Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1890-01-29

under the penalty which ID Inflicted on
the highest as well as the lowest citizen OF
the land. Now the gentleman Of the mi
IOrity have made ihe contention IN this
case that Brooke county was never divided
into mogistsrisl districts, or If 1t was,
there wss DO record Of il.
Wtat does the evidence say?
Turn to page AZ OF the msjOrity report
and you will find that James Buchanan,
of Brooke county, WAS charged with being
a non. resident of the district in which he
voted Ths proof shows ths. he lived IN
Wellsburg district and voted IN Buffalo
district. Every member of this Commit
tee, Kee, Lively, SOrigg, Maxwell and
Morris,
VOTED TO REJECT
James Buckauan's ballot on district lines
in Brooke county. Gentlemen, why did
you vote to rtjsot James Buckanan's bal
| lot if there was no evidence that Brooke
had ever divided its msgisterlal districts?
Nov, 1 want to say that you lcok through
the minority report from page to page,
you will not fud q word about James
Buchanan.
Bat there are volumes Of evidencs. Pat
rick Hare was a witness called by the coD-
testee. He said: az reside in Cross Greek
distriek Brooke county" Robert Miller
SAYS: 81 reside in Buffalo district. Brooke
county" On page 249 you will tind that
.he county clerk cer.ihes that George H
Cox voted at Lszsrnville, in Gross Greek
district, Brooke county. Ga page 1850
the same clerk certifiss that James Apple
gate voted iu Gross Greek district, Brooke
county. o, page 1 or J. r Braddock,
trict, Brooke county" On page ], 1,083 Ad-
Olson Barn, a witness for contestee, says:
II reside in Gross Creek district, Brooke
county" On page 074
ROBERT FRYE TEsTIFIEs
that he has been constable of Cross Greek
district, Brooke county, for three years
On page ., 06S Peter Downey, a witness
for conts=tee, says: II reside in Gross Creek
district, 10 Brooke county"
Ga page 1901 you will find O. B. Turn
er's evidence about the addition to Wells
burg Lanszs. This is what he says: 81
residsin Welsburg and have resided there
for more than IA years. / am county clerk
of Brooke county. l have not been able
TO fad ia records Of my ofice any
proceeding touching the division o.
Brooke county iato districts, except
a minute sllo wing Adam Koon aud two
others pay for dividing the county iEtO
townships I know bJ reputation the
boundary line between Wsllaburg and
/ CrDss Creek districts Ii is Fleet street
Wellsburg dlstric. lies south and west of
of this lioe, aud Cross Creek district lies
north and east OF Of il. l know that G.. l.
Caldwell aud tie 90 others named reside
/ il Cross Cresk district. They voted az the
Court House in Wellsburg district on Nov
Oh, 1855 know that
BY GENERAL REPUTATION
thst they are all Republicans
Gentlemen, l would like TO submit to
you this question: Can il be possible, do
you bslieve that it ID possible tina; the
county of Brooke has been in this disor-
ganized condition for over % years? Do
you believe that it has no. the night 10
elect constable or magistrate legallyr
Haren of Marshall-Will the gentleman
allow me to ask him il all the votes were
stricken of that were cast 10 Weli7onrS
district by residents OF Gross Creek distticF :
Gen. Sp,igg-I will answer the gentle
man's qase,iOn with profound pleasure.
sill tell him that we
STRUCK OFF EVERY VOTE
tina. was challenged, and WAS proven 20
nave been cast by resident OF Gross Greek
district in WellsbuIg district. Outside OF
that could not 20. The committee could
rot 20. There may have been other votes
in this disputed territory, l do not kno"
it if there were. There was nothing b.
fore us in regsrd to them. Tnere was
nothing in the evidence in regard to them
and We, as judges, were compelled to do
our duty on the testimony aGd on that
alone.
Now. geatIemen, 10 return to the dlvis-
ion OF this county. We dn6 from the eVi-
dencs that George A. McOord, o resident OF
Brooke county, went to the Office Of the Sec
retary of Stare and there found plat oil the
county of Brooke as divided into districts.
Not only that, but the PROFITS that when the
county was divided into districts this plat
was filed with the Secretary OF State. 1t was
not necessary for the Board of Supervisors to
kesp record, and, therefore, the county
clerk OF Brooke county could not ma "
when be looked for it.
Gentlemen, this is enough to show you,
a. reasonable men, that Brooke county
HAD BEEN DIVIDED
into districts; that proper lines had been
established, and the contention of the
minority falls to the ground. Now, the
only question remaining is whether thsse
o-iSinsI lines we're ever changed. We
find that in 1877 the Circnit Court OF
Brooke entered an order enlarg!ng the
corporate limits of Wellsburg. Part OF
Oross Creek district was taken il; but that
does not change the district lines OF Wells
bnry or Cross Greek. The Circuit Court
has no power 20 make such a change. Tbs
change was never made. Fleet street re-
mains the line, and the residents OF Oross
Creek, who came over Fleet street, walkeo
to the polls in Wellsburg and deposited
their ballots,
VIOLATED THE LAW
and by the action of violated law are
deprived of the right of franchise IN that
election.
Gsntlemep, let us now take up more
carefully the contention of the minority
report. They claim that there is no evl
deuce before the committee that the eoun'
Nv of Brooke was ever divided into district
ls.s What evidence have the minority
that auy county of this State was ever di'
vidad into districts? II they have sucn
evidence, never saw It.
have gone through the record In the
majority report. =,
You caa do the same. And you will
6ad in the State there have been So cases
of individual votes r'jectei because eas'
out of the district IN which the voters
were bona fde residents. Tnese votes
we're csst in nearly every county OF the
state. Tbey we're cast in B)o1e and
Brsxton and Fayette and Logan, and 90
on through the lists. Yet DEFY the gem
tlemeo of the minority, defy the counsel
for the contestee to show me word prov
inc that any OF these counties were ever
divided INFO districts. We know tnat
thew were divided, Just as we know that
Brooke county was divided into districts
The evidence was sufficient in all these
cases. Why do the gentlemen of the MI
nority. why do the counsel for the con-
tss,ee obieo. to 1t when It comes
10 the county CT Bro0keP
Asa lawyer, say, that to require tne
contestant in this case to prove that the
county had been divided into districts,
would be to require a form Of proof
UNKNOWN TO ANY PROCEDURE
aha -,