The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-11-26
Cannot Count Those Alleged
Legal Ballots.
BUT CAN CORRECT ERRORS
Capper Loses WabaunSee Suit
and Wins One From Bourbon.
Hodges Claims viii Get Certifi-
cate--Capper Says No.

court denied to attorneys Tor Arthur
Capper a writ of mapdamus which
weLId enable them to secure a recount
OF rejected votes in Wabaunsee and
other counties of the state. In the
Bourbon county case, the court issued
an order compelling the canvassing
board to meet and correct a clerical
error which will give Capper gain
of Al votes.
The decision leaves the governor
case about as badly mixed as it was
before. With the odds slightly in favor
of Hodges. Both candidates claim
gains from corrected returns from sew
eral counties. The AZ gain for Capper
from Bourbon would put him ahead in
the race if that should be the only
correction made, as Hodges has leao
of only 81 on the face OF the secretary
of states returns. But Hodges cldlIas
gains from several counties on correct
ed returns. Capper also claims a gain
from the corrected vote of Reno and
Morris counties.
The refusal of the court TO anoW
rejected legal ballots to be counted
vas a body blow to Capper. He was
claiming several hundred such ballots
The race is so close that the nghl uh-
der the court ruling to allow correC-
tions in returns will not be many Sc!
tied and victory assured either canol-
date until the canvassing board makes
its fndings and AWARDS the certlhcale
of election. The restraining order o1
+ba court against the canvaSS1ng poaro
will remain in effect until the colA
returns are submitted. H..
II was after 8 o'clock Monday aIter-
noon when arguments in the cases
brought by attorneys for Capper WeIe
concluded and the court adjourned 10
s+C cba noners to consider the legal side
of the controversy. Very little IlAhe
was spent in considering the Wau-
haunsee county case. There was NJ
law. in the opinion of the court "nlcn
would support an application 1or w[II
~ noandamus in that instance. In the
T9o,-rbon county case, conditions were
different There was admittedly
clerical error on the part of the cleo
+ion iudges or canyasstng board ana
the court held that this body shouio
roconvene TO correct the mistake
r,be IVaubaunsee county decision was
. decided victory for the Hodges peo-
n1e Through a writ of mandamus Lne
attorneys for Capper had sought TO
accomplish the very relief to be gwen
only by a contest court. In Ine ap-
T1ication for a writ Robert Stone, as
attorney for the petitioner, made al
fdavit that he had reason to believe
that a number of legal ballots-toW1t,
not less than 20-had been rejected ana
marked void by the election of1claIs
in Wabaunsee county. Stone did not :
aver that these ballots were favorable
to Capper or even that the 20 voters
had expressed an intent to vote Ior
Capper, nor was 1t contended that
Capper would gain one single vote py
a recount. The petition only reclteu
that a recount Of these void ballots
would change the results of the cleo
tion On the Wabaunsee suit, was
built a pyramid of litigation by the
Capper people which if allowed would
virtually accomplish the intent and
- hnfn hn i=GI |
ance of a certificate of election.
In his argument before the court Con-
gressman Fred s. Jackson of Capper's
counsel stated that they were claiming a
gain Of about zoo votes for Cappr in the
long list of actions contemplate in behalf
of the Topeka publishers candidacy for
Governor. But the court denied the right
to go back of the work of the election
boards at this time The election judges,
it was held had the evidence before them
All the time they rejected the ballots. If !
they were wrongfuIly rejected, it was an
ala not believe that the writ of mandamuS
is to correct a mistaken judgment wherein
there is no allegation of fraud or coTrup-
The restraining order against the state
canvassing board is still in force and eff
feet 1t will remain operative until after
the supplemental returns from Bourbon
county are received. In event the Capper ,
De0ple decide to bring more actions of the
of the Bourbon case it is probable
that the Hodges interests will also file
suits to compel the counting of votes for
several |
it is generally believed that the pr-contest I
litigation is practically ended and that TO
more suits will be filed before the is
uance of a cerUrcate-
Last night managers of Hodges inter |
ests in Topeka claimed that on the face
of regular official and supplemental re-
turns that the Johnson county senator
had a lead of 101 votes in the race fer |
governor The loss of Al votes in BoG-
hon county, they say, will reduce his ma
ioritv to 54 On the face of all official re- | ,
turns independent of supplemental fig
rres for either Capper or Hodges, there is
a majority of 81 votes for Hodges.
Status of the Case.
With corrected returns in the hands !
of the secretary of state from 80 coun-
ties backed by the original official re-
turns from the remaining IA counties,
Senator George H. Hodges has a lead
of of SO votes in the Kansas gUberna- !
torial contest Giving the Capper gain
in Bourbon county of Al votes, reduces
the Hodges majority to 81. Capper '
claims 10 more votes in Morris county, /
while Hodges people aver there is !
supplemental report coming from
Leavenworth county which will increase
his lead 81 votes. Should both of these 1
counties make reports, the Hodges ma {
jority would be 63. Unless there is
further litigation, the state canvassing
board will probably issue a certificate .
next Friday. Indications today point to
Hodges receiving the certificate. 7
This afternoon attorneys for both J
Hodges and Capper will hold a con- '
will be reached as to future legal pro-
a. .v-4f