Daily Republican., 1882-06-12
FOURTHED EDITION
SETTLED At LAST.
Tho Ninth Ward Election Case De-
cidea by tho OOurI Of Errors and
Appeals.

Tho Ninth Ward Election Case De.
cidea by the Court Of Errors and
Appeals.
Last Wednesday the Court of Errors
and Appeals rendered decision re-
versing the order of the Superior Court
for Sussex county, October term, 1880,
which commanded Edmund @. Knight
and George w. Kennedy, the Demo-
cratic inspectors Of the Little Election
held in the Ninth ward Of this city on
the 5th of OcGober, 1880, to issae Ger
tificate of election as inspector to Liba
Ferris, 1t will be remembered that az
that election Jesse U. johnson and
Ziba Ferris we're Democratic and Ne
publican candidates respectively, for
inspector to hold the approaching Pres
idential election in the Ninth ward.
The count of the ballots at the close OF
the polls showed that johnson had re-
ceived 203 and Ferris 204 votes. Ger
tifcates of election were vnoI IoluIo made
out, presumably for Ferris, and signed
by all the judges of the election but,
before their delivery, it was discovered
that the name of Ferris had been, IS
the Democratic judges alleged, acci-
dentally omitted.
Later in the evening, E. G. Knight,
the d emocratic inspector holding the
election certificates, upon the plea that
two of the ballots cast for Ferris were
illegal, inserted the name of j. u. John
son in the certificates and one Of them
was delivered to that candidate.
Upon this becoming known applica-
tion was made, by Anthony Higgins
and Il. G. Bradford, Jr., Esqs., counsel
for Ferris, to the Superior Court soon to
sit at Georgetown, tor a mandamus to
issue commanding knight and Kennedy
to join with toe Republican assistant,
Pierce, in making and delivering eef.
tifcate to Ferris. The mandamus was
made returnable in three days and
issued three days thereafter, but, tefore
it could be executed, Ignatius 9. Grubb,
Esq, had applied for wi. of error 10
the Court of Errors and .>nnaals.
After a sharp confess VI h the onpC.
sing counsel and fortified by Unit, d
States Supreme Court decision Mr.,
Grubb obtained his writ of error; the
practical effect of which was to sus-
pend the operation of the mandamus
and give the Democrats control OF the
county board of canvass, which would
have otherwise been equally divided.
Chancellor salisbury, Chief Justice
Comegys and Judge Wootten sat as the
Court of Appeals when the writ of
error was argued. Messrs. Higgins and
Bradford, counsel for Mr.. Ferris, did
not deem it worth their whiio to argue
case in which the issued involved had
then long since passed away, and only
the Democratic side of the question
| was represented in the discussi IN.
The exceptions taken by the counsel
of the defendants in the mandamus
case that the decision of the judges OF
the little election could not be contest
ed did not enter into the writ Of error
before the Court of Appeals. The opin-
ion rendered by the chancellor and con
Cured in by Judge Wootten, which re-
versed the Judgment of the superior
Court, was based first on the point that
the cause of the mandamus case did not
arise in Sussex county that the election
involved was local and not transitory,
and should have been decided in the
Superior Court of the county where the
offence was committed.
! The other point on which the chancel.
lor's opinion was founded was tina,
the writ of percmptory mandamus
should have included Lindsay L. Pierce
the Republican judge, as well as the
Democratic judges. In concluding hit
opinion Chancellor Salisbury took &C
casion to say:
"While my duty as judge of thi'
court compels me to decide that the
Judgment of the court below must b.
reversed, do not inJend that my opin
ion shall be used in support of, or tt
give countenance to conduct which, al
far as facts have been disclosed, meet
my unqualified disspproval and con
demnation "