New-York daily tribune., 1843-04-27
The Right Of Sufrrase-An Appeal t" the
Country.

I'm order that the friends of honest votlng
throughout the State may understand precisely
what is the evil complained Of and what fe'hc-
dies arc required, we will call their attention TO
few simple facts
The City of New York covers an area OF some
four or FIVE square miles coppactly and iour tunes
as much sparscly covered with houses; It's lniao-
,tants are from $4,000 TO 325,000 its legal
Voters are over A., 600 Of whom but three-folrths
habitually and one-eighth more occasionally So'c'
a considerable portion of them never 90. Inc
number of Aliens, or immigrants from forelgn
Countries not naturaGzed, is very large-prooa-
bly, $4,000 persons, Of whom at least ioooo are
admit males. The number Of Strangers III ,he
Civ IS at any time conslderable-olten 5,OO0.-
Our population is very auctuatng; hundreds
every week departing by sea and landi 'hoo.
sands annually seeking business, employment ana
subsistence by emigrating to the South or West
while their places are filled by ncomers from Eu-
rope and from different parts of our own country.
A large proportion of those at any time here
have no steady business or settled residence.
Many come here in search OF work, and can get
none: others to try TO geta living without work
Many are sailors from every country, who snip
when opportunity offers, when their money Is
exhausted But above all it must DC considered
that there are whole classes of Population
,rAo ltce and thr,pe by arts or occupations 'ch'ny
incompatible with the public ,ceal There arc at
al times some 500 professional! gamblers in our
ctv. who live constantly and prodlgally ON the
nlunder of the infatuated and the simple. There
is an equal number connected with houses Oh
prostution either as keepers or pampcrcd DULLES
A still larger number live by robbery oil one KIND
and another from petty thicving and the receiving
of stolen goods to burglary and magnificent swlnd
Gng. Most of these have been once or more IN
some State Prison very many are lugluVcs rom
;,st;ce IN other countries A London thief who
becomes obnoxious to the Police is instantly aware
that a jaunt across the water VIII conduce 10 MS
ilealth--and here he comes
Now IT VIII be observed tnat mere is q formidable
force--not less than two thousand strong at anv
tilne--,rh0 hare direct interest IN the matad-
aninistrafion of our City Government. They are
formidable not merely by their numbers but by
their common interests, sympaimcs and dangers
These two thousand outlaws, of whom the world
is not their friend, nor The worlds law, arc IN con
slant intercourse with each other and with those
they can influence; they are III effect an organ
lied body, with sharp eye on the CITY "o'erif
ment, a lively sense of their own interests, ana
with money in abundance and dcns, watchwords,
and machinery known TO none but themselves.
Now these dangerous classes, the enemies of
Social Order Morality and Well being, are able
to exert powerful influence in our Elections
only in the absence of Registration of Voters.
The greater number of them arc not Legal Eo-
ters they arc Aliens or have forfeited their fran
chise by crime Under stringent and public
Renistry, the unfranchiscd would be detected and
challenged off Post up the LAST of persons claim
ing to be voters in any Ward i'll ten public places
IN that Ward, and somebody, scrutlnlxng
them, would say, Hold! that man has been i'll
the State Prison, cor convicted of ielony;)
challenge his right" The knowledge that they
were liable and iikely TO be so challenged would
keep their names off the hist at all. Many one
of them who might vote would choose TO keep
shady about his name, place OF residence, &c,
while no homes, man would be afraid or ashamed
TO put his on record. But noto the convicted or
fugitive fclon, instead of putting his name and
residence on public Registry, TO be printed and
scrutinizcd by the whole City, slips up to the
Poll. Sees If there is any one there who knows
and would be likely TO challenge HIM If there Is,
he slides off and awaits a more convenient sea
son ii not, he boldly presents his vote Perhaps
a few questions are asked, which ne answers
promptly and satisfactorily; no one knows why
he should not be believed; he votes, and starts
for smother poll. Thus the onlawed classes Of
our CITY can easily exercise three times the Po-
litical power now that they could under Regis
try. even without double voting.
But wha, shall hinder them from voting five or
fifty times each All of them feel deep and
lively interest in the election OF such officers as
will Interfere with and pry into their pursuits as
little as possible. Each is profoundly impressed
with the truth of that elemental Loco Foco axiom,
which figures as themotto Of The Globe" The
world is governed too much" All know that
some men, If chosen magistrates, viii be more
likely to modest brothels, and gambling houses and
other rookeres of dspraylty, than other men and
they know ,ch.ck of two sets OF candidates viii
be mos, obnoxious to them. Many of them hsve
heavy bets depending on the issue, and mean to
WIN them. What considerations are likely 10 de
o- them from voting illegally and repeatedly, and
stimulating others to do SO !
Consider the extraordinary facilities here afford
ed for Illegal Voting The City is divided into
seventeen Wards, and these again subdivided into
seventy-fom Election Districts, in each of which
a Poll is held. Each legal voter is entitled to
yote at the Poll of the Election Distrc. wherein