334 



FLORIDA. 



lowing is the vote of the Second District in de- 

 tail, as certified by the Board of State Can- 

 vassers : 



"The Floridian" of December 10th has the 

 following: 



The vote as it appears on file for member of Con- 

 press in the Second District counting for Colonel 

 Bisbee every return bearing his name is as follows : 



Hull's majority, 69. 



The two counties laid aside were Brevard 

 and Madison. This was done by the Board of 

 State Canvassers, which consists of the Secre- 

 tary of State, the Attorney-General, and the 

 Comptroller. The State Board has no author- 

 ity to throw out the returns from any county 

 which are regular and formal on their face; 

 but, under the peculiar wording of the State 

 statute, and the construction given to it by 

 the Supreme Court in the case of Drew, the 

 returns from these counties were laid aside and 

 not included in the number cast for member of 

 Congress. There are only three States whose 

 laws confer such power, viz., Texas, Louisiana, 

 Florida. The returns were said to be false, 

 in that from one county they contained fewer 

 than were actually cast, and from the 

 other more, so that neither gave the true vote 

 and both were consequently rejected. The cer- 

 tificate of the Board of State Canvassers is as 



Certificate of the Board of State Canvassers of Florida, 

 as to the returns of election, held in the counties of 

 Madison and tirevard on the fifth day of November, 

 A. D. 1878. 



The Supreme Court, in the case of Drew vs. the 

 State Canvassing Board, in construing the section 

 of the statute defining the powers and duties of 

 this Board, says: "The words 'true vote' indi- 

 cate the votes actually cast, as distinguished from 

 the legal vote." The Court again says that the clear 

 effect of the clause, " If any such returns shall be 

 shown or shall appear to be so irregular, false, or 

 fraudulent, that the Board shall be unable to deter- 

 mine the true vote for any such officer or member, 

 they shall so certify, and shall not include such re- 

 turn in their determination and daclaration ; and the 

 Secretary of State shall preserve and file in his office 

 all such returns, together with such other documents 

 and papers as may have been received by him or by 

 said Board of Canvassers," is, " that a return of the 

 character named shall not be included in the deter- 

 mination and declaration of the Board, and that it 

 has power to determine the bonafide character of the 

 returns dehors their face." The expression u bona 

 fide character " here used evidently refers to the 

 words " irregular, false, or fraudulent" used in the 

 statute. It again says, in discussing the article of 

 the Constitution under which this section is author- 

 ized : " This is clearly an express authority for pro- 

 viding that returns of elections must be received, 

 considered, and passed upon by such officers and 

 persons as might be designated by the Legislature ; 

 and the necessary conclusion is that such officers 

 may be authorized by the Legislature to inquire into 

 the truth or falsity of the returns sent to them, and 

 if, upon such inquiry, they be satisfied that the re- 

 turn does not show the vote actually cast at the elec- 

 tion, but states a falsehood as to that fact, they may 

 lay it aside and refuse to count the return as is pro- 

 vided in the act of 1872." The power to lay a re- 

 turn aside and not include it in the determination 

 under such circumstances, involves the duty to so 

 lay it aside under the same circumstances. It is not 

 denied that the return from Madison County does 

 not include any of the votes actually cast at precinct 

 No. 4 in this county ; and it is the conclusion of the 

 Board that this return does not, therefore, show the 

 entire or true vote actually cast at the election in this 

 county. Although it is true that the County Can- 

 vassers did canvass all the precinct returns which 

 had been received at the Clerk's or County Judge's 

 office up to the time of making the canvass, and al- 

 though there is no irregularity in the action of the 

 County Board, yet this return does not state, in the 

 opinion of this Board, the truth as to the actual vote 

 cast, but comes under the condemnation of the de- 

 cision of the Supreme Court. This Board, therefore, 

 determined it to be its duty not to include this re- 

 turn in its determination and declaration, and cer- 

 tifies that such return is so false that the Board is 

 unable to determine from such return the true vote 

 for any officer or member cast in said county. 



As to the county of Brevard, it is the determination 

 of the Board, from the papers on file, that the return 

 from this county is false, in so far as it relates to the 

 vote for member of Congress, in that it represents a 

 larger number of votes than were actually cast in 

 said county for member of Congress. Although it 

 is the determination of the Board that the signa- 

 tures to this return are genuine, and that the re- 

 turn is in due form, this Board determines it to be 

 its duty not to include this return in its determina- 

 tion and declaration, and certifies that it is so false 

 that the Board is unable to determine from it the 

 true vote cast in said county for member of Con- 

 gress. 

 December 23. 1878, at Tallahassee. 



W. D. BLOXHAM, Secretary of State. 

 GEORGE P. RANEY, Attorney-General, 

 C. DREW, Comptroller, 



Board State Canvassers. 



