The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-06-06

Jections with Clemens pulling up in the
stretch.
The string upon which the ballots
We're being strung was broken and the
game was delayed for a few moments.
Distinguishing mark in voting for
clerk Of the city court said Clemens as
a Hughes ballot came out
I'VE agreed to waive that point said
J. B. Larimer-
..An right then. let it 60 said Clemens
The game of objecting was commencing
Clemens and Doran were determined
to have as many objected to ballots. on
trivial questions, as the lawyers for Col.
Object to this one" said Clemens,
when ballot appeared with no vote on
the bond question.
We will object to this one also'' said
Doran, when a ballot came out without
every office on the ticket being voted
we viii object to this one also" said
What the matter with this one?''
asked Attorney Larimer.
Distinguishing mark" replied Glenn
what is ft2"
Tobacco spit in one corner
Clemens was determined that there
should be as many objected to ballots
against Hughes upon the same reasons
that the attorneys for Col. Hughes OBJ
jected to Parker ballots. As every bal
lot objected to had to be mum bered and
ten on the back by Commissioner Lari-
mer, the count was quite slow and the
afternoons session ended with Hughes
only four in the lead on objected to bal
lots from the male vote OF the second
precinct of the First ward. In the pre-
cinCt male vote Hughes received SO un-
contested ballots and Parker 1872. There
were so ballots marked for Hughes OBJ
jected to and rs marked for Parker.
Counting all the Hughes ballots chal-
lenged and unchallenged he received
135 votes, two more than the canvassing
board found for him from the poll books
and Parker received according to the
count of the ballots 23S while the can
vassing board found 241 for him. This
shows that the recount of the ballots has
brought to light a ballot not counted by
the canvassing board and the total male
vote in the second precinct of the First
ward was 373 instead of 374 as found by
the canvassing board.
CLEMENS DISCUSSED QUIBBLES.
In speaking of the recount this morn
ing. g. O. Clemens said: i am willing
to concede a good deal to a man who is
fighting for his life and is scared near
ly to death The ordinary rules of con-
duct do not apply in such a case. and
courts excuse even murder in a fight
ing man. But the conduct Of Hughes
attorneys yesterday indicated that
there was method in their fright, and,
tenderly but firmly. we disarranged
their method. They objected to Parker
ballots upon the f1imsiest pretexts-
pretexts which the supreme court would
not even permit to be argued For in
stance, on the Democratic ticket there
was no nominee for marshal of the city
court. and a blank was left for writing
in a name. Opposite this blank was the
usual square. Voters had marked ali
the squares. including this one. and
this was objected to as a distinguishing
mark vitiating the entire ballot. The
supreme court would have little
patience with a. lawyer who should seek
to seriously argue such an objection.
mt ir ha of IN SfY
gle precinct had been objected to on
such grounds, and 107 in all. What fOry
Why. to put aside a great number of
Parker ballots as objected to. so that
they would not be counted at present,
and thus get it out to the public, when
the commissioner reported, that, on the
uncOntested ballots, the recount showed
q. majority of five or six hundred for
Hughes, and also to cast upon the su-
preme court the burden of examining
hundreds of contested ballots and thus
prevent an advancement of the case
to speedy hearing. We checked this
by laying aside on more or less frivOl-
GUS objections as many Hughes ballots
as Hughes attorneys had laid aside of
Parker ballots, and made hOnors easy.
This IS the explanation OF yesterdays
strange dOings and the reason why we
! consented to be absurd for an hour or
two. OF course we shall not urge these
objections in court have been at the
bar long time and am pretty tough,
but I would not care to go up against
their honors with such propositions of
law as both sides pretended to believe in
yesterday. Judge Carver is also old and
seasoned in the service, but Hughes
would have to pay him more than the
salary of the mayors office to get him
to stand up before seven judges and
pretend to believe in the objections
Bird and Larimer made yesterday. We
shall hold our own with them on this
nonsense, which costs only thirty dol
lars day. and I feel quite sure that
at the end nearly all the ballots OBJ
jected to viii be counted by consent and
only two or three snail packages Of
contested ballots will ever go before
the court"