The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1896-02-28
THE JUSTICESHIP PROBLEM
Petition Presented to the POttsville Court
This Morning.
PREPARATIONS FOR A CONTEST
About Fifty Citizens Pray the Court to
Declare the Election Claimed by Justice
Lawlor Illegal and void-some
of the Facts Alleged

The dispute over the legality of the
claims of Justices NJ. J. Lawlor and John j.
Cardin to election as Justices of the Peace
of the borough is made more pronounced by
a paper filed at the Pottsville court to-day by
A. w. Schalck, Esq. The paper is signed by
about fifty petitioners of this town and is
filed in compliance with the law that when
protest is made against the election of JUS
tice of the Peace the objections must be
made in writing within ten days after the
election.
The petition was circulated quietly and its
existence only became generally known this
morning The facts set forth in it are sub
stantially as follows That the pretended
election of Borough Justices is unauthorized
and illegal and whatever election returns are
already made, or may hereafter be made, are
undue and incorrect. That there is no such
office as Justice of the Peace of the whole
borough, as borough. That the borough
now has its full quota or number of
Justices. That there was no proclamation,
or announcement calling upon the
electors to vote for such office. That NJ. J.
| Iawlor is now Justice of the Peace of the
First ward and has three years to serve
That the pretended votes alleged to have
been cast for said Lawlor for said Office were
not printed or written on the ballots but il
voted at all, were pasted thereon, and the
said office was not designated in any space
provided therefor on the printed official
| ballots. If there be any such offices as
two Justices of the Peace to be elected
by and for the whole of said borough
of Shenandoah it must be made known
to the electors in due time and in a
proper and legal manner, so that the said
electors may know their rights in the
premises and intelligently vote for two suit
able persons Tor one of them, as the case
may bel to fill said Office There were over
1000 votes cast by the electors of said
borough at said election, but no more than
100, if so many, votes were cast for said
Lawlor for said office, all the other electors
being ignorant that an election had been
authorized to be held for said office.
The petitioners ask the court to declare the
election claimed illegal and void.
This proceeding is independent of any
other that has been taken in connection with
the matter and is resorted to in order that
the other Justices of the Peace in the
borough may be in proper status to contest
the elections claimed should such a step
become necessary. 1t has no bearing upon
the proceeding Messrs. Lawlor and Cardin
have instituted for mandamus to require
the Judges of Election to make returns of
votes cast for the offices they claim. The
rule for the mandamus is rcturnable on the
9th of March, next.
1 All the parties directly interested on both
sides of the controversy seem confident that
their positions are impregnable and the re-
suit will be awaited with interest. 1t is a
question of constructing several acts of the
Legislature and the constitution of the state
and a detailed account of the claims of both
sides would make very dry reading to the
general public. 1t is understood that in adj
dition to Mr.. Olmstead, the Harrisburg
lawyer and authority on constitutional law,
Messrs. Lawlor and Cardin have John f,
Whalen and William Wilhelm, Esqs, ia
champion their cause. The other justices
have not decided upon any combined move
ment as yet.