Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1905-03-02

were By some person unknown to YOU
committee attached OF pasted to sucf
petitions after the signatures were OBJ
tanned
6-That the sheets attached to thu
first copy of said purported petition
{ have 1854 uames thereon, that OF the
said 1884 names 295 of the persons sc
purported TO sign, did not add to theil
signature any place of residence, 27S
persons did not add their business, so
Of said persons did not add their post
Office address, 1851 of said persons die
z not add their place of residence OF
postotlice address, 205 of said persons
did not add any business or postot1ice
address, 49 of said persons did not add
place Of residence or business. That
in 1854 instances some person or per
sons other than the signer have added
to the signatures OF the persons either
the residence, business or postoflice
address,or all OF the same. That of the
1884 names before mentioned, there are
1868 who have failed to add their resi-
dence, occupation or postohice address
Or one or more of them.
In addition to this there are some
duplicates of signatures, and a number
OF other Irregularities not above men
toned. Deducting all OF the irregular
signatures above specifically referred to
/
1T leaves less than thirty three hundred
signers who have furnished the neces-
sary Identification required by Section
q OF the Revised Political Code of
| South Dakota.
| That in making the above computa-
ton, your committee has excluded all
| ditto marks. 1t conelusivey appears
| that large proportion of the ditto
marks are made by some person other
than the signer AS to the others. it
is impossible for your committee to
state by whom or when or where they
were made.
In making the above computation,
your committee have not excluded any
name on account of the petition having
had additional sheets added to it, as re-
ferred to in paragraph No. 5 in this re.
fport.
THAT there is no proof of any kind
attached on said purported petition,
nor has any been offered to your com
mittee as to the manner in which such
signatures We're obtained, the document
or form of document they were pro-
cured to, nor as to how the document
p S COM
piled, from where or from what source.
the component parts thereof were OBJ
tanned. That there is 40 evidence at
tached to said purported petition, nor
has any been offered to This committee
as to the genuineness OF a single sign
allure
q 1t conclusiyely appears from an
examination of the purported petition,
that the identical petition and proposed
law to which the signatures are now
attached was not attached at the time
the signatures were obtained. 1t also
cenclusively appears that, il. these sign
atures were obtained to any petition,
instrument or other document, such
petition, instrument or other document
has been mutilated by detaching the
signatures
Section q of the Revised Political
Code provides:" All measures proposed
to the Legislature under the initiative
shall be presented by petition, which
petition shall be signed by not less than
five per cent of the qualified electors
of the State, and each elector shall add
to his signature his place of residence
his business and postoffice address,
Your committee are of the opinion:
First: That the requirement of said
Section 81 as to signature place of
residence, business and postof1ice adj
dress, are mandatory and that, if an
elector fails to add TO his signature
either his residence, business or post,
office address, his signature cannot be
counted or considered.
Second: That when it appears from
Inspection ofs the purported petition
that the signatures We're not originally
affixed to the petition, as it does in this
case, and especially when it appears
that the signatures were or must have
been affixed to some other instrument
or document, if any, and such instru-
ment or document kaying been mutt
lated or changed by detaching the SIGMA
lures therefrom or otherwise, such
petition cannot beeonsidered or made
the basis for legislative enactment.
Third: Your committee further
states that they have had this petition
under consideration for about thirty
day. = i i ii ties herein M
Dictated have been well known to the
promoters OF this purported petition,
that at no time during allof said period
has any person or persons appeared be-
4