The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-01-07
THE ONLY REMEDY.

Governor Pattison, of Pennsylvania,
in his message, said, among other
things:
There has been complaint in some
quarters that the rigid opposition of
the courts to all Investigations and re-
count of the contests of the ballot box,
except under certain difficult condi-
tons. tends to protect fraud. I recon-
mend, therefore, such amendments to
the election law as will authorize and
require the courts. upon petition Of a
certain number of voters, alleging a
miscount Of the vote, to order the ball
lot boxes and their contents into the
custody of the courts, to be opened.
examined and recounted whenever any
proper necessity for such course has
been legally made to appear"
The Governor apparently believes
that the true test of the peoples will
in election matters, in disputed cases,
is to be found in the ballot box, and
not in the returns. From the discIos-
ures in the Third district court during
the past two or three days, it would
seem that the gentleman is right
There may be defects in the Utah
election laws. A perfect statute is very
rare in human experience. But the in
tent Of those laws is obvious. 1t is to
guard not only against fraud, but
against unintentional error, the object
in view being to secure to every caadi-
date for office the benefit of every vote
cast in his behalf. To accomplish this
the provisions were made for recount
in case OF irregularities or discrepan-
cies in the returns
The number of ballots cast is the
true and only record of the peoples
will. The returns are but the evil
dences Of it, as reported by persons
employed to do clerical work. In case
of dispute as to their correctness, no
matter whether through design or mis-
take, the only way to get at the exact
facts is to go to the ballot boxes and
count the votes.
It is for this that the law provides
| for a full canvass of the returns sent
il from the respective precincts. It is
just and prudent requirement. If
the discrepancies apparent would not
affect the result of the election to any
candidate, the returns are to be ac-
copied; if they would or might do so,
the ballot boxes are to be opened and
the ballots counted SO as to determine
the rights of the respective candidates.
OF course this presumes that the bal
| lot boxes shall be preserved from fraud
ulent hands. If the law is complied
with they will be. It has not been
shown, or even claimed as yet, that in
| the present case there has been any
attempt at what is vulgarly called
ballot stufing." The evidence is
all as to discrepancies in the returns
No matter how they occurred, there
they are as a visible fact, and every
thing that has been elected goes to
show the necessity Of the recountine
of the ballots.
Governor Pattison is right There
should be some final tribunal of appeal
in eases where either error or fraud
appears in the returns. 1t is not worth
while here to analyze, the meaning Of
the term returns That it signifies
all the books. lists and papers to be
returned to the canvassing board seems
so plain as to require no discussion
which is only resorted to for pettifog-
ging. Our laws, under which Congress
has declared elections shall be conduct.
ed, provide for such a board as is
necessary under present circumstances
and by that board must the matter be
determined.
F! There are other means, however, to