The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-02-05
UNDER Lock AND SEAL.
How the Ballot Boxes Are
Guarded in Trenton.
PRECAUTIONS FOR THEIR SAFETY
City Clerk Scott Seals One Down
With Piece of Paper, and
Senator Gardner
Another.
PRECAUTIONS FOR THEIR SAFETY
Special to gle Jersey Ctr Ne,as.

presented the appearance of the receiving
depot of an express company this after
noon, as succession of porters trudged
in with heavy boxes on their shoulders.
They were directed to the east committee
room, and there in one corner, each, as he
came, dropped his load. In the midst
of the rush and hurry, Corpora
tion Counsel Edwards led
troup of city and town clerks into
the room-City Clerks John E. Scott, of
Jersey City, and Marty McDermott, of
Hoboken; Town Clerks Angle. of North
Bergen; Werner, of Gutenberg; Welsh,
of the township of Union; Allies, of the
town of Union; Schneider, of West Ho-
Doken; Hessner, of Weehawken; Randall,
of Kearney, Tighe. of Harrison. The
boxes were the ballot boxes used at the
last election in Hudson county; the clerks
had come to see that they were left in safe
hands before they parted possession with
them
City Clerk Scott, City Marshal Tim
Long and City Messenger Jim Clarke had
eighty-six to keep their eyes on. They
had brought Mike Kilcauley, the hay-seed
detective, on to assist them in their vigil.
City Clerk McDermott had sixteen to care
for, and Mike Coyle, the we'll known Ho-
bOken Commissioner, was with him to help.
Town Clerk Randall, of Kearney, had
four; Town Clerk Tighe had four Alto
gether their were 129 boxes in charge Of
the entire delegation of clerks. Corpora
ton Counsel Edwards was on hand to
supervise the transfer of the Jersey City
boxes. As he was the only law officer
from any of cities or towns OIL hand, he
was solicited to extend his supervision to
the tranfer of the boxes from all the other
parts of the county as well.
THAT WOULDN'T DO.
The Senate Committee Oh Elections--at
least Gardner and Roe, the Republican
sections of it-were on hand in the COM
mittee room, with ex-Assembly1nan Will
lam H. Corbin, the committees counsel
to receive the delegation and the boxes
they had brought with them. The Sena-
tors wanted to give the clerks plain,
everyday receipt for the boxes and dis
miss them, but Senator Edwards sug-
gested that that wasn't quite the proper
way to do business, and that it was the
duty of the several local custodians to
see the boxes put in some place of safety
before they left. The committee would
attend to that-so they said but Mr.. Ed
wards would not have it that way, and SO
the question as to what should be done:
Mr.. Edwards suggested that they be
left in vault that Barney Ford, the
janitor of the State House, had placed at
their disposal. Mr.. Ford enjoys the dis
tinction of being pretty active Demo-
crat, and the Republican Senators made
an instantaneous kick. They proposed
on the other hand that they should be
hidden under Republican wing, and
suggested that State Treasurer Toffey
had a delightfully."- dry and commodious
vault in his bailiwick into which they
might go. Mr.. Edwards happens to know
Colonel Toffey, and, convinced that the
cargo of ballots would be safe in his
hands, he agreed.
That brought the State Treasurer him
self into the controversy He was not
willing to take the responsibility of keep
ing them unless every precaution were
taken to guard them. A watchman on
the part of the Senate Committee and
another on the part of the City Clerks
was suggested, and it met with favor till,
as an amendment,so one proposed that
the boxes be locked in the vault and the
doors leading into it be sealed. There
are two iron doors admitting TO the vault.
1t was finally arranged that City Clerk
Scott, acting on behalf of the delegation
of clerks, should seal one door and have
the care of the key thereof; and that Sena-
tor Gardner, on behalf of the Senate Com
mittee, should seal the other door and
active work was begun at once towards
carrying the arrangement into effect.
SEALING THE DOORS.
One of the handsomest clerks in State
Treasurer Toffey's office was deputed to
open the vault, and the Senate Commit
tees lnarshalS crowded into it, while
porters moved the boxes down. City
Marshal Long, who by the way was
hoarse from dancing at the Brown Asso-
ciation's ball, insisted upon piling them
five high in corner, nor quit the room
till he had seen all arranged about as he
arranges them at home when the election
officers turn them into the City Clerks
office.
When they had all been piled up, State
Treasurer Toffey's handsome clerk disap-
peared in one direction and Jimmy Clarke
in another. The clerk came back with
lighted candle in china holder and u
stick of sealing wax in his hand. Jimmy
came bame back with strip of white
letter-paper half foot long City Clerk
Scott rested the paper against the brick
wall of the outer building while he wrote
JOHN E. SCOTT (:
:.......................- --............
in big round letters upon it with his pen
Gil. Then advancing to the inner doors,
which had been closed and locked in the
meantime, he dropped the sealing wax
stick into the candle flame four times,
dropped flame of the wax upon each
corner of the paper, and plastered it over
the crack between the doors. One end of
the paper was waXed to the door on one
side; the other end to the door on the
other side, and SO they were closed against
secret intrusion at least; no one can get
through them without breaking his seal
unless he uses the point of his penknife
to lift the sealing wax and wakes the
ends down again when he comes out.
Then the outer door was closed and
Senator Gardner sent down his auto
graph TO be sealed over the crack in the
same way. The keys of the inner brace
of doors were handed to Mr. Scott; the
Senate committee was left in possession
of those that opened the outer door, and
the ceremony was at an end,
WHAT is TO COME.
The boxes will be brought into the
Senate chamber on Tuesday next, and
the committee will then begin recount
of the ballots and an investigation of the
records they contain. 1t said that John
a. Nugeut may be retained by the COM
mittee to make the recount. The keys of
the boxes are in County Clerk Nc
Laughlin's hands. But they can be
opened by combinations, amt the clerks
were not dismissed till they had written
on fragments of paper the combinations
that opened each box, and left the papers
in sealed envelopes in the hands of Com
mitteeman Roe.
The clerks were allowed for mileage
and witness fees for to-day s attendance,
81 each, though the committee could not