The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-08-16
Knott Says There Will Be No
Let Up In Fight For Recount

nght for an honest count OF InS
ballots cast in the primary of June
6 will be continued and that, in his
belief, such an honest count" will
show him the nominee of the Demo
cratic party, w. ". Knott, contest
ant with S. j. Cats for the guber-
Material nomination, in a signed
statement notifies his supporters and
others that there will be no let-ur
on his part in the contest.
Mr.. Knott's statement is addressed
ITO the Democrats Of Florida" and
is lengthy. No words are minced by
the comptroller and the situation is
dealt with in plain terms. Dealing
with the Putnam county recount
the statement says:
'It may be of interest to the pub
lie just at this time to know some
thing of what the Supreme court had
to say in the recent decision of the
Putnam county case. The continued
and persistent efforts of Mr.. Cats
and his attorneys to prevent the cor,
rection of the errors manifest and
apparent on the face of the tally
sheets and to arrive at an honest and
correct count of the votes cast in the
primary on June 6 would indicate
that they know that an honest count
will determine that was nominated
in that primary, and that they knew
further that they have been caught
with the goods and that their rotten
ness Is about to be exposed. In this
Putnam county case their demurrer
to my petition contains sixty-sever
objections which the court declared
were each and every one without
merit. To prevent an honest ant
fair count Mr.. Cats and his attor'
news are interposing every possible
legal objection, ard are endeavorin:
by all sorts and kinds of technicali
ties to prevent and to delay the an
nouncement of the result Of an non
est count to gain time to carry OF
their campaign of malicious false
hoods and misrepresentations
MY purpose in bringing the pro
ceedings in the court is clearly ex
pressed by the Supreme court itself
in this recent decision, in the fol
lowing language:
1.-THE purpose of this writ is not t
force the respondents to perform thu
act of changing or varying the mum
Der of votes cast for the candidates
for Democratic nominee for COVER
nor; but It Is to require an accurate
count and return to be made as actu
ally cast by the electors at the polls
duty imposed by law"
The statement continues:
Stripped of all legal technicali
ties, what ! am contending for is al
honest and true count of the votes
case in the late primary, as actually
marked by the electors-no more, NJ
less. The Supreme court of Florida
has said in unmistakable Language
that this result ought to be arrived
at and must be arrived at if possible
To ascertain this result is both right
both in law and in morals. 1t il
necessary to the preservation of the
Democratic party of Florida; 1t is
necessary that law, order and gooG
government may prevail in Florida
and l shall continue to contend fol-
this until l have accomplished it
and the will of the people is ex-
pressed by them through their votes
is made clear and certain. l pre-
dicted the result of this litigation
because | knew that law and JUS
tice would prevail. and that the
courts of Florida could be relied up
on to do the legal and honest thing"