Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1891-12-17
CALVERT COUNTY CONTEST.
Decided in FAVOR o the Republicans

| Decided in Faror o. the Republicans.
Chief Judge Briscoe and Associ-
ate Judges Brooke and Crane, Of
the Seventh Judicial Circuit, met
at the Maltby House Friday, the
18th instant, to decide the Calvert
county contested election cases.
After long conference a majority
Of the Court decided in favor Of
the contestants, the republican can
didates. The decision covers three
cases States Attorney /; Sheriff !;
and County Commissioners.
All the democratic candidates had
been commissioned by the Govern
or except the States Attorney, who
receives no commission. Under
this decision Mr.. CAN'T, the pres
ent States Attorney, who was ap-
pointed by the court when Judge
Briscoe resigned the office to be-
come Judge, will retain the office
for four years. The democratic
commissioners had already assumed
the duties of :heir office and had
elected Mr.. Samuel b. Wilson pres
ident of the board. These will now
be compelled to vacate and give up
the office to the republicans.
The point raised in these cases
was the legality of the election in
the st. Leonard's precinct of Cal
vert county. If that election was
legal and valid the entire republi-
can ticket was elected, except the
candidate for Judge; if void, then
the entire democratic ticket was
elected. The circumstances of the
election, briefly were i:
On the morning of the election
the bundles supposed to contain
tickets were brought to the judges
of election by unauthorized persons.
They were found to contain no tick
cts. The judges of election waited
until after IL o'clock, when one of
the supervisors of election brought
number of tickets from the other
precinct of the same district. One
of the judges said that those tick
cts would not do unless the number
Of the precinct printed on the back
was changed. The election super
visor said the tickets would do as
they were, but TO change the en-
dorsement would ,invalidate them.
Then the two democratic judges
declined to give them out, went out
among the assembled crowd, an
nounced that there would be no
election, and went home along with
the democratic ballot clerk. Prom
inent republicans urged to people
not to leave, as an election would
be held. The republicans remain
ed and nearly all the democrats left,
and those whom they met coming
to the polls turned back. In the
meantime the republican judge APP
pointed two democratic judges and
a ballot clerk, not swearing in the
ballot clerk according to the requir-
ed form. The Endorsement on the
tickets was changed and the cleo
ton proceeded. Three hundred
and seventy-three votes were polled,
343 for the republican State ticket
and 80 for the democrats. The
usual vote of the precinct is about
$50, and the republican majority in
1890 was 21S, which is somewhat
above the average. Mr.. Gray had
227 majority in the rest of the
county. The majority for the dem
ocratic candidates for county COM
missioners and sheriff was not so
large, that for sheriff being LOT,
and the average majority for the
commissioners being 139.
Judges Crane and Brooke will
file written opinion in a short time
and Judge Briscoe will file dis
senting opinion. Judges Brooke
and Crane arrived at the same con-
clusion, but by a somewhat different
road. The great consideration
which had weight with Judge
Brooke was that the object of cleo
tons is to get at the intention of
the voter, and that the irregularities
of this election should not stand in
the way of giving effect to that in
tention. Judge Crane, in over
ruling the points made by the coun-
sci for the contestees considers the
requirements of the time for open
ing the election is merely directory,
since it did not change the result,
the Judge believing that there was
ample time for all to vote. That
in the absence of any fraud it would
not have vitiated the election had
the ballot clerk not been sworn at
all. Upon this point the Judge
relies upon Borleau's case in the
Philadelphia Court of Common
Pleas. As regards the character of
the Endorsement on the tickets,
Judge Crane does not consider the
number of the precinct as included
in what the law designates as the
official Endorsement, the fac-simile
of the president of the board of
supervisors being the vital matter.
All the requirements of the Austria
liam ballot law which were violated
in the conduct of this election the
Judge considers merely directory,