Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1906-12-05
SENATORIAL RECOUNT
IS ABANDONED
From the Public Ledger.

From the Public Ledger.
The recount of the vote cast for Sem
ator in Cape May County, began at
Cape May Court House last Friday be-
fore Judge Trenchard, Of the Supreme
Court, and the County Board of Elec-
tons, was abruptly terminated at the
request of counsel for ex-Sheriff Samuel
E. Ewing, the Democratic candidate.
The returns on election night showed
that Ewing had been defeated by 610
votes by Robert e. Hand, Rep, ex-
Senator and ex-Sherif.
Ewing had filed a petition asking for
a recount of the ballots cast in thirteen
of the eighteen voting districts of the
county, alleging that there was a large
number of illegal or marked ballots, the
throwing out of which would change
the result of the election. The County
Board of Elections is composed of two
Democrats and two Republicans.
Judge Trenchard acted only upon such
ballots as the Board of Elections were
unable to agree upon.
William French, of Camden, con-
Quoted the case for the contestant and
Thomas p. Curley, also of Camden,
represented Senator-elect Hand.
Adolph Carsten, of Hoboken, was
present as the representative of the
State Democratic Committee, but took
no part in the proceedings.
When the court was about to proceed
MI. Curley moved to amend tue order
of the court to include the five districts
in which there were voting machines,
these districts having been omitted
from the Ewing petition. In support
of his motion MI. Curley said that
while the total number of names on
the poll hook at Holly Beach was 419,
the voting machine there had credited
Captain Ewing With $40 votes of the
100 which he really received, thus
cutting Hands majority down from
$40, which it ought to have been in the
county, to 230.
MI. French contended that there was
no law for a recount of the figures on a
voting machine and that the time for
filing a petition in the voting machine
districts had expired.
Judge Trenchard said that as Ewing's
original petition was filed late on the
last day the law allowed, Hand had
no knowledge of the fact in time to file
a counter petition and that if it should
develop during the course ofthe recount
Ia the ether districts that sufficient
errors had been made to change the
result of the election be would take the
matter up at that time.
When the Court ordered the board TO
proceed a dispute occurred between
counsel as to which district should be
taken first, Ewing wanting the second
precinct of Cape May City and Hand
the first precinct of the city. The
board split eve when it voted upon
the question of which box to open, but
not on party lines, one Republican and
n Democrat voting to grant Hands
request and n of each party voting
in favor of Ewing's contention. The
Court decided that the petitioner had
the first right, and the second district
box was opened.
Each ballot was scrutinized by both
sides, and in the case of every disputed
ballot the board divided on the same
lines. OF the 241 ballots examined, 81
were credited to Hand and n to Ewing,
2 Hand ballots were rejected and l
Ewing ballot. Three had no candidate
for Senator and II Hand ballots were
referred to Judge Trenchard.
In arguing against the admission of
these Hand ballots Mr.. French called
the Courts attention to the fact that
every one of them contained either a
sticker or the written name of some
person not regularly nominated for
some minor office. He contended
that these marks were the result of a
corrupt bargain between vote buyers
and vote sellers, being intended to
identify the ticket so that the voter
could get his money. Mr.. French re-
ferred to the fact that not a single one
of the Ewing tickets were SO marked
or objected to and said it was surely
sufficiently clear to create, at least in
the mind of the Court, a strong suspi-
cion of illegal acts.
Judge Trenchard promptly decided
that the ballots should be counted, and
said that while they did create a strong
suspicion of peculiar situation sus-
picion was not evidence, and under the
laws, as they now stand, he could not
do otherwise than count them. If
fault there was it was with the Legis-