Connecticut western news., 1909-11-04
ELECTION DECLARED VOID
Judge of Superior Court so Decides In
 Litchfield Case.


 According to decision handed down by Judge George w. Wheeler of the superior court Tuesday, at winsted, the license election held in the town of Litchfeld on Monday, October 1, was illegal. The memorandum of the decision was:
 The facts presented in the petition have been proven. At town meeting held in Litchfield on Oct. last mo- license was carried by a substantial majority in a full vote, after n cam paign which had excited considerable interest in the question and which had caused actual knowledge that the subject would bs voted on at such meeting brought home to large numbers of the voters.
 There were upwards of 100 voters nos voting. Some of those voting were in ignorance that vote on license was to be taken until after the polls opened, and, presumably, some of those not vot- ing were equally ignorant. The official charged with the conduct of the election failed to observe many of the require mants surrounding the counting of the vote. This was not due to fraud nor to wrongful intent, and hence, as to these requirements such failure cannot avoid the vote on license since these require ments are directory in character, whose observance is not condition precedent to the validity of either the meeting or the vote taken thereat.
 Confidence in our elections would be shaken were these statutory require ments persistently evaded by our cleo ton officials, yet while such ignorance # duty and multiplied earelessness on the part of officials as this case discloses is greatly to be deplored, the remedy lies elsewhere than in invalidating an election, otherwise honest and regular. Two of the requirements of the law which these officials neglected to obey are of a different character.
 The statute in force at the time this meeting must have been called required the warning of the meeting to be given in a certain designated way.
 Chapter l8s, page 6s7 of the public acts of 1907 provided that: "The warn. ing of every town meeting, annual or special. . shall specify tho objects for which such meeting is to be held" and specifically designated the manner m which the notice shall be given at least five days prior to the annual meet ing, which in this case would have been prior to Oct. |, 1909.
 No notice whatever was given of this meeting.
 Further, chapter 146 of the public acts of 1907 provided that upon the petition of not less than % legal voters of any town the selectmsn shall notify the legal voters of said town that at said annual meeting ballot will be taken to determine whether any per son shall be licensed" ste.
 The selectmen gave no notice what ever that such vote would be taken at the annual town meeting.
 The general statutes in section 1793 provide for the holding of an annual town meeting for the election of town officers; in section l704 provide when such meeting shall be had; in section 1796 provide that such meeting shall be opened within certain hours; in sec. 1926 provide that the voters at any meeting specially warned may deter mine the place for holding such meet ing
 The warning is the authority for the meeting commonwealth vs. Smith, l82 Mass, 295). Whatever the meeting does is done pursuant to the warning or it is nugatory.