Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1908-06-11
OFFICIAL CANVASS OPERATES TO
LOSERS ADvANTAGE-WALNuT
TOWNSHIP RETURNS DO NOT
AGREE WITH ONE ANOTHER.
JUDGE PROUTY'S
FRIENDS ELATED
APPARENT LOSER IN coNGREs-
sloNAL FIGHT GAINS IN Dali
LAS, MARION, POLK AND STORY
WORK STILL PROGRESSING.

Des Moines, June 10.-Judge S. F.
eight votes as the result Of the first
lays official count in the Seventh dis
srict.
On this basis Congressman Hulls
majority OF thirty-one on the unofficial
returns Is cut to three.
Story county was the only one of the
six in which the official count was
concluded yesterday. 1t gave Judge
Prouty a gain of ten over the un-
official returns
Seventeen Of the twenty-five pre-
cincts in Dallas county were complet-
2 ed, giving Judge Prouty a gain Of five
votes.
In Marion county gain of six votes
has been claimed and practically con-
ceded for several days.
In Polk county cursory and pre-
liminary examination Of the county
.eturns-but two precincts were can
vassed showed a gain of seven votes
tor Judge Prouty in Walnut township.
Many Questions Pending.
In Madison county the supervisors
are recounting two precincts and last
night the result had not been deter
mined. Protest is pending there to
throw out one precinct and it will be
heard today.
In Polk county the real contests
were postponed until 2 o'clock this
afternoon. At that time Judge Prouty
will ask that Bloomfield township be
thrown out because the polls were
held open until $40 o'clock, and he
will ask recount in seven precincts.
Captain Hull will ask for a recount in
Two other precincts:
The petitions for recount we're
promptly sustained by the boards Of
supervisors in the other counties.
They presented the same questions
and identical grounds for recount
that the petitions do which are pend.
ing before the Polk county board.
Real Contest Here Today.
Friends of Judge Prouty were high
ly elated last evening because of the
gain over the unofficial count. They
felt hopeful that it would keep up.
However, the real contest has not
been begun, but will come on the
tapis this afternoon at o'clock be
fore the Polk county board of super
visors.
Yesterday the attorneys for Captain
Hull and Judge Prouty agreed to post
ponement until this afternoon to per
nit examination of each others claims
in the nine contested and protested
precincts An official stenographer
Mrs. J. p. Blaise, was appointed by The
board to make the official record t.
afford basis for appeal to the courts
If that course is decided by eithe
party to the contest to be desirable.
1t is thought not to be unlikely tha
when the protest against Bloomfiel,
township is called by the board Of gu
pervisors at o'clock this afternoon
the Hull men will object to proceeding
with protest filed after Office hour
at the court house. The Prouty pre-
test and petitions for recount ar
understood to have been filed about
o'clock The Hull petition for recoun
of the two precincts that he wants re
opened was fled about o'clock Nor
day.
Prouty Gains Seven.
The unofficial returns from Walnu
township gave Hull 90, Prouty 25. g,
animation, informally, by the supel
visors yesterday, disclosed the fac
that the poll books give Hull %, Pro,
ty 25, net gain of seven for Prout.
A discrepancy was obsereyd in tn
poll books. There are two of thes
books. In each is tally sheet o
which the votes for each candidat
were marked or tailed, as cast:
each, also. is a judges certificate or r.
turn giving the total vote for eac
candidate, figures being written ou
In Walnut township books, the tallie
u eacn and the judges certificate
one give Prouty 25 votes while th
second Judges certificate gives hi
12. Both tallies and both certificate
gave Hull but %.
The disagreement between or
judges certificate on one side and IL
two tally sheets and the other Judge
certificate on the other gave rise
the rumor of a gain of 13 for Hull. Tt
precinct has not been canvassed We
u 1t is possible the judges. OIL their ow
motion will count the hallots