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

cOuragemeNt.
The State board of canvassezs 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 CAN'T 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 of1c:al vote has already
been tabulated and given in detail
to the public through the State
The contests were from the first
and seventh congressional districts.
In the first, W. w. Beckett. who
opposed Col William Elliot. and was
defeated, protested against the certi-
fcate Of election being given Col.
Elliott In the seventh N D .Dantz-
Ter, cofored, made protest against
DR.. Stokes being declared elected.
The grounds upon which these de.
fested Republican candidates made
their contest have already been pub.
lished aud tie whole matter was gone
oyer again today. Beckett was re-
presented by John o Edwards.
colo-ed lawyer of Charleston, and
Dantz|er had as his attorney Jacob
Moorer, negro lawyer of Orange
burg, Congressman Elliott was repre-
sen,ed By Mr. William Elliott, Jr,
and Congressman Stokes bad as bis
attorney Mr. B a. Moss Of Orange
burg
The first case heard was the
Beckett contest. The same old stock
protests were made by Attorney
Edwards. which have been heard by
the board for several years past. He
sad that the first ground Of protest
was that the tickets did not show for
what congress Col Elliott was a
candidate, and he claimed that it
should have appeared that he was a
candidate for the fifty seventh con-
gress. He objected on legal grouads
10 the words ''For representative in
congress, first district" without The
addition of The words, fifty seventh
congress he also raised the ques.
ton as to the color Of the tickets,
saying that many of them were print
ed on tinted paper.
o. being asked to present ous which
had been voted be said that ne cccld
ucs do SO. bu: be handed 10 one which
be said had beso offered voters 1T
coald rot be exactly be discovered What
that particular ticSe: was pat 10 evl.
deoce for, because 1t was white sod OF
the regulation size Mr. Elliott prompt.
ly acquiesced ip its being put in evi--
deuce MIR Elliott 10 his argument.
vas brief and showed that the protest
was the regulation one which bad beea
made before, and that the same point
bad been decided agaios: BY the beard
several times before.
There vas absola ely 90 evidence
presented to the board that there had
been aoy fraud or violation CT law 10
the electios aDd the contest vas
promptly dismissed
Iu the case Of Dant5'er Y. Stokes the
general contention Of the coussel for
the contestant was ou the ground Of rho
iliegality Of the election laws Of the
State, special reference being made to :he
suffrage provisions. Mr. Moss replied
briefly. showing Incidentally thas the
election laws were legal aud pointing
oo. specifically that no evidence bad
been presented which showed that
qualified electors bad oct bad fell and
free expression of their choice for
congressman 10 the seventh district.
Having 90 evidence to sustain the
contest before it the board dismissed it
sod awarded the certificate Of election
10 Congressman Stokes
Otherwise the board had nothing else
to do except to receive and verify the
tab1lsted returns which have already
been published 10 detail.-The State.