The Saint Paul globe., 1899-12-10
DUTY AS HE SAW IT.
Kentucky Election Commissioners
Discusses Action of the Board.

Kentucky Election Commissioners
Discusses Action of the Board
FRANKFORT, KY, Dec. 9.-At 9:45 this
morning the election certificates of Will
lam S. Taylor was signed by the election
commissioners and he was declared to be
governor-elect of Kentucky The official
figures of the vote filed with Secretary Of
State Finley are: Taylor, 1913, IA; Goebel,
10, ,331 Taylor's plurality, 1883.
The operation which ended for the time
being at least the bitterly fought guber-
material contest was conducted in the
simplest manner.
Late last night, when the decision had
gone forth to the public. Commissioner
Ellis, upon whose shoulders the greatest
part of the work of preparing the opinion
has fallen, discussed the matter freely.
':This has been a hard thing for me-"
he said, his eyes inflamed by loss Of sleep,
and the heavy lines in his face bearing
eloquent witness to the truth Of his state
ment.
''It has been hard thing for all of us.
I wish, however, that all of the people OF
the country should know how nobly Judge
Pryor has acted in this matter, and how
conscientiously he has done what he con-
sidered his duty. He Is a great man, one
of the greatest, In my opinion. that Ken
lucky has ever produced, and am sure
his conduct in this case has been OF a
piece with his long and honorable career
as a public officer.
Speaking for myself" continued Mr..
Ellis, 81 say frankly I did not like to do
this thing. but under the law and the evil
dence there Is nothing else l can do
and be an honest man.
'"Why, / was an original Goebel man,
I was Goebel man long before he re-
ceived the nomination and I am a Goebel
man now and Goebel partisan. L have
always been partisan in politics. rank
partisan, and it would give me greater
pleasure than l can express to be able
| to declare for the Democrats In this
| thing, but I can't do 1t. The proceedings
before the board were so Overwhelmingly
In favor of the Republicans, and they
had so much the best of the arguments
that it is almost idle to discuss the af-
fair There was, to the minds of Judge
Pryor and myself, only one thing to do,
and that we have DONE.
The statements made by Mr.. Ellis have
been upheld by his conduct from first to
last throughout the canvass. He did all
of the questioning of the attorneys, and
seemed at every stage to be most anxious
to obtain the truth and be impartial to
both sides.
Mr.. GoebeI was apparently in the best
Of humor after being told that Mr.. Tay-
lor's certificate had been signed. He
laughed and shook his head when asked
| If he had anything to say.
mot thing; I am not talking"
when Will you make eontest?'
az have not decided yet, and I, of
| course cannot discuss it when I do not
know myself"
| The defeated candidate was game to
! the last, and If there was any iIl-humor
| In him nobody knew it but himself Mr..
! Taylor was modest and reticent as usual.
81 expected it, of course" he said. ''I
! knew that If the commissioners went by
the law and the evidence they could do
nothing else than decide the way they
| have done"
Commissioner Poyntz declined to sign
the Republican certificates of election,
| saying that he stood by the opinion he
had rendered and could not consistently
| do so. He consented to sign the certif-
icates of the railroad commissioners, how
| ever.