The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1900-11-28
Board of CanvaSserS
Has Declared the Vote:
The Two Republican Candi.
dates for Congress Who
are Contesting Were
Given Little En-.
couragement.

The State board of canvassers met
today in the Office Of the secretary
of state. The members present were
Treasurer Zimmerman. who presided;
Secretary of State Cooper, Attorney
General Bellinger, Comptroller Gen.
eral Derham and Adjutant General
Floyd Mr. Jesse T Cant: acted as
secretary.
The board met to declare the vote
as cast in the State. and had not there
been two contests presented to and
heard by them the session would
have been merely of q routine charac.
ter, for the Official vote has Already
been tabulated and given in detail
to the public through tho State
The contests were from the first
and seventh congressional districts.
In the first, W. W. Beckett. who
opposed Col. William Elliott and was
defeated. protested against the certi.
tioate Of election being given Col.
Elliott. Ia the seventh N D Dantz.
Ter, cofored. made protest against
Dr. Stokes being declared elected.
The grounds upon which these de.
feated Republican candidates made
their contest have already been pub.
lished aud tie whole matter was gone
over again today. Beckett was re.
presented BY John D Edwards. q
colo-ed lawyer of Charleston, and
Dantzler had as his attorney Jacob
Moorer, negro lawyer of Orange.
burg, Congressman Elliott was repre-.
sented by Mr.. William Elliott, Jr +,
and Congressman Stokes had as bis
attorney Mr.. B II. Moss OF Orange.
burg
| The first case heard was the
Beckett contest. The came old stock
protests were made by Attorney
Edwards. which have been beard by
the board for several years past. He
said that the first ground of protest
was that the tickets did not show for
what congress Col Elliott was q
candidate, and be claimed that it
should have appeared that he was a
candidate for the fifty-seve con-
gress. He objected on legal grounds
10 the words For representative in
congress, first district" without The
addition of :he words, fifty seventh
congress-" He also raised the ques
tion, as to the color Of the tickets,
saying that many of them we're print
ed on tinted paper.
Oo being asked to present oue which
bad been voted be said that 6e could
not do go. but be handed 10 one which
be said had beso offered voters 1t
coald not be exactly be discovered what
that particular ticket was put in evi.
deoce for, because it was white and of
the regulation size Mr. Elliott prompt.
ly acquiesced in its being put 10 evi.
deuce Mr. Elliott 10 bis argument
> was brief aud showed that the protest
was the regulation one which bad been
made before. and that The same point
bad been decided agaios. by the board
several times before.
There was absoluely 90 evden ce
presented to the hoard that there had
been auy fraud or vieia,ioo of law 10
the electios ADD The contest wss
promptly dismissed.
, 10 the case Of Daotz'er v. Stokes the
general contention of the counsel for
the contestant was ou the ground of The
iliegality Of the election laws of the
State, special reference being made to The
suffrage provisions. Mr. Moss replied
briefly. showing incidentally that the
election laws we're legal and pointing
ous specifically that no evidence had
been presented which showed that
qualified electors bad oct bad a fell and
free expression of their choice for
congressman 10 the seventh district.
Having 20 evidence to sustain the
contest before it the board dismissed it
and awarded the certificate of election
10 Congressman Stokes.
Otherwise the board bad nothing else
to DO except to receive and verify the
taoulsted returns which have already
been published 10 detsiI.-The State.
| NJ