The daily gazette., 1882-05-13
CONTESTS CONSIDERED.
THE UNIFORM BALLOT LAW TO
BE LOOKED INTO.
A COMMITTEES MYsTIFIoATION
The Board of EducatiOn's Committee on
Contested Seats Holds an Important
Meeting Last Night.

The School Boards special committee on
contested seats held meeting last night in
the Board room. The members present were
Messrs. Conrad, Palmer, Hickman and Hill
ton. Mr.. Conrad was chairman.
OF the contestants and the members whose
seats are In question, only Mr.. Reeve of the
First ward and Mr.. Pusey of the Eleventh
ward put In an appearance, and after waiting
for the other parties until later than 3
O'Clock the committee proceeded TO consider
the First ward case.
In this case Reeve was returned elected,
having received majority of eight over
Emmons, the contestant, and Emmons'
contest is based upon the ground that the
officers of the election did not take the oath
of Office. The chairman read Mr.. Emmons'
petition and the affidavit of Eugene Sayers,
the inspector, to this effect, and in answer
to an inquiry from q member of the com
mittee said the case was similar to that of
Grimshaw vs. Stotsenburg, which was up
some time ago. In that case Mahlon B.
Stotsenburg was returned elected, but
Arthur IL. Grimshaw contested on the
ground that the officers of the election had
not been sworn. This was proved and the
Board declared the seat vacant and had it
filled at an election.
Mr. Reeve said he did not question the
fact of the inspectors not having been quail
fed. He had thought Mr.. Sayers knew
what he was doing, but believed that he
truthfully stated the case in his affidavit.
The consideration of the First ward case
was then laid aside for the present, and the
committee took up the case of Jacob Pusey's
contest in the Eleventh ward.
Mr.. Pusey said he thought his contest
would have to rest upon the legality of the
tickets not printed upon the uniform ballot
no Kuh fpb hoH ar Nv Son
the gentleman returned as elected. He
knew some five minors had cast their ballots
on age and number had voted without
paying taxes. Still he had no way of proving
that these illegal ballots were cast for Mr..
Sample and not cast for him (MT. Pusey.)
All told 30 or 10 Illegal votes were cast, but
he was at loss to know how to prove which
way those who put them in voted
Mr.. Conrad, the chairman, said that the
way to prove this was first to ascertain the
number of Illegal votes cast then secure
the number of legal votes by deducting
these from the whole number and then show
by the individual testimony under oath of
the voters as TO who got a majority of the
votes. This had been done in the case of
Grubb VS.. Farrell in the Ninth ward when
Farrell was unseated, but at that time a
great deal of interest was taken in the cleo
ton and the subsequent contest by Mr..
Grubb's friends, and this induced them to
appear before the committee.
Mr.. Pusey then said that the contest
would have to rest, Ia view the great diff
Guilty which would be experienced in getting
the voters to come out and testify upon the
question of the Illegal ballots.
THE COMMITTEE IN A MIDDLE.
Mr.. Palmer took the position that the
committee had no right to question the
To- ll.,Na l...y ,.NI la
s'was passed before the last school election,
and if it applies to school elections we, mem
bers of the committe, who were elected last
year hold our seats illegally.o
The committee then proceeded to general
discussion. One member thought no one
had been legally elected but Mr.. Hickman,
who had no opponent in the Fourth ward
and had been provided with tickets on the
uniform ballot paper.
Mr.. Conrad said that the committee should
ascertain through competent counsel what
the legal aspect of this ballot question is,
whether the law applies to a school election
as municipal election, whether the law had
been carried out, etc He had been informed
that the paper used by the Alumni had been
procured on an order from the Secretary of
State. When Mr.. Reeve, the anti-Alumni man
in the First ward, applied to the Clerk of the
Peace for paper on the morning OF the elec-
tion, he was informed that no such paper
had been sent in accordance with the law.
So that shut Off all possibility of an election,
and if the law was imperative it was a one
sided affair at best
The committee decided to get written
opinion from Attorney-General Gray ON the
subject, and on motion of Mr.. Hickman
postponed decisive action in the First ward
case until they could act upon the others.
1t is altogether likely that the First ward
election will be declared void and that the
Board will fill the vacancy.