The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1896-10-27


was an error in the official ballots The
one the Democratic committee received
came from Stafford county county and
the one that Chairman BreldenthaI re
eeived was from Rush county. The let
ter to the Democratic committee IS as
follows:
St. John, Kan. Oct. 26.
J. Mack Love, Topeka, KAN
Dear Sir:-In the stereotype plates
sent to this county by Crane & Co. for
the electoral ticket the names OF Perry
and Pitts are twice printed in the Peo-
pies Party column and omitted in the
Democratic column, and the names OF
Roetzel and Logan are printed in the
Democratic column twice and omitted
in the Peoples Party column We dis
covered the mistake here-Our county
clerk is a POpulist. The mistake has
been corrected in this county, but We
fear those plates have been sent to
many counties and If not discovered
and corrected, it will lose US four cleo
tors You can ascertain from Crane &
Co to what counties these plates have
been sent. We presume the plates are
all the same, as they are StereOtyped.
It may be necessary to notify the Dem
ocratic, POpulist and free silver Repub-
Hcan committees of each county of the
mistake. We regard this matter as
very important here. as it is too late
for Crane & Co to correct it. or to send
out other plates. The county clerks of
some counties might discover the mis-
take too late ROetzels name is spell
ed with two IFS in POpulist column
ana with one IL III Democratic column.
We do not suppose that this makes any
material difference We had the plates
sawed in two and corrections properly
made.
Our boys in talking the matter over
have come to the conclusion that they
don't know whether it is a mistake as
these plates are generally PROCEED, or
should be. before they are sent out.
Very truly yours,
F. w MOSELEY.
At Democratic headquarters they
were at first disposed to think that
there was some trick intended in the
matter. If such an error were to be
made in any county and not be discov-
cred it would result in a loss of votes
for the fusion electors every time
voter voted either the Democratic or
Peoples Party ticket. as the names Of
two electors were omitted from each
list and two names were duplicated on
each list. and each voter is allowed TO
vote for ten different electors and can
not vCte for one man more than once.
An Investigation brought out the
fact that many of the local printers
had ordered plates from which TO print
the ballots from Crane & CO. of this
city The plates We're not the same
length as the tickets. but were sawed
in two leaving the party heading and
the names of eight electors on one
plate. which would be placed in the
upper part of the form, and the names
of two presidential electors and the
state ticket on the plate that would go
ors on the Peoples Party ticket are
the same, but the state central commit
tees, in filing their nomination papers, /
arranged the names differently on their
lists. the Democratic list beginning
with the name of Sidney Hayden and
ending with the names Of Albert Perry
and George T. Pets. while the Peoples
Party list of electors began with the
name of Norris Cliggett and ended
with the names of James R. Logan
and H. J. ROetzel-
The state ticket of both the Demo
cratic and Peoples Party being the
same the local printers evidently got
the lower parts of the tickets trans
posed ard thus two names were dupli-
Gated and two names omitted from the
list of electors in Rush and Stafford
counties The errors We're noticed in
time and corrected and no harm viii be
done
George w. Crane Of Crane & Co. said
in regard to the matter:
some Of the printers ordered the
plates all cut up into single columns, |