186. The board of election in each election district, the board of county canvassers in each county, and the board of state canvassers shall, respectively, possess full power and authority to maintain regularity and order, and to enforce obedience to their lawful commands during their sessions respectively; and if any person shall refuse to obey the lawful command of any such board, or by disorderly conduct in their hearing or presence shall interrupt or disturb their proceedings, they may by an order in writing, signed by the chairman and attested by the clerk of such board, commit the person so offending to the common jail of the county in which they shall have met, for a period not exceeding three days, and such order shall be executed by any sheriff or constable to whom the same shall be delivered; or if a sheriff or constable shall not be present or shall refuse to act, by any other person who shall be deputed by such board in writing, and the keeper of such jail shall receive the person so committed, and safely keep him for such time as shall be mentioned in the commitment.

state, county and boards.

Police power

district

unlawful.

187. No person shall make, lay or deposit any bet, Betting, etc., wager or stake, to be decided by the result of any election, by the election or defeat of one or more persons at any election, or by any contingency connected with or growing out of any election; and all contracts for or on account of any money, property or thing in action sc bet, wagered or staked shall be void; and any person who shall pay, deliver or deposit any money, property or thing in action upon the event of any bet, wager or stake prohibited by this section, may sue for and recover the same of the winner or winners, or person or persons, to whom the same, or any part thereof, shall have been paid or delivered, or with whom the same, or any part thereof, shall have been deposited, whether he or they shall have been a stakeholder or stakeholders, or other person or persons, whether or not the same shall have been paid over by such stakeholder, or whether or not such bet, wager or stake shall have been lost.

Illegal actions of county clerk and secretary

of state, how punished.

Crimes and Penalties.

188. If any person shall be guilty of willful and corrupt false swearing or affirming, or by any means shall willfully and corruptly suborn or procure any person to swear or affirm falsely, in taking any oath, affirmation or deposition prescribed or authorized by this act, he shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of a high misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding eight hundred dollars or imprisonment at hard labor not exceeding seven years, or both, at the discretion of the court, and be deemed and taken to be an incompetent witness thereafter for any purpose within this state, until such time as he shall have been pardoned.

189. If the clerk of any county shall willfully and corruptly suppress, destroy, mutilate, change or alter any statement or certificate of the result of any election, or any copy thereof, made in pursuance of this act, which shall have been delivered to or received by him, or omit or refuse to produce and lay the same before the board of county canvassers, or if the chairman or clerk of any such board shall willfully and knowingly certify, sign or attest any false or untrue statement of the result of any election, or any false or untrue statement of the determination of any such board, or of the certificate thereto, or shall willfully and corruptly refuse or omit to certify, sign or attest any such certificate which he is by this act required to certify, sign or attest, or if any secretary of state or clerk of the board of state canvassers shall willfully and knowingly certify, sign or attest any false or untrue statement of the result of any election, or any false or untrue statement of the determination of any such board, or of the certificate thereto, or shall will-, fully and corruptly suppress, destroy, mutilate, change or alter any statement or certificate of the result of any

election, or any copy thereof, made in pursuance of this act, which shall have been delivered to or received by him, or omit or refuse to produce and lay the same before the board of state canvassers, every such person so offending, his aiders, procurers or abettors, shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment at hard labor for any term not exceeding seven years, or both.

robbing ballot-boxes,

etc.

190. If any person shall rob or plunder any ballot-box, Penalty for or unlawfully and by stealth or violence take the same or remove therefrom any ballot, envelope or other paper, or exchange, alter or destroy any ballot or envelope, or other paper contained therein, or if any person other than the clerk of any county or the secretary of state, shall, willfully and corruptly suppress, withhold, mutilate, destroy, alter or change any return, statement or certificate, or any copy thereof, which shall have been made in pursuance of this act, and delivered to him to be filed, or which shall have been entrusted or delivered to him to be delivered or transmitted to any other person or persons in pursuance of this act, every such person, his aiders, procurers and abettors, shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars, or by imprisonment at hard labor for any term not exceeding two years, or both.

191. If any member of any district board of registry and election shall at any election knowingly and willfully receive, or assent to receive, the vote of any person who is not by law entitled and qualified to vote at such election, or shall willfully and designedly make or sign any false or untrue statement or certificate of the result of any such election, or suppress, destroy, withhold, mutilate, change or alter any such statement or certificate, or any copy thereof made in pursuance of this act, or shall knowingly and willfully make any false or untrue

Penalty for by members

unlawful acts

of district

boards.

Penalty for selling liquor on election day

Penalty for having liquor in polling place.

entry in any poll-book, or shall, in canvassing and estimating the votes received at any such election, willfully and corruptly write any figure or mark opposite the name of any person voted for at such election, or refuse or omit to write any such figure or mark when he is by this act required so to do, or shall corruptly and without sufficient excuse omit or refuse to deliver or transmit to the clerk of such county, within the time by this act prescribed, the statement of the result of any such election, which shall have been delivered to him to be delivered or transmitted to such clerk, every person so offending, his aiders, procurers, and abettors, shall be deemed and taken to be guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars, or imprisonment at hard labor for any term not exceeding two years, or both.

192. In addition to the penalties provided by law for the unlawful sale or offer to sell or exposure for sale of any spirituous, vinous, malt or intoxicating liquors on any election day, every person so offending, for every offense, shall forfeit and pay the sum of one hundred dollars, to be sued for and recovered in an action of debt in any court having jurisdiction of that amount, by any citizen of this state, resident in the county where such offense shall be committed, one-half of which penalty shall, when collected, be paid to the county collector of said county where said offense is committed for the benefit of said county, and the other half to the person who shall prosecute for the same.

193. Spirituous, vinous, malt or intoxicating liquors shall not be brought by any person into the polling place on the day of election, or on any day of registry during the hours that the election or registration is in progress, nor during the counting or canvassing of the votes; any violation of the provisions of this section shall be a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine not exceeding one hun

dred dollars or imprisonment not exceeding two months, or both.

per

194. It shall be the duty of all sheriffs, under-sheriffs, police officers and constables, on any election day, during the hours of election, to arrest without warrant all sons who shall be found by them in the actual violation of any law prohibiting the sale, or offer to sell or exposure for sale, of any spirituous, vinous, malt or intoxicating liquors on any election day, and take such person when arrested before some recorder, police justice or justice of the peace of the county in which such arrest shall be made, to be dealt with by him according to law; and it shall be the further duty of such sheriffs, undersheriffs, police officers and constables, to effectually close up all places where they shall have good reason to believe any spirituous, vinous or malt liquors, ale, beer or cider, are being sold or offered or exposed for sale or given away, and keep the same effectually closed up till after such election.

195. No person shall falsely make, or make oath to, or fraudulently deface or fraudulently destroy any certificate of nomination or petition, or any part thereof, or file, or receive for filing, any certificate of nomination or petition, knowing the same or any part thereof to be falsely made, or suppress any certificate of nomination or petition which has been duly filed, or any part thereof, or forge or falsely make the official indorsement of any ballot or official envelope; every person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than five years. 196. No person shall, during the election, with intent to hinder or delay said election, or to hinder or delay any voter in the preparation of his ballot, remove or destroy any of the ballots or pencils placed in the booths or compartments for the purpose of enabling the voter to prepare his ballot, nor on any pretext carry any

Duty of peace garding sale

officers re

of liquor on election day.

destroying nomination,

Penalty for

certificate of

etc.

Penalty for hindering voters,

destroying

ballots, etc.