of Chippewa county, having been elected to that office at the general election in November, 1846, and, as such County Clerk, that he prepared, signed and authenticated, so far as the same is done, the statement of the Board of County Canvassers, produced before the committee, and marked Exhibit (B;) said statement being received by the committee, subject to objections.

Also, that said Harvie had held the several offices of Prosecuting Attorney, and Master in Chancery, and Notary Public, for the county of Chippewa; but that on the last day of October, or the first day of November, 1847, he divested himself of said offices by a resignation thereof, signed by him, and forwarded to the Executive. The fact that St. Mary was the sole township in Chippewa county, was also admitted.

And your committee further report, that by the Inspectors' return, above referred to, (marked exhibit A,) it appears that the whole number of votes given for the office of representative at said election, was one hundred and twelve; that fifty-six of them were given for Henry M. Dodge; that fifty-five of them were given for Andrew Harvie, and one of them was given for H. M. Dodge. The tally list produced before us, (marked Exhibit C,) and received without objection, establishes the same fact.

Said

The Inspectors' return, (Exhibit A,) also shows that, of the votes cast as above, twenty-four containing the name of Henry M. Dodge, for Representative, were irregular in this: that they contained the names of Alvin N. Hart, Edward H. Thompson and James McCabe, for Senators, without designating either to fill the vacancy. return also shows the fact that, "after a comparison of the poll list and the ballots taken from the box, and after a canvass of the votes was commenced, it was found by the Board, that there was one more ballot in the box than there were names of voters on the poll lists, which lists contain one hundred and thirteen names." But the return states, in continuation, "consequently, the whole one hundred and fourteen ballots were canvassed, and the names thereon are all included in these returns." Reference may be had for accumulative evidence, to the tally list, (Exhibit C;) to the statement purporting to be the return of the county canvass, signed by George Johnson, as chair

man and sole member of said Board, (Exhibit D;) as also the deposition by the same (marked Exhibit K,) Seemingly conflicting with the above, is the deposition of Wm. P. Spalding, (marked Exhibit E.)

By the depositions of George Johnson, and P. B. Barbeau (exhibit K.) it appears that the inspectors adjourned their official canvass to the third day of November, 1847, after first examining and counting the ballots, on the day of election, and that "the ballot box containing all the votes polled, together with the key thereof, without any seal in or upon said box, was in the exclusive possession and custody of the said Dodge, from Tuesday evening, 2nd November, at about 8 o'clock, till the morning of the following day."

And your committee would further report that by the several affidavits of William Rood, James Marsden, John Remington and Chas Durell, produced before said committee, and respectively marked Exhibits F. G. H. I., and by the testimony of Lawrence S. Warner, it appears that the said Rood, Marsden Remington and Durell, appeared at the polls of said election, and each presented to the board a ballot containing (among others) the name of Henry M. Dodge for Representative-that a majority of said board refused to receive said votes, that thereupon each of them offered to take the oath required by the statute, which oath said board refused to administer, upon the ground of the non-residence of each of them; they having been mustered into the service of the United States as volunteers in the Brady Guards at Detroit, Wayne county, in June, 1847, and as soldiers of the army sent to the Saut. de Ste Marie, and occupying the garrison as such soldiers, did not, in the opinion of the board of inspectors, thereby acquire a residence in the township of St. Mary. From the testimony of Mr. L. S. Warner above referred to, it appears that neither of the four persons above named, had been residents of the township of St. Mary prior to the time they were stationed there as soldiers in garrison: They were residents of Michigan in the Lower Peninsula when mustered into army service.

And your committee would further report that, by the testimony of Elisha G. Seymour, the member of the last House of Representatives, for the county of Chippewa, it appears that intelligence of the passage of act No. 64, at the session of 1847, did not reach the Saut.

Ste Marie until about the middle of May, and that the same did not reach the new counties, in this report before named, in season for the organization provided for by said act, at the time therein directed, and consequently no such organization was had.

By the depositions of Samuel Johnson, Justin Shapley and Russel A. Coe, produced before the committee, and marked Exhibits L. M. and N., and by the testimony of L. S. Warner, it would appear that the said Johnson, Shaply, Coe and others come down in the propeller from those unorganized counties, and tendered their votes at the polls of said election, containing (among others) the name of Andrew Harvie for Representative; claiming that the township of St. Mary, still embraced within its limits those unorganized counties, and alleging that the act No. 64, above alluded to, having become inoperative for its main purposes, the 12th section thereof, confining the limits of said township within the county of Chippewa proper, became void also. They were challenged "on the ground of non-residence, and the board of inspectors together with the candidate Andrew Harvie, having expressed the opinion that said section 12, was operative, they declined taking the oath, and did not vote.

