The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-02-05
Checking of Council Petition
Signatures Cuts Lists.
TOday's Investigation Finds
Many Illegal Names.
IN THE SAME HANDWRITING
Pages of Names Evidently
Written by Same Person.
If Petitions Are Short, Boost
ers Have 10 Days More.

The work of checking up the names
on the signatures Of the petitions 1lieo
with the city clerk asking for the
holding of a special election to decide
whether Topeka shall go back to the
old council form of city government
began this morning. OF the first one
hundred and seventeen names
checked. forty-eight were scratched
off as not properly belonging on the
petition. Most of them were either
duplicates or the names of persons not
registered as voters in the books OF
the commissioner of elections. 1t Is
the opinion of those who have exam
ined the petitions that more than one
third of the names will be found TO
be of persons not qualified to sign.
There are many sheets In Wnlcn
groups of names are written IN the
same handwriting. and there Is one
entire sheet of thirty-six names all in
the same hand. That these names are
not signatures is plain. or th1rty-s1x
named On another sheet only six were
found to be those of persons regis
tered. The names of few heavy tax
payers are found. More than half of
the names are of persons living east
of Kansas avenue.
A mass Of petitions eight inches
thick bound together with heavy
Irvine, and said to bear the signatures
of more than 5000 electors of the
CITY OF Topeka, was presented " - D.
Burge. city clerk, Wednesday after
noon by a delegation of citizens head
ed by Captain p. H. Coney. The pc
titions ask that special city election
be held to vote upon the question of
whether or not Topeka shall retain
her present form of city government
or return to the old council system.
The duty of checking them over
rests entirely with the city clerk. who
must investigate them and report
upon their validity within ten days.
If he reports that he finds twenty-five
per cent of the electors of the city
have signed the petition, then the city
commission must call a special cleo
ton in not less than thirty days nor
more than forty-five days from the
filing of the petitions.
Allowed 10 Days More.
If the city clerk reports that he
finds the petitions are insufficiently
signed then those who circulated them
are allowed ten DAYS more in which
to secure the required number. That
there are many Implications and many
illegally signed names on the petitions
Is shown by even a most casual exam
inatiOn.
Same Handwriting.
This affidavit is signed by twenty
two persons who circulated the petit
tions and acknowledged them before
i1eHry EuIer, notary PUBIC. Inere
Is page after page in which groups
of names purporting to be signatures
are in the same handwriting and there
is one entire sheet in which all the
names plainly have been written by
the same person. The responsibility
of deciding what shall be done with
these names, which plainly are not
signatures. rests with c. B. Burge
city clerk. who will ask for legal ad-
vice on the matter from w. G.. Raj
ston, city attorney.
The dates Set opposite the names or
the petitions show that the petitions
have been in circulation since April
of last year. A very large percentage
of them were signed in that month