Three judges are appointed by the magistrate to receive the votes, which each person delivers in writing to the judges, who have two assistants to record the names of the voters, as they deliver in their lists, as the voters do not sign their names to the lists. When a list is delivered to the judges, it is folded up and put into a locked box, by a hole in the lid, and there remains till six o'clock in the evening, when the election closes; and afterwards the box is opened, and the votes are counted up.
There were three candidates for the senate, seven or eight for the assembly, and the same number for county commissioners, two for sheriff, also two for coroner.
The voters for a member of congress are from all the counties of the state of Illinois; but for the senate and assembly, from the counties of Edwards and Wayne only; and for county commissioners, sheriff, and coroner, from Edwards county {255} only; Wayne county choosing its own coroner, &c.
I think there are about twelve districts in Wayne and Edwards county where elections were held. I was present, in the evening, at the opening of the box and counting up the votes. The two assistants to the judges had each a paper with the names of the several candidates written thereon, one of the judges took out a list, and proclaimed aloud the names of the candidates mentioned therein, and then delivered the list to the other judges, who retained the same. And the assistants each entered the votes against the name of the candidate voted for, in the following form:—
"D. P. Cooke: Congress.[149]
."
When a vote is told out, one of the assistants calls out "One," "two," "three," "four," or "tally," and so continues till the whole number is counted out. When the box that contains the lists is empty, the {256} number of names of the voters kept by the assistants is compared with the lists, to see if they agree. And then all the lists, and one of the papers with the candidates' names, and the number of voters, are again locked up in the box, and kept by the judges in case of a scrutiny. But the other papers with the names of the voters, &c. are sent to the county seat; where all the districts send their lists, and from these a general one is made out, and those candidates who have the highest number of votes are elected to their respective trusts.
The election was held at the house of Allen Emerson, Esq., a mile west of Wanborough, in an arm of Birks' Prairie.
One unpleasant circumstance is the paper currency of this part of the United States, and it requires some experience to know what notes to take. The paper money is of two kinds, called land-office and current money; land-office money is bank paper that will pass at the land-office, but this money frequently changes. Current-money {257} is bank-paper that will pass in trade, but is not payable at the land-office, and is often from 10 to 20 per cent. below the value of land-office money. It is common to make a price according to the sort of money to be paid, and there are some articles in most stores that are only sold for land-office money.