By the deposition of Lowel W. Tinker, marked Exhibit O., and testimony of L. S. Warner and Timothy S. Smith, it appears that Daniel Olds, A. J. Averill, Capt. of the propeller, T. C. Owen and Ira Owen, voted at said election—the said T. C. Owen swearing in his vote; and from the evidence it appears that the said Olds, Averil and T. C. Owen, by their own statements voted a ballot containing (among others) the name of Henry M. Dodge, for Representative. And the said Tinker deposes that the said Ira Owen voted a ballot similar to that of his brother, T. C. Owen, as deponent is informed and verily believes, (Exhibit O.) It further appears from the testimony that said Olds was the Mate, and engaged in sailing the propeller on Lake Superior during the past season— said Averill being the Master thereof-that said propeller arrived at the Saut de Ste Marie during the election-that said Olds resides and has resided for twelve or fourteen years, about three miles from the mouth of St. Joseph river, in the county of Berrien, where he

and his brother Albert Olds, own lands or improved farms-that said Olds, on arriving there, stated to witness Smith and others, that he happened there at the Saut de Ste Marie, just in time to vote, on his way home; he found the polls open, and that the claimant Harvie, by the count that had been kept, would have had one majority had not he and those with him voted, and turned the scale in favor of Mr. Dodge, the other candidate for Representative. From the deposition of L. W. Tinker, (Exhibit O.,) it appears that A. J. Averill, the Master of the propeller, is a citizen of the State of IIlinois, and resides in the city of Chicago, in said State, and that said Averill did not arrive within the State of Michigan until after the tenth day of May, 1847, having then reached the Saut de Ste Marie for the purpose, as he stated, of taking charge of the propeller "Independence" during the season of navigation—that said Averill did sail said propeller till about the twenty-fifth day of November, when he left the said county of Chippewa and returned to Chicago.

By Exhibit O, it is also made to appear, that T. C. Owen, one of the voters above named, arrived at the Saut de Ste. Marie about the tenth of May, 1847, and engaged in keeping a store, and continued thus employed until the latter part of October, 1847, when he sold off his goods at auction, wtth the avowed intention of removing from said place that on the 31st of October, 1847, said Owen "took passage on the steamboat "Samuel Ward," and departed for Detroit or St. Clair river, for which places said boat was bound, with the avowed intention of leaving the said Saut de Ste. Marie." From the same deposition, and the other testimony, it appears that said steamboat "Samuel Ward" unexpectedly returned from Mackinaw to the Saut de Ste. Marie, on the second day of November, 1847, having said Owen on board, as a passenger-that said steamboat remained about two hours there, during which time said Owen voted as above stated— that the boat then departed with the said Owen on board of her. Said Owen stated to the Board, when challenged, that he was going to Newport to purchase provisions to return with in the spring.

From the same deposition, [Exhibit O,] and from the testimony of L. S. Warner, it appears that Ira Owen was, during the season of navigation in 1847, mate on board of the steamboat "Samuel Ward,"

and "had not been a resident of said Saut de Ste. Marie for some months next preceding the general election of November, 1847:" that for most of the season said steamboat was engaged in the navigation of Lake Erie, but became a trader to the Saut de Ste. Marie from about the first of September. In regard to both of said Owens said deposition alleges, "that both the said Owens have families, but that the family of neither of them resided at said Saut de Ste. Marie for several months next before said general election-that the place of residence of said Owens and their families, is some where on the river St. Clair."

The evidence from which the preceding state of facts is collated, was produced before the committee by the respective claimants, and offered either with or without objections, as follows:

Exhibits A and C, offered by Mr. Dodge, and received without objections. Exhibit B, offered by Mr. Dodge, and received subject to the objection, by Mr. Harvie, that it was not properly signed and authenticated.

Exhibit D, offered by Mr. Harvie, objected to by Mr. Dodge, and received subject to objection not authenticated. Exhibits E, F, G, H, I, J, offered by Mr. Dodge, objected to by Mr. Harvie, and received subject to objections.

Exhibit K was offered by Mr. Harvie, and received without objection; as also Exhibits L, M, N, O.

Exhibit P, offered by Mr Dodge, received without objection.

The witnesses Warner, Smith and Seymour, were produced before the committee by Mr. Harvie.

Upon closing the evidence of which the preceding is a summary, the claimants had leave to appear, by counsel, for argument, and the following points were submitted by Mr. Goodwin, in behalf of Mr. Harvie.

POINTS ON ARGUMENT.

1. Mr. Dodge as County Clerk of Chippewa county, was ineligible to a seat in the Legislature. [Cites art. 4, sec. 8 of Constitution of Michigan.]

2. Mr. Dodge, having been an inspector of the election, received the box containing the ballots and the key thereof before the canvass