Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1912-04-06
PAST ELECTION
FIGHT IS BEGUN
SIX DEM0CRAS FILE SUIT FOR
OFFICE AND EM0LUMENT.
Claim that Offices of Mayor, Marshal,
Secretary, Treasurer and Alder
: man in 4th Ward Wrongfully
Given to Independent Candidates.

purpose of setting aside the actor
of the city council in declaring
elected the nominees of the Inde
pendent party who were declared by
the council in special session or
Wednesday evening was taker
Thursday afternoon when six of the
candidates on the democratic ticket
filed suit for Office and emolument in
the district court against six of the
Independents who had been declared
elected.
The suits were as follows
L. Cobolini vs. A. B. Cole, for the
Office of mayor.
l.. H. Bates VS.. ]. L. Crixell, for
the ofice of city marshal.
Adolfo Pecina vs. Crisanto Villa
real for the Office of city secretary
Frank Alcedo VS.. B. L. Cain, for
the Office of alderman from the
fourth ward.
Manuel Besteiro VS.. Louis B.
Puente, for the office of city treas
urer.
The citations were placed in the
hands of the sheriff's department and
service was obtained against Messrs.
Cain, Villareal and Crixell, Messrs.
Cole and Puente being reported out
of the city.
The petition of Mr.. Cobolini states
that on the second day of April the
plaintiff was elected to the Office of
mayor Of the city of Brownsville by
a majority of the legal votes cast,
and that by reason Of the said cleo
tion the plaintiff is authorized and
entitled to hold and enjoy the said
office for the term of two years, and
to receive the emoluments Of the Of
fee. The petition further sets forth
that the value of the Office for two
years is $2,4OO.
The petition reads that on the
third day of April the city council
met after due call by the mayor for
the purpose Of canvassing the re-
turns and declaring the result of the
election.
The plaintiff AYERS that the coun-
ell did wrongfully declare that A. B.
Cole had received $40 votes, wrong
fully including therein as valid and
legal votes and illegal and void bal
lots, and that the council declared
that the defendant had received the
highest number of votes and was en-
titled to the office. The plaintiff
further states that the action has
damaged him to the sum of S2,4OO.
The petition next declares that the
result Of the election as declared by
the city council was not true. The
petition says that less than $50 votes
were polled for the defendant, and
that 675 votes were polled for the
plaintiff and SO votes were cast for
Benjamin Kowalski. The petition
says that a larger number of the
legal votes was cast for the plaintiff
than for any other person.
In support of these assertions, the
petition claims that in the first ward
237 votes were cast for the plaintiff
and PAP votes were cast for the de-
fendant. Of the 242 votes cast for
the defendant the petition alleges
that five of them were cast illegally,
as they were cast by persons not en-
titled TO vote at the election, as they
were citizens of Mexico, and had not
declared their intention to become
citizens of the United States, and
were not naturalized citizens of the
United States.
In the fourth ward the plaintiff al
alleges that there were 173 votes
Ast for the plaintiff and 204 votes
east for the defendant, and of the
2O4 votes cast for the defendant the
petition alleges that 20 were cast IL
legally, as the persons casting them
were not citizens of the United
States.
The petition further claims that in
the third ward 163 votes were cast
lot the pldlullH anu lLo lOI the uc-
fendant and that of these, five votes
were cast illegally, by citizens OF
Mexico.
In the fourth ward the plant al
leges that 105 votes were cast for
the plaintiff and 102 votes were cast
for the defendant, and that, of these
102 votes, six were illegally cast by
persons not citizens of the United
States.
The petition further AYERS that in
the second ward the presiding officer
refused to permit the supervisor for
the Democratic party to exercise the
functions and duties of his Office
from the time the polls opened at s
O'Clock in the morning until $3.50
o'clock in the morning. The petit
tion asks, that, in the face of such
irregularities, the votes cast i'm the
said ward be altogether thrown out
and disregarded.
In the fourth ward, the petition
alleges, to quote its own words,
there was gross mismanagement.
and wilful fraud on the part Of the
presiding officer. and that it was ut