The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1917-04-13
WET AND DRY CONTEST DECIDED
IN FAVOR oE cOMPLAlNANTS

W, state Oh ElOTlQd.
John T. Moore, Complainant, VS.. ". D.
earn ct al, Defendants, As Mem
bers of the Board Of County Com
missioners for Marion County, Flor
ida, Defendants.
the defendants exceptions to the mas
ter's report, and has been argued by
the solicitors for both parties.
Complainant objects to the consid-
Grafton of these exceptions by the
court because they are not properly
framed
While The exceptions are not IN
such form as is sometimes used, and
possibly a more convenient form
might have been employed, they are
not such as 10 warrant a refusal TO
consider them, and more especially as
it is not insisted that this point be
first passed upon, but the exceptions
are argued at length and the merits Of
the case have been presented. The
motion to refuse to consider the ex-
ceptions is denied.
All of the allegations of the bill re-
lating to improper conduct on the part
of the various parties in and about
the matter of the registration and the
registration books have been abandon
ed, and all of the said bill is abandon
ed except paragraphs 5, sc and of
the bill: they are insisted on.
The masters report stands confirm
ed except as to those parts of the re-
port which have been excepted to
and sustained.
The first exception to the masters
report is where the master finds that
the purpose and object of the said
earn and the said Green, in preparing
two forms of ballots instead of one,
was to prevent the ignorant elector
from voting the same intelligently.'
The proof to sustain this finding was
the testimony of the said Green and
the said earn. The complainant pro-
duced these two witnesses, and their
testimony has not been contradicted.
The substance of their testimony is
that because of certain alleged devic-
es and mechanical appliances that
had been commonly reported as hav-
ing been taken into the booths and
used for the purpose Of instructing
and directing subsequent voters how
to vote on former wet and dry cleo
tions, they alternated the words For
Selling and Against Selling" on the
ballots to prevent the use of such de-
vices. The directions to the voter on
each of these ballots are identically
the same.
The bill charges, relative 20 the pre-
paration of these ballots that it was
devised for the purpose of trucking
the voter into voting without being
aware of his full intentions; and
then points out the manner in which
the words For Selling" and Against
Selling" were arranged on the ballot.
My conclusion of their intention in
preparing such ballot-which inten-
ton of Green and earn, however, of
itself, cannot control-as shown frsm
the testimony, was to prevent a prior
voter from making a mechanical de-
vice from the ballot to be given to a
voter who could not read nor write
that he might vote as he was direct
ed. The taking into the booths of any
mechanical device, ticket, memoran-
dunn, printed or written, or removing
any ballot from the polls, is punished
by our statute.
1t cannot be said that the purpose
was to prevent an ignorant elector
from voting intelligently; but, rather,
to prevent one who did not have intel
ligence enough to vote intelligently
from voting as he was directed
The first exception, it seems to me,
is we'll taken. and is sustained.
The second exception Is where the
master concludes that the purpose
and object of Green and earn in pre-
pairing the ballots was "to prevent ig-
nOrant electors from voting the same
intelligently," and then concludes
"tnat such purpose was probably ac-
complished." l am unable to find any
thing in the proof to justify the con-
clusion that any ignorant voter did
not vote as he desired, or that he was
prevented from exercising his intelli-
gence in the matter of casting his
ballot. The second exception is sus-
tanned.
The third exception IS to the find
ing by the master that the ballots
used at the election were not alike"
Technically, l am of the opinion that
the masters finding is correct, and
we will consider, later, its effect.
The fourth exception is too general.