The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1898-09-09

thatit is too late. It was not
too late. as 9 ny lawyer must
admit who will look at the Min
nesota statute on the subject Of
time Of filing papers. but was on
the last day limited by law,
One petition was circulated by
G. +. Smith and T. y. Watson,
Of Eyeleth. Each Of the several
parties who signed that petition
said over their own names that
they were legal voters and act
ual residents Of st. Louis county
Minnesota. and Mr.. Smith and
Mr.. Watson took oath before a
notary public to the same facts.
The Secretary Of State says the
names on this petition were sign
ed on August 9Th. He doesn't
tell US how he knows. The pc.
tition was dated August 3rd,
and verified August 9Th. How
does he know it was not circulat
ed and signed August 9th, 9TH
and 9Th?
Mr.. Berg says he has the
affidavit Of Charles West and of
John Till and of Isaac Lamme,
who all say that the petition was
circulated August 5th., but I
have examined the af6davits and
none OF them say that it was not
circulated August 9Th, 7th. and
9th, Mr.. George E. Randall,
Deputy Sheriff. also makes at.
fidavit as to a list of persons
who were naturalized on the 9Th
day of August, and the Secre-
tary of State jumps to the con-
clusion that, because August
Johnson" or some man of such
common name, was naturalized
August 6th.. and "August John
son'tappears to have signed the
petition, there is something
wrong. and he undertakes to
make out that a hundred names
Oh the list are of persons who
did not have their naturalization
papers at the time they signed
the pc ;ition, although there is
not a particle of evidence of the
fact in his Office, or to which he
calls attention.
AS we go down the list, the
objections get thinner, Ed.
Prophet says he signed the pc.
t;tion twice, because he was told
by somebody that he might do
so. .''Poor Prophet!'
w. P. Strickland and H. A.
Wing swear that they were no,
asked when they signed the ne.
tition whether they were voters
or not. They did not say they
were not, and in fact everybody
knows that they have been
claiming to be for a long time,
and if they were not legal voters
they would say so. But when
We go through tire list, built up
BY an ingenuity which would be
entitled to great admiration il
exercised in an honest cause, we
find that, footing up all the
names upon all the lists which
are said to be in any way de.
fective, there are still enough
unquestioned names upon the pc
tition to entitle the people of St.
Louis county to the right to ex-
press their views upon'the ques
ton of county divisions.
The petition in question was
not turned down, as: I fully be-
lieve, because of any defect in it
or any irregularity lin, the Oh
tanning of the signitures, but
simply and solely because Ger
tain people in Duluth wanted it
turned down. I would favor the
circulation of another petition
Immediately after election and
the forcing of it to a hearing as
soon as possible, so that there
will be ample time for chasing
down and smoking out every
technical objection and bubble
that can be invented by u parti-
san official, so as to make the
submissian of the question at the
election in 1900 a certainty.
Very Truly Yours,
THEO. HoLL1sTER.
OFFICIAL PROCEEDINGS.