Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-04-14
THIRD WARD ELECTION FRAUD.
Plain Talk from Republican COMMITTEES
men as to Party Responsibility.

Of the ballots cast at the late city election,
had in the Superior Court, it developed that
a gross and palpable fraud had been commit
/ ted after the polls had closed in Precinct 81
and that among the 300 tickets last counted
in that precinct some 5S had been marked
and mutilAted with a black lead pencil in
| such a manner as to show upon their fa 3
that they had been tempered with since they
had been voted. l observed communica.
ton in your evening contemporary Of last
night signed Democrat, 10 relation to this
! fraud, and while my intellect is not keen
enough to grasp the exact idea Of the writer,
| infer that he labors under the idiotic idea
that the Republican City Committee has the
! power to investigate the fraud. | an not in
/ the habit Of replying to anonymous newspaper
articles, and would not pay attention to this
one, but that the time seems to have arrived
| for another movement supplemental to that
made by the Republican Committee calling
on the parties who alone can investigate the
| fraud-Sne law officers of the city and county
| to act in the matter. | desire to call pub
| lie attention to few facts in connection
! with this matter, and in stating these facts [
| will say that they will not be contra iicted by
any living man. The election in Precinct 81
was supervised by a Democratic board OF
| election, appointed by a Democratic Board
! of Trustees; and this fraud must have &C.
! CURED u1der their very noses. From almost
the time the ballots were counted, Democrats
wsre circulating reports in the ciey that
the tickets in Precinct 80 had been altered
! during the counting by Republican under
| the table," When the sealed package of
! Court, and while it was lying
on the Judges desk, and it was admitted by
/ both sides that the seals were unbrokep, aud
that it had not been tempered with since it
left the precinct, the attorneys for the
| Democratic respondent stated in open Court
that fraud would be discovered among those
ballots; that they had witnesses present TO
prove how the tickets had been changed and
| by whom, and they requested the Judge to
commence the count with the first tickets
strung, stating that the fraud would be found
to exist among the last few hundred tickets
strung. The Judge decided to count that
precinct as he had the others--c0mmencing
with the tickets last strung-and the sophisti-
Gated tickets were at the precise place on the
string indicated 6y the Democratic counsel.
Mr.. Knox's counsel dismissed the case, stat
ing that that gentleman would not take the
Office if i5 should appear that everything was
not fair. The Republican Committee i'm
mediately met, and not having the
power 30 order the production and iuspec-
ton of the ballots not having the power
to REQUIRE the Democratic election officers TO
do what the very nature of the Gaze should
promp. them TO do without sskIng-maks
public explanation of how it was possible for
such fraud to have been committed, they
being the officers whose duty it was especially
to guard against it; and not having the
power to compel the Democratic counsel to
disclose the knowledge which enabled them
to indicate where, in a sealed package Of BAL
lots, the fraud would be found and generally
the manner of It's preparation, the Republic
can Committee did all it could do-denounced
the fraud and called upon the proper officers
to investigate it. Sincs the day after the
discovery of this fraud, am informed that
blank complaint has been at the Office of
the City Attorney, waiting for some of those
gentlemen, who 'knew all about the fraud
before the seals of the package were broken,
to come and insert the name of the offender
and swear to it. l am also informed thst so
far as possi BILE, the gentlemen "who knew all
about it, were notified that this complaint was
there, but 30 far the City Attorneys trouble
in preparing the document has been vain. 1t
certainly seems that the gentlemen who su-
pervised this election owe it to the public to
explain why they did not discover this fraud,
as it was committed in very small room,
and wishin few fest of them. 1t does seem
that the Democratic counsel should disclose
the information which enabled them to so
precisely locate the position of the marked
ballots on string of 500. It would seem
that the party who gave them this accurate
information must have guilty knowledge of
this fraud, OF be must have such knowledge
as will point with certainty to the guilty
party. It has always occurred to me as sin
gular that this gentleman, whoever he may
u L flar Ah.a& ah4
marking these ballots and should have taken
so particular notice of it as to know at what
part of the strirg be was operating, and yet
should not have called the attention of the
policeman, the officers of election or the by
ISLANDERS present, to the matter.
Now, as to the motive for this fraud. If it
was committed by q man who proposed 60
help Knox on q recount, the man who did it
was an imbecile, for no sane or reasonable
man would expect tickets so couspicuously
debased to pass the scrutiny OF any
Court. II, on the other hand, we assume that
reasons existed why Knox might be bene-
flied by a recount, and that the party who
changed the ballots was a man of ordinary H.
telligence, and knew that the accepted rule OF
law in this State is that the ballots are primary
evidence 10 matter of recount, except that
when it has been made to appear, by proof
or by the ballots, prima fscie, that they have
been sophisticated-in which ease the returns
prevail-we can well imagine why the ballots
should be so marked as to make it appear
palpable that fraud had been psrpetrated,
and TO appear, presumably. that it had
been stupidity committed 10 Kuox's interest.
If any information is furnished to the Re-
publican Committee, pointing to a member
Of their party as the perpetrator OF the fraud
the committee will spare no effort to secure
his active prosecution and conviction. lt has
happened, unfortunately, that no member Of
the Republican Committee was in the cleo
| tion-room at that precinct that night II, on
! the other hand, the Democratic Committee
| remain spathetic as they have, and do not
| bring out the proof which members of their
party claim TO have in their possession, it is
! to be reasonably presumed that the public
will lodge the responsibility for this fraud to
members of their party, and will assume that
the party organization has not the backbone
to prosecute the matter.
WINFIELD J. DAVIS,
Chairman Republican City Central Com.
UNAcCUsToMED TO STREET CARs.-Yester
day q man from the country, who was in q
somewhat intoxicated condition. was driving
around the corner Of K and Tenth streets.
A street-car was going in the opposite direc-
ton, and it is presumed that he thought il
wouli turn out of the way like any other We.
hicle on the street, but it did not, and he ran
into it, the pole of his wagon punching hole
in the side Of the car. The shock did not in.
jure the wagon, and the man extricated his
team and proceeded on his way. The driver
of The street-car did not look at matters in
the same light, and he put on the brakes,
aud, running after the wagon, caught tht
team, He held it for some time, but could
not get the mans name. A large crowd col
lectsd, but no one knew hin. The street.csl
had to be moved, so the driver left another
man to hold the team. The question soon
arose in the Gro I'd as to the right to hold the
mans team, and the street-car man bscams
scared and let it go. The last seen of thu
countryman he was going down Tenth street
with his team on full gallop.
GRANGERs' REUNIoN.-The fourth annua
spring reunion of the grangers of Sacra
mento county was held at Enterprise OF
Thursday. During the meeting, at which
- A.