The weekly Alaska citizen., 1918-10-21
THE ELECTION CONTEST.

Judge WlCKeTSndIn Has lldu d lOt lo ooy aoo''. last election, spreading abroad half truths and skilful political pap trying to make 1t appear as if Delegate Sulzer had consplred with a federal judge to rob him, and did do so, of his seat in congress and in this manner ride back to the congressional halls on the sym. 'pathy of the people of Alaska, knowing full well that his chances of getting there Tn any other fashion is more than dubious.
 When action against the canvassing board at Juneau was heard in which Mir. Sulzer ask ed for an injunction restraining the certificate of election from being issued to Judge Wick ersham and that a writ be granted by which the certificate should be issued to himself The Citizen commenting upon the case said that it was the duty of the court to decide whether or not our Australian ballot law was con stitutional or if the territorial legislature had bunged things by touching a subject upon which it had no power.
 The Citizen believed at that time, and IS still of the same opinion that the vote ot AL askans should have every reasonable sate- guard. The law under which Mir. Sulzer was seated, under which Judge Wckersham was denied the certificate of election gives reason able assurance that the sanctlty ot the ballot will not be violated Without that law, or one Sl1llIdT, lIlCIc IS uO Ddl lO plSNSHl "iiOiNoeliN fraud and trickery, which was at one time all too common in various states throughout the Union.
 We believed then, and do now, that 1t was the duty of the court to pass upon the law. We said and still maintain that every Alaskan should and desired to know wheth- CT that election law would hold water. If it wouldn't, then it was time to get one that would Judge Jennings decided that the law was good one, and he further decided that under the provisions of the law, certain pre- cincts should be thrown out since there had been infractons of the law which rendered certain votes illegal.
 Now to anyone free from prejudice, there is nothing in this that savers of trickery or , an attempt to rob either candidate of his rights Down before the election contest at . Washington Judge Wickersham put up diff ferent argument from that which he IS mak- ing before Alaskans today. He declared that the provisions of the law under which he was counted out were not constitutional. that they . infringed upon law made five years ago by congress, but he never made the state ment that, if the Alaskan election law was valid, then he had no right to the certificate of election.
 But he did say that Alaskans had no right to fix any territorial election laws. Speaking of the Organic Act, which was also termed by him as the constitution of Alaska, as the act which created the territorial legis- lature, he said, "This act created that body, and fixed the election laws of the territory, and it fixed them so that they could not by any possibility ever alter, amend, modify or repeal those laws. There is no question about that"
 Judge Wickersl1am is mainly responsible ! for the Organic Act. Let him have the credit therefor He is satisfied with the election safeguards for the ballot as provided therein. Yet under it all kinds of fraud and illegal practices may be indulged in and the votes of real Alaskans made of no avail. Prior to l 1916 our elections were more or less of joke, l if 1t had not been too serious matter for jok- ] ing. The Alaskan election law, passed by 1 the territorial legislature in 1915 was enacted | at the command of the great ma jority of Alaskans for the sole purpose of protecting our vote. Such law was uppermost in the mind of every member It was received with approval by all Alaskans, and if Judge Wick ersham ever objected to it before he contested the election he failed to state his objections.
 On the contrary there is every reason to believe that the Judge was in favor of the law until its operation worked against his lpersonal benefit, whereupon he immediately saw its unconstitutionality. Dan Driscoll, one lof Wick's strongest supporters, who trained his mind in the pattern of Wickersham's, in ltroduced proposed ballot in the legislature, (which was thought to have been drawn either lby Judge Wickersham, or under his direction. Judge Wickersham declared to the committee that he never saw the law until it was passed