The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-11-13
ANDERSoN'S DECISION.

The HERALD does not think Judge
ASDERsoN's decision in the FERGUSON
ALLEN case is good law. The law is sup
posed to be just and reasonable and we
cannot see that this decision is either. The
law presumes to rectify wrongs and estab-
lish the right, but it certainly does not do
it in this case. The Judge admits that
enough votes to elect Mr. FERGUSON were
refused admission TO the box at Murray;
he admits that the citizens presenting those
ballots possessed all the qualifications OF
voters; that they had complied with the
law in every particular; that if they had
voted their action would have been legal,
ana that they did their utmost to vote, but
were prevented by the registration officers
and judges of election in open and reckless
defiance of the law; and yet his honor says
these men must lose their votes and that
Mr.. FERGUSON must not have the Office. 1t
may be the law. but we don't believe it is;
and when convinced that it is the law we
will also be convinced that the law is a
failure and an engine of injustice. To say
that this is good law is to say that regis
tration officer or a judge of election can at
pleasure defeat the will of the people, and
the courts cannot prevent him. If an cleo
ton judge can refuse to accept and put in
the box the ballots of six men heca do the
same with sixty or six hundred. If the
registration officer, On election morn
ing, can strike from the list the
names of ten men whom he may
think will vote a ticket other than the
one he favors, and there is no remedy, he
can erase the names Of every opposition
voter, and there will still be no remedy.
We repeat this may be good law but to the
lay mind the proposition is simply ridicu
lous, making farce of the law.
We sincerely hope this case will be car
ried up and an opinion be obtained which
will either reverse Judge ANDERSON or
will give people confidence in his decision,
for unsupported they will not have cond-
dence in the correctness of his interpreta-
ton of the law.
In connection with this case it occurs to
US that good deal more litigation should
be instituted. 1t seems to US that the pub
lie prosecutor ought to be interested in the
testimony and confessions regarding the
impersonation of absent voters at one of
luS Ding udu pOllS. Ii IIfdU IS not q case
for action on his part, it would be difficult
to imagine one in connection with the cleo
ton law, which would interest him. And
then, somebody is liable for depriving a lot
of Cottonwood citizens of the right to vote
and for taking valuable and important
Office from Mr.. FERGUSON and giving it to
Mr.. ALLEN. Doesn't it seem that whoever
has done this should be proceeded against
by those who have suffered the deprivation
and losss 1t looks that way to US. It
looks as if there were excellent ground for
action, provided man considers his vote
worth anything, and provided the office of
county clerk is worth striving for.
We hope this case will not be permitted
to rest where it is. If nothing further
shall be done, registrars and election
judges will naturally conclude that they are
privileged to do as they please, and our
elections viii be little more than farces.
The registration officers and the judges will
agree upon ticket to be elected, and will
proceed to elect it by excluding from the
ballot-boxes the votes of those who will
not vote the ticket Judge ANDERsoN's de-
cision practically says they may do this.
and the law cannot interfere after the polls
have been closed.