The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1901-04-27
Files Suit Alleging That Rolla
Wells Was Elected Mayor of
st. Louis by Fraud.
PARKER's SUIT TO FOLLOW.
Public Ownership and Republican
Candidates Make Charges of
Extensive Misdeeds at
the Polls.

Papers In a suit, contesting on the part
of Lee Meriwether and the local Public
Ownership party, the election of Rolla
| Wells as Mayor of st. Louis, were filed at
2:15 p. m Friday in the Circuit Clerks Of
flee by William f. Smith. one of the attor-
neys representing Mr.. Meriwether.
Notice of contest was served upon Mr..
Wells Friday morning at the Mayors office
by Frank S. Kowalski, manager of the
Meriwether campaign.
The same procedure will be followed Sat
| urday by Attorney William NJ. Kinsey and
his associate counsel. j.. J.. MINIS and
Frank C. Ritchey, who have been retained
to contest the recent election on behalf OF
! George w. Parker and the Republican
party.
The proceedings were ready Friday after
noon. but Mr.. Kinsey. through a special
messenger sent to the Election Commits
s:oners' office, learned positively from Mr..
Hoblizelle that the ofiicia! count was COM
pleted on April s. and Mr.. Wells's Certif-
cate of election was issued on that day. AS
twenty days are allowed after the issuance
of this certificate. in which to file a contest,
Mr.. Kinsey was assured that there was no
necessity to serve notice of contest on Fri
day and he postponed action until Saturday.
Mr. Kowalski and B.. c. Cate called at
Mr.. Weils's residence Thursday night to
serve notice of the Meriwether contest
Then Mr.. Wells, doubtful as to the legality
of such service. refused to receive the pa
pers. But when Mr.. Kowalski called at the
Mayors office Friday, morning. Mr.; WsIis
received the notice. Later in the day MT.
Wells said that he had not read the NOTICE
of contest, but understood that it mad peeh
legally served.
McriWcthcr CharEcn Conspiracy
vi --zl. -, NJ NJars xSefhar etl-
brace general allegations of fraud. Tne pc.
tition opens with the general assertion that
Mr.. Meriwether received a plurality OF lhe
votes cast at the recent election ana r.ht
Tenth. Eighteen and Nineteenth wards.
from % to $50 ballots cast for Meriwether
were counted for Wells, In twenty-nine
precincts. it is alleged, that there was no
legal election because the ballots were not
signed by the requisite number OF judges
or because judges were forced to sign. or
challengers We're elected from the polls. 1t
is also charged that Wells ballots were sub
stituted for Meriwether ballots. that Meri-
police instructed that Wells must be elected
and that $1,000 names were fraudulentiy
placed upon the registration books. The
concluding allegation Is that Democratic
campaign managers. entered into g con-
spiracy to frauduently carry the election.
The charges contained in the papers in
the hands of Mr.. Parker's attorneys are
SiI1iidT u tlpSe Hiduc ny IL II
allegations are grouped under seven general
heads. Under the first of these is the as
sertion that legal votes for Parker We're
counted for Wells, Under the second the
Wells were counted as II regular and valid.
The third charge is that legal votes for
Parker were not counted for him and
at the Board of Election Commits
%s.oners. The fourth charge is that regular
ballots for Parker were rejected by the
-~,-f1~I f~ kh1 III
fifth and sixth charges are that regular
votes for Parker were distracted from bal
lot boxes and that others in favor of Wells
were substituted; and that regular bal
lots in favor of Parker were tempered
with so as to appear in favor of Wells. The
concluding charge is that in twenty pre-
cincts or more the newly appointed judges
and clerks of election were forcibly pre-
vented from serving. that unqualified men
took their places. and that the election III
these precincts was accordingly rendered
void