Record Data
Transcription
The Election—How Mr. Parrott, the Free State candidate was Chosen to Congress—He Receives his Certificate from Governor Walker
Leavenworth City, Oct. 16, 1857.
For several days prior to yesterday, there were conflicting rumors regarding the result of the election, and among them was a semi-official announcement of the defeat of Parrott, and the loss of the Territorial Legislature to the Free State party.
It was alleged that Johnson county had given a very large vote for the Pro-Slavery ticket, more than sufficient to absorb the majorities which Parrott had obtained in nearly every other county in the Territory. One precinct, named Oxford, in Johnson county, returned some 1, 600 majority in favor of the so-called Democratic party. Immediately on these returns being received at Lecompton, measures were taken by some of the Free State party to establish the fraud by sending to the place aforesaid.
The evidence of the fraud was of such a glaring character, on the representation of those who went to Oxford, that Governor Walker and Secretary Stanton went down to the place, and on a search for the judges of the elections who purported to have made the returns to them, found only one, and he denied having made any [illegible] as were alleged.
They also found that there were but about twenty people, all told, who resided where sixteen hundred and upwards were returned as having voted.
In consequence of this and other discoveries of fraudulent returns of a similar character to the one stated, Mr. Parrott was notified that he could have his certificate of election without any further delay. This news was received last evening, and it is now fully settled that, throwing out the ascertained fraudulent votes, Marcus J. Parrott is elected to Congress from this Territory by more than five thousand majority.
There are also twenty-eight out of thirty-nine Free State members of the Territorial House of Representatives, and nine out of thirteen members of the Council, as I have before stated.
This is good news, and shows that we are all right on the question of Free State, when it is presented for our action.
The Constitutional Convention reassembles next Monday, and there will be a very interesting session, occasioned by the recent result of the election. Truth.