The Idaho recorder. [volume] (Salmon City, Idaho) 1886-1927, 1922-08-11
FINAL APPEAL TO THE
BALLOT BOX.

A telegram received from Boise last
Saturday, August 8, by The Recorder
told of another action in the long
drawn-out Viel-Summers election con-
test, by which the Supreme court re-
verses itself TO the extent of remand
ing the case for trial again in the
lower court.
This case arose over the election of
commissioners in 1920. 1t came on for
trial at the spring term in the follow
ing year, after many delays being de-
cided by Judge Adair against the
claims of the contestant, who appeal
ed to the Supreme Court, where more
delays have been met with. The SUI
preme court first decided in favor of
Viel but a rehearing was granted on
motion of the contestee and this came
in for hearing in June. Now two
months afterward the order remand
ing the case Is entered.
The Squidicum Squeeze acts of the
courts in thus swallerin' themselves
have called down upon their devoted
heads some highly explosive language.
Both seem to have engaged in the
great American sport of passing the
buck. While the writer makes no
claim To being lawyer it seems to his
lay mind that when the Depot ballot
box was admitted as evidence by the
trial judge, at that same time this
same court also admitted that there
was no doubt about its integrity. If
there hal been doubt he certainly
should not have been admitted it but,
as was the case with Junction bal
lot box, he should have thrown it out.
The judgment that comes along after
many delays with the opinion sending
the ease back for another trial by a
judge who had already passed upon its
merits once Is probably chargeable to
well, we refrain from saying any
thing further on this painful subject.
Perhaps 1t was the eloquence of the
lawyer for the defense, Senator Whit
comb, who without introducing one
word of new evidence after the case
got to the Supreme court, Just talked
that court over his way and made it
see black white and turned night into
broad daylight. If this be the case
Whitcomb has il all over Mare An
tony and Demosthenes and Cicero and
"all them fellers."
Long since the supporters of Mr..
We'll in this controversy, despairing of
the courts ability to right the wrong
when beset as the courts have been
from the beginning in this case by
the resourcefulness of an able lawyer
hired for the purpose of obstructing
justice, decided to appeal his cause to
the court of last resort in such cases
made and provided, to wit, the ballot
box. Hence Mr., Viel was nominated
for the office of county commissioner
again. The love of Justice Unborn in
the hearts and minds of all people
worthy of this free country is depend
ed upon to see that there shall no
further miscarriage of justice in this
celebrated case. 1t remains for the
voters themselves to see that their
votes are counted as cast and that at
all voting places there shall be honest
counts returned to the canvassing
board.
The following extract from the Ida
no statutes, section 1884 (5036), has
reference to this important subject,
which Is made null and void, or prac-
tically SO, by this interference with
prescribed order:
The cause election contest)
shall stand for trial at the expira-
ton of 80 days from the time Of
service Of the summons and COM
plant. ii the court shall then bc
in session; otherwise on the first
day of the next term thereafter.