministerial and 1t had no
| judicial functions it could not properly count
and certify to imperfect and vitiated returns
| which come before 1t. Pending consideration
| of the question the Board adjourned till 10 a.
| m. Thursday.
| NOVEMBER Is, 10 a. m.-After assembling
| of the Board to consider what should be done
| in relation to Race Track and other precincts
| with defective returns, Chairman Batterton
abruptly announced his intention to sign the
abstract and hand it to Recorder Dickey. One
/ of the clerks suggested and insisted before he
took final action that q decomposition OF the
abstracts shonld be made with the original
returns to be assured Of their correctness
Mr.. Bstterton replied T." / have looked them
over and ! they are good enough for
me as they are.n He then took the abstracts
under his arm and walked of, stating "he
would sign them as they were, and the other
members could sign them or not, just as they
pleased" Following il copy OF the certif-
cate he appended to the several abstracts:
TERRITORY iefs MoNrAsA, ~ !
COUNTY OF DEER HoDGB,
/, John Y. Batterton, Chairman Of the
Board Of Commissioners and ex-officio
Il
said County, do hereby certify that the fsrs,
going Ii true and correct abstract Of the
votes a. returned for the foregoing officers,
Dated this 18th day Of November, 1880,
II JOHN Y. BATTLEFRONT,
H. Chairman of Board. ,
The other members then drew up and filed
with Recorder Dickey, the following pro
test:
To James 4. Dickey, County Clerk and Re
Iolxx NJ
Clerk Of the Beard of Commissioners o.
said county: > Tn5.- .'.~ + r. -#E r. .
u You are hereby notified not 70 issue any
certificates Of election for county, towrshiT
or road district officers within or for the coun
ty Of Deer Lodge TO any peron or person,
claiming the same under any abstract o
J | votes. or pretended abstract, or any gcertih
cate or pretended certificate thereof; no
bearing our signatures and you are turtle
fce any certificate 81. Votes east fn Dee
Lodge county, NJ. r, yor delegate TO Con
gress, for District Attorney: or Tor meInber
Of the Legislative Council OF the Territory
, Montana, except upon = cerlned aosskac
D sers for the election held in said Deer Lodge
county on the ID day Of November, A. DlSSo
,o,u..n HOWARD H: ZENoR,"
eigpep =. T.: GLEASON,
D Election, Returns for Deer Lodge county
IL Montana Territory. - .e -.... .:
This ties the matter up In the hands Of Nj
tDickey, who has legal notice that Msssrs. "a
nor and Gleason are members Of the: Board
1--WE do not know what his action will be, ]
he. issues certificates there will doubtless b
q contest in the courts, and II he refuses +
q issue them writ Of mandamus compelling
8 him to do SO will be sued for before the Dbl
{: trict Judge Public opinion Is divided o
!. the legal points involved, and IL Is mot b
= any means defined by party affiliations. E'
o cry man seems 10 form his opinion irrespec'
: i've Of political considerations, and as ther
= isao particular hurry about issuing certit
|, / Gates IL rs perhaps best that the questio
l. should be agitated that the next Legislator
r. may amend the present very defective ele
:, ton Java 4aHn a,iia ~ n~IE