The Woodstock age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1844-1845, 1845-02-06
From the Vermont Chronicle.
PURITY OF ELECTIONS.

" NJ L L VI ELbS lOIND'
Hon. Silas Wright, Governor OF the
State of New York. in his late message to
the Legislature, makes the following re-
marks on the law regulating the elective
franchise in that State. and the manner in
which its ends are defeated:
Zone of the prominent complaints is tina,
efforts are made, and successfully made,
to defeat the policy of our present law, in
tending to secure TO the elector the privi-
ege of keeping his vote from the sight or
inspection Of the officers of election, or
any one else, and its character known to
himself only, By the law, if he chooses
to hand his ballot to the inspector, closely
folded, the law prohibits the inspector, up
on pain Of severe punishment for a MIS-
demeanor, from so opening it as to expose
the names of the persons voted for upon it.
The law, however, requires that the the
ballot should be Labelled on the outside,
and if folded, it must be so folded as to
leave this label visible. This is made one
of the means of defeating the protection
intended to be thrown around the elector,
by enabling him to keep the character Of
his vote profound secret from all the
world but himself, if he should choose to
do so. This label, as a general remark,
must be printed, and the character Of the
type is made to designate the political
complexion ofthe vote within, as plainly,
to those who understand the design, as
would the inspection ofthe names on the
ballot. In this way the influence Of the
the employer over the feelings and fears of
employed, is as fully and forciby exert
ed as if the latter were required 10 give a
viva voce vote, or deposite an open ballot.
So the description and color Of the paper
upon which ballots were printed are often
resort ed to for the same purpose, and in
this way the spirit and intention of the law,
to protect the elector in the Independent
exercise of his own free choice, are cir
cumvented and defeated
1t is obvious that the design oil The bal
lot in distinction from the ezra uOCe vote,
is to secure to every freeman the privilege
OF discharging this important duty to socie-
ty and his country "without fear or favor"
and it is equally true that any arrangement
which tends to defeat this end, is an inva-
sion of the rights of freemen, of bad ten
dency, and ought to be discoun,enced
by every class of citizens. What parlcu-
lar party it will mos, injure or benefit, is
a question which ought not to be taken at
all into the account 1t is plainly a two
edged sword, which cuts both ways. In
one place it will deter one class Of men
from voting according to thei" unbiased
judgment and conscience, in another, it
will deter