Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1919-11-19
CHARLESTON ELECTION CASE.
Heard In Supreme COurt-Decision
Is Favorable to Hyde.

Columbia, Nov. 11.-Holding that
the action of the Charleston City
Democratic Executive Committee, in
the manner in which it declared
John P. Grace tho Democratic nomi-
nee for Mayor Of Charleston on
August 20, was illegal and preju-
dicial to the incumbent, Major n. Il.
Hyde, the State Supreme Court, in
d majority opinion handed down this
morning shortly after / o'clock, set
aside the nomination.
Nominee Not Determined.
prom what has been said" the
majority opinion sums up in its con-
clusion, 'it is clear that we cannot
determine from the record before us
which Of the candidates for mayor
received the majority of the votes
that were and ought to have been
counted. We cannot, therefore, sus-
tain the contention OF the petitioner
that the court will consider the votes
and declare the election. Nor can
we sustain the contention that, in
the absence Of declara ton Of the
executive committee, the count OF
tho managers should be sustained as
declaration of the results. Under
the statutes and rules the managers
we're not authorized to declare the
result. That was for the executive
committee and it has not done so
according to law 1t follows that
all we can do is' to hold that the
result Of the election has not been
legally ascertained and declared,
and that the actions Of the executive
committee in attempting to do so
were effected by errors Of law, pre-
judicial to the petitioner, Hyde, and
must be set aside, and it is so ad-
Judged"
The majority opinion was written
by Associate Justice D. e. Hydrick
and was concurred in by Chief Jus
tice Eugene B. Gary and Associate
Justice T. B. Fraser. A dissenting
opinion, written by Associate Jus
tice Richard C. Watts, was concurred
in by Associate Justices George w.
Lage.
Justice Watts dissented on the
grounds that the Charleston election
case was political and not judicial,
and for that reason, was without the
jurisdiction Of the Supreme Court.
"As nothing Is involved in this but
political rights, l am opposed to the
court interfering in any form," he
said.
Other Petitions Thrown Out.
The majority opinion dismissed
the petition Of w. r. Sellers and
Thomas B. Mccarthy, Hyde candi-
dates for Aldermen, because, said
the opinion in substance, the face
Of the returns showed clearly that
John P. Michel and r. H. Bold, their
Grace factional opponents, had been
nominated by such majorities that
they would not be overturned even
II the contested and disputed 81
votes before the executive commit
tee had been counted for Sellers and
Mccarthy. The petition Of John
]. Boykin and some 40 other Hyde
voters challenged by Grace support
ers, was dismissed.
The election for the nomination OF
Mayor and "a Aldermen for the city
of Charleston, as shown by the ma
jority opinion, held on August 10,
resulted on the face of returns in
majority Of one vote 70. tile in
cumbent, Mayor r. II. Hyde, the re-
suit being that Hyde received 3,421
votes and Grace 1920 votes. In ad-
dition there were IT challenged votes
from the city at large and ID "mu-
tilated ballots" from ward 12
which were not counted, but which
were segregated and left to the de-
CiSiOn OF the executiye committoe