Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1893-02-09

list OF Illegal votes, required by statute. Dep
ositions were taken before Judge Temple pur-
suant TO the notice mentioned, at which time
Mr.. Goodwin appeared in person and by N. H.
Stdger, his attorney; and Mr.. Citing appeared In
person and by Thomas Berry his attorney. The
recor1 shows that Mr.. Elting and his attorney
were personally present at the taking of all OF
| the dispositions, and that almost every question
that was asked on the part Of Mr.. Goodwin was
objected to by Mr. Citing or his attorney. But
your committee should first refer TO the testi-
mony taken by them.
Pursuant to the authority conferred by this
honse upon your committee, your committee
sent u telosraphic subpoena to james Q. Hop.
por, county clerk of Ness county" requiring his
personal attendance before your committed
with the original canvass made by the commits.
sioners OF Ness county OF votes cast for repre-.
sentative at the November election, and the
package of tickets returned to him by the
judges and clerks of election Of Center town
ship in said county. -
| Your committee first examined the original
canvass made and signed by the commissioners
as canvassers aud attested by the clerk. The
clerk testified that the paper produced by him
was the original canvass, and that it had not
beon changed in any respect since it was signed
by the commissioners and filed in his Office
From the county canvass it appeared that fol-
representative Of the Ninety-ninth district Mr.
Citing had received in Center township 1853 votes
and MIR. Goodwin 80 votes, making total of POS
and it appeared that upon the whole canvass Mr.
| EltiuO had ranniva6 In NOaa ntty uOt
and Mr.. Goo Twin 542 votes showing by the
canvass majority of five in favor Of Mr.. Citing
Mr.. Hopper, the county clerk, next produced
to yonr committee the package of tickets re-
turned to him by the judges and clerks of cleo
ton Of Center township. He testified that Cen
ter township included Ness City; that Ness City
was city of the third class, and within the mu-
nicipal township of Center; that he resided in
Center township, and had voted there at the
general election in November and was present
during the counting of the votes by the judges
Of election, and saw the ballots counted and
strung, and inclosed in an envelope and sealed
up, and that package was then delivered to him,
and that he had had it in his possession and I'M
der his exclusive control from that time until he
produced 1t to your committee; and in like man.
ner he produced and identified the poll-book OF
Center township. The poll-book shows the
names of 206 persons who voted at the election
in Center township.
The package of tickets was opened by the
county clerk, and were taken singly by him and
handed to your committee, who counted them in
the presence of the clerk The ballots show,
upon their face, that there were LAT votes cast
for Richard o. Citing, and no more, and that
fifty-four votes were cast for /. N. Goodwin,
and no more. They show that four ballots were
cast which did not contain the name of any per-
son for representative, and they show that two
ballots were attached together by the judges OF
election, and Endorsed by them as having been
folded together, and for such reason had been
rejected by the judges as fraudulent. Counting
these two ballots as one, and treating it as
fraudulent, as the judges of election did, and as
a blahk, and it will be seen that there we're five
persons who did not vote for representative
This number, added to the LAT votes cast for
Citing and hfty-four votes cast for Goodwin,
will make 2O6, being the number Of voters whose
names appear on the poll-books. It will be
seen, also, that, tried by the ballots themselves
the return made by the judges was false, in this
that it gave to Citing 1853 votes, being six more
than he received, and that it gave to Goodwin
only fifty, when he had actually received fifty
four. twill be seen, also that, deductlng from
Fittings vote in Center township, as returned,
the six which he did not receive, and allowing
Mr.. Goodwin the four additional votes to which
he was entitled, makes a difference of ten in
favor Of Goodwin, and that this change would
elect Goodwin by five majority. The dispositions
, taken by Judge Temple show that twenty wit
nesses or more were examined before him, all of
whom were thoroughly cross-examined by Mr..
Elting's attorney. These dispositions show
briefly the following facts:
! LIST. A man named Ruffhead, who had been
convicted of misdemeanor and was confined in
the Jail at Ness City under sentence to imprison-
ment, was taken out of Jail by W. V, Horton, a
deputy sheriff, and taken to the polls and per
mitted to vote. He voted the republican ticket
but the testimony fails to show whether his
legal residence was in Center township at the
time of his conviction, or not; and as your COM
mlttee do not know whether a conviction of mis-
demeanor would deprive citizen Of his vote,
they have concluded to take no note of Mr..
| huuu6du 3 NOJo III lllGlI
I'd. H. N. Cowles voted in Center township for
Mr. Citing He testified that he was 81 years OF
age on the 10th day of December, 1892, and that
before he voted he told Mr.. Miner, one of the
judges of election, that he was not then q years
of age, and would not be until December. He
testified that his vote was not challenged. His
vote was Illegal.
Sd. Walter q. Reynolds testified that he voted
in Franklin township, and voted for Mr.. Elting
for representative. He testified that he voted
the Peoples party ticket, except that he erased
two names, one for county officeand Mr.. Good.
wins name for representative, and that he wrote
on his ballot the name Of Richard o. Elting for
representative and voted for him. He testified
that he would not be 81 years of age until the 9Th
of July, 1893. This vote was illegal.
4th. G. P. Hoffer testified that he was 81 years
of age; that he had voted for Mr.. Citing for rep
resentative, He testified that his family resided
in the state of Indiana; that he came from Mis-
souri, into the state of Kansas in June, 1892, and
had not at the time of the election resided in
Kansas six months. His vote was illegal,
9Th. A man named Busick was shown to have
voted at the general election In Ness county, and
for Mr.. Citing for representative. The testimony
satisfies your committee that he had served q
term of imprisonment in the penitentiary in
Illinois, and had not been pardoned; but your
committee are advised that proof sufficient to
disqualify a man by reason of the conviction for
felony must be made by the production Of the
record of conviction, or a copy thereof; and as
this was not done, your committee will take nc
note of Mr.. Busick's vote in their summary.