The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1891-01-01

that the votes were compiled from the
returns sent in by the commissioners
of election, at any time. They arrive
at what they believe to be correct,
or approximately correct report of
what the result of the election should
have been, taking as basis the poll
tax books of the various wards, and
making large deductions from the
commissioners report from the wards
of the parish which seemed to have
favored the election of Haughton but
for some reason the wards favorably
disposed toward Benton as shown by
the commissioners of election returns
we're acted upon as shown by the
said returns. That is to say, the
proof shows that respondents decid-
ed what the vote ought to be in wards
and s, and took it as they found it
in the other wards. The corrections
of these returns cannot be inquired
into by the Courts. Had the Police
Jury the discretion, the power, or
authority to discard the returns sent
them by the commissioners of election
and say from other information or
from knowledge otherwise acquired,
what was the result of the election
If such state of things exist, if
elections can be determined in such
a manner as this, when the commits
sioners' returns can be set aside ct
the will of the returning officers, and
the result declared in accordance with
his idea or knowledge otherwise &C.
quired, if you will, of what the result
ought to be, every parish in the State
would soon be at the mercy of its
returning officer.
Until the work required by act %
of 1888 has been performed accord
ing to its provisions in conformity
with the general laws of the State
when not in conflict with said act, it
would seem that the board of can
vassers as such were not fitactus
o1tciO and could and can be required
to perform the ministerial duties i'm
posed on them by said Act.
The plea that the provisions of said
Act have been fully carried out and
the Parish Seat established at Benton
appears to have no force. The people
at an election must ratify Act %,
1888, before it can have force and
effect. The vote has been had, per.
haps, but the result has not been
ascertained and declared according
to any known legal method for as
certaining and declaring the result of
elections.
No new Court house has been built.
The records of the Court remain
legally at the established Parish Seat
until the new has been legally estab-
lished. There has been no judicial
order carrying the records and ar
chives of the parish from the old to
any newly selected Parish Seat. The
question has been continuously pend,
ing in the Courts-at the very time
the attempted removal to Benton was
made this suit was pending before
the Courts knowledge had been vis-
tied upon all parties in interest
OO54uCSs Al u ulSCuSS1Ou O1 Gu0 same
question:. e., the removal of the
records to Haughton in 1869, after
the decision of the Supreme Court in
the Mobley case and the Woodruff
case, the counsel representing Benton
and the Police jerry, and those repre-.
senting Bellevue, as well as those
representing Haughton, argued and
argued that pending the litigation,
the de facto Seat of the parish remain
ed at Bellevue. The Court so held.
The judgment of this Court on that
question is res adj9dicGtG, twelve
months old and no appeal taken
| The Court could not with reason, or
in law, be asked to disregard it's &C.
ton, publicly taken, and notice of