Documents and articles omitted or erroneously placed inside the ballot box.
Section 197
SEC. 197. Documents and articles omitted or erroneously placed inside the ballot box.—If after the delivery of the keys of the ballot box to the proper authorities, the board of inspectors shall discover that some election documents or articles required to be placed in the ballot box were not placed therein, the board of inspectors instead of opening the ballot box to place therein said documents articles shall deliver the same to the Commission or a representatives specifically authorized to receive them. In no instance shall the ballot box be reopened to place there-in or take out therefrom any document or article except to retrieve copies of the election returns which would be needed in any canvass and in such excepted instance, the members of the board of inspectors, watchers of the political parties and the candidates, the municipal treasurers and the heads of the local chapters of all the national political parties shall be notified of the time and place of the opening of said ballot box: Provided, however, That if there are other copies of the election returns outside of the ballot box which could be used in the canvass, such serviceable copies of the election returns should be used in said canvass and the opening of the ballot box to retrieve copies of the election return placed therein shall then be dispensed with.