The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-12-09
TAYLOR THE WINNER
Republican Candidate Gets tho
Election Certificate. -
P0YNTz's MINORITY REPORT.
and to Tarn kentucky Over to tho
Gun and Fraudulent Ballots.

| Gun and Fra sudulent Ballots.
Frankfort KY, Dec. 9.-The state
| election commissioners settle the long
| drawn out g,lbernatorial controversy
by deciding that they have no au-
thority to go behind the returns of the
county commissioners, and they there
| fore award the certificates of election
to Taylor and the other Republican
candidates for state Offices. The COM
missoners give out along opinion, in
substance as follows:
Occupying a place we did not seek,
we would gladly escape the discharge
Of the delicate and responsible duties
which at the present moment confront
us. But. having voluntarily assumed
the responsibilities of so important
trust, our duty is plain. We are not
at liberty to depart from elementary
principles, or to allow partisan zeal to
force us to any conclusion which Is not
approved by our judgment and sane
toned by the law"
After quoting extracts from the new
election law, defining the powers OF
the board. the opinion reads:
1T is evident from the law, that the
state board of election commissioners,
when sitting as a board of contest, Is
clothed with powers and jurisdiction
which 1t does not possess and cannot
assume to exercise when sitting, as at
present, in a mere ministerial ca
pacity,
"As board of contest 1t possesses
the powers and functions of court.
tuip
overthrow a prima facie case, and
when authorized by the law and the
evidence cast out precincts or whole
counties and award the certificate to
the candidate other than the one hav-
ing a majority upon the face OF the re-
turns. But these are powers which the
board can only exercise when sitting
as board of contest.
we assume that the legislature by
the enactment of section IL of the law,
which provides for board of contest,
intended not only to limit the power OF
this body, when sitting as board of
canvassers, but to confer all the jul
dicial power and authority which the
board could lawfully exercise alone
upon the board Of contest To hold
otherwise would be to destroy the en-
tire force of the section, creating
board of contest and comforting on 1t
responsible duties and large jurisdic-
tion.
This law has carefully guarded the
rights of all candidates; while they
may not contest their rights to an Of
flee before the canvassing board they
unquestionably have such right before
thn af ko
is plain and speedy. Every candidate
who Is defeated on the face of the re-
turns may, before the tribunal provid-
ed by law, test the question of his
right to the office with his adversary,
and nothing that the canvassing board
may do or can do will in any degree
or In any manner whatever affect his
right
"If this board was clothed with un-
limited judicial powers 1t would not
consider the exparte statements and
extra Official statements submitted. 1t
could not do SO without Violating ..-- =
most familiar rules of evidence IL
would be monstrous to say that per-
son appearing on the face Of the re-
turns to have been elected to an office
of high or low degree could be de-
prived Of that office on mere exparte
affidavits which he had never had an
opportunity to inspect before he had
been given any opportunity to offer
evidence in his own behalf"
The majority report concludes with
a strong denunciation of the action Of
Governor Bradley In calling out the
militia on election day.
The following is the gist of the
report read by Commissioner
Poyntz:
Il am no lawyer. but believe laws
are intended to bring about justice and
believe that the law does not require
the giving of certificates of election to
candidates who are shown by the re-
turns before the board to have been
defeated. am unwilling to certify
fraud and to turn Kentucky over to
the control of the bayonet, Gatling
gun and the fraudulent tissue ballots.
I, therefore, respectfully decline to join
with my colleagues in granting certif-
Gates to the Republican candidates and
believe certificates Of election should
be given to the Democratic candidates"