The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-12-08

As foreshadowed in The Herald of
Saturday petition by Judge NJ. l..
Ritchie for an Injunction to prevent
the board of canvassers from canvass
ing the votes cast at the recent cleo
ton and issuing certificates to the sue
cessful candidates, was presented to
the state supreme court yesterday and
a temporary Injunction issued return
able next Friday.
The title of the suit is NJ. L. Richie
VS.. Morgan Richards, state auditor,
James Chapman, state treasurer and
A. c. Bishop attorney general, assum-
ing 20 act as a board of state can
vassers.
The petitioner sets out that on or
about May 20, 1896, he was appointed
! by the governor of the state of Utah
to the office of one of the three judges
! of the district court of the Third
judicial district to fill the vacancy
caused b4T the resignation of Hon. LIE
! Grande Young, who had been duly
| elected to that place, and that by the
terms of the appointment and by the
law the petitioner is entitled to hold
and retain the Office of district judge
until his successor shall be elected by
law provided, by lawful votes, and I'M
til that successor shall have been duly
declared elected and shall have quail
fed.
NOT PASSED BY YEA AND NAY
VOTE.
Then the petition goes on to state
that the act entitled An act relating
to making .sundry provisions concern
ing elections by authority of which
the election was held and the board
Of state canvassers assume to canvass
the vote is invalid and never became
an act of the legislature or the law of
the state of Utah for the reason that
the said pretended act was not passed
by yea and nay vote, but on the con-
trary there was a disagreement be-
tween the two houses of the legislature
as to the terms of the bill and the same
was referred to a conference COM
mittee; that when the conference COM
mittee reported to the house of repre-
SentativeS, they reported certain
amendments created and agreed to by
the committee. but instead of passing
the bill after such amendments were
added, the house of representatives, on
a viva Voce motion, concurred in the
conference committees amendments.
all of which is found on the house of
representatives, journal.
TITLE ATTACKED.
1t is further contended that the pre-
tended enactment does not conform to
the requirements of the constitution
which provides that no bill shall be
passed containing more than one sub
Ject which shall be clearly expressed in
its title.
NOT A SECRET BALLOT.
1t is further set up that under the
said pretended act the election was
held hy what is known as the Aus
tralian ballot system and that by the
terms o. the act the ballot OF each
voter was required to be numbered and
that the judges of election were re-
CURED to take the ballot of each voter
and number it in ink in one corner so
as not to expose or show how the
voter has voted. the same to be num-
bered in the order in which thew are
received consecutivelv and so as to
permit the corner to be turned and
pasted down with mucilage, which
snail then be done so that the number
is not thereafter visible, and such seal
shall not be broken except IN case of
a contested election, and the same num-
Der shall be recorded by the election
judge or clerk on the list of voters OBJ
poslte the name of such voter. This
method was followed and il is set
forfh that after the number had been
placed thereon and the corner turned
down and oasted down the number
could be easily and plainly seen by
holding. the ballot to the light and the
judges and ever-7 other person seeing
the ballot could ascertain by whom il
was cast and for whom each voter
voted: that the ballot was therefore
not secret ballot as required by the
constitution and that there was no
secret ballot used in the election and
in consequence there was not a legal
ballot cast and the pretended election
is null and of no account for the reason
that there was no opportunity for anv
voter 70 cast a secret ballot and No
voter did cast a secret ballot.
NOT LEGALLY ENACTED
The petitioner further contends that
the act of the legislature authorizing
the election was never legally enacted
by the two houses of the legislature.
and never became a law. The governor.
when the bill was sent to him for his
signature, suggested certain amend
ments and returns it unsigned to the
senate, where the amendments were
adopted and the bill passed and sent
to the house. It is alleged the house
simply concurred in the amendments.
but failed to pass the bill as a whole
when amended.
EMBLEMS ILLEGAL.
The ballot. it is alleged, was further
illegal because by the enactment if
was provided that it should be lawful
to designate the political party or
nominating committee by which each
list of candidates is nominated by an
appropriate emblem, and that by. plac-
ing a cross mark opposite such device
certain candidates should be consid-
cred as voted for, whether the voter
had himself selected said candidates
of his choice or not. The provision.
1t is stated, was enforced, and ballots |
were counted by the county and other
boards for persons whose
names were assumed to be upon the
ticket and for whom no voter hal
actually voted by making a cross mark
opposite his name or by in any manner
him as the candidate of his |
choice, and that the said provision for
emblems is Illegal and unconstitutional
in that it does not provide a uniform
method of voting, but gives preference
to those whose names may happen to
be upon such regular ticket
1t is then stated that Judge Street
was appointed to succeed Judge Ecwat |
in a similar manner as Judge Richie
cd I-Td