The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-12-03
THE LEMAN-BRAND CONTEST.
Gov. Hamilton Decides the Case and
Awards the Seat to Mr.. Leman.
Voters of the District Determine to Hunt
Down the Guilty Men-RepOrt that J. G.
Mackin Ordered the Spurious Tickets.
THE CERTIFICATE.
Governor Hamilton's Reasons for Declaring
Leman Duly Elected.

Governor Ham1ltOn'S Reasons IOr DcclaEAhS
Leman Duly Elected.
SPRNaFIELD, Dec Ex-Governor Hamilton
has rendered a decision in the Leman- Brand
case and after an elaborate review of the evil
dence and citation Of authorities, awards the GER
tifcate to Mr. Leman, the Republican candidate
for State senator in the Sixth district. The de-
cision of the Governor is very long one, recit
ing at length the circumstances surrounding the
return of the election judges in the Second pre-
cinct of the Eighteenth ward, and the manner in
which the fraud was perpetrated, as set forth by
conclusive evidence, written and oral, before the
State canvassing board. The Governor also
used as the basis for his decision the appearance
to him of the Second precinct tally-sheet and the
poll-book From personal examination of them
he expresses the opinion that the signature of S.
II. Shields, one of the judges to the tally sheet,
was forged as well as that of Dr. Strausser, which
was corroborated by expert testimony in the
latter case He deduced from this evidence that
all the changes could not have been made for
correction of clerical errors. For manifest rea-
sons this conclusion was that bold forgery had
been committed to cheat the people of the dis
trict out of their just rights, and the object of
the erasures was to change the majority In the
State Legislature, and thereby control the elec
ton of United States senator. He did not I'M
deTtake to say who was guilty of this crime, but
expressed the hope that the person who commit
ted the deed would be adequately punished. The
opinion declares that it false and forged
return which the canvassing board of Cook
county canvassed, and not the true and correct
returns, and, with all due respect to them, he
was of opinion that they should not have counted
that return. He says:
at was not, III this case. question of going
behind the returns but it was a question of find
ing out what were the true and lawful returns.
When the judges finished their labors on the
night of election, then and there was the true
and genuine return, and after that the forgers
and criminals secured possession of the true re-
turns and substituted the forged returns"
He asks if the forged returns could be held
more sacred in law than the true and lawful re-
turns. He approves the action of the State
board in hearing the evidence presented them;
he thought that the canvassing boards were not
intended to be mere machines in carrying out
the crimes of forgers and falsifers and that the
Governor could not be expected to allow himself
to be so used to trample upon the rights of the
people. He could not in judgement and con
science, find that Rudolph Brand was duly
elected in just or lawful manner, or that he
was elected at Ill, and by the returns ne finds
that Leman received majority of 1874 votes,
and is therefore elected He contrasted with
this decision, as lacking precedent, the crime
by which it was sought to control the election,
having no precedent in the State of Illinois, and
based his opinion solely upon the right and
duty of the canvassing boards to canvass the
genuine returns.