Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1903-05-12
Required TO Settle the Judicial
Contest.
Conflicting Claims From Trigg
County Make the Race
Uncertain.

official count to-day will be required
to settle it.
The majorities in four counties
are unoficially reported as follows:
COOK. BUSH.
Galloway , 200
Lyon ..... 3
Trigg ,...... All
Christian .. 603
These figures give Cook lead Of
n votes in the district, but the re-
ports from Trigg county are all
from the Cook side who have given
out figures ranging from S44 to AL
majority. Long Hollow, unreported
until yesterday gave Bush S and
Cook %. The election in Trigg
county is said to have been un-
fair from startyo finish and in some
places was fraudulent. Bush
was not given a division of officers
in many precincts and all sorts Of
irregularities were permitted.
At Montgomery the poll room
was freely entered and a crowd
was allowed to stand around in
side the room and electioneer for
Cook, it is said.
This irregularity, however, was
not serious, as the vote was light
and the election apparently other
wise properly conducted.
1t was at South Cadiz precinct,
where Cook received more than 100
majority, that the polls were kept
open until nearly S o'clock, accord
log to reliable reports. At S min
utes past four one of Bush's sup
porters, watch in hand, demanded
that the voting be stopped. His
request was denied and our inform
ant asserts that the, voting contin-
ued for at least 80 minutes longer,
or until 4:35. This was not an ir-
regularity, but fraudulent dis.
regard of the law and it is a princi-
pie in law that fraud vitiates every
thing it touches. The election in
this precinct was fraudulent, null
and void, if the facts are as report
cd, and Judge Cooks title to the
nomina ration, if he has been nominal
ed, rests upon a fraud that will
not stand the test OF the courts.
Mr.. Bush left tor Cadiz yesterday
and will have attorneys to repre-.
sent him at the count today. If the
official figures show that he has
been fairly defeated he will accept
the result without a murmur. He
will probably demand a recount of
all the ballots, as the first step to
arrive at the correct figures. The
count today will only be to tabulate
the results and pass upon the ques-
tionable ballots. The county COM
mittee will probably meet and APP
point a subcommittee to make the
count. In the event of a contest,
the committee would have to meet
at later date to make a recount of
all the ballots.
The vote was heavy all over the
district. In Christian county the
total vote will reach 1900. In
Lyon there we're 1863 votes cast.
All of the returns in Trigg coun.
ty, it was learned yesterday, were
illegally made. No seals were
used in the county and no lawful
returns anywhere sent in. This of
course invalidates the entire cleo
tion IN Trigg county, as the court
of appeals has decided that no cleo
ton can be held except under the
law and the law requires all re
turns to be made under seal.
With Trigg county thrown out,
Bush's majority in the district
would be about $50.
1t is also said that the ballots in !
two precincts were burned. In
this event a recount of the vote
would change the result, since bal
lots destroyed could not be counted.
If all these things are true and Mr.,
Bush has been defeated by fraud,
his friends wifi demand that he en-
ter formal contest before the COM
mittee and in the courts. Much |
will depend on the disclosures Of
the official canvass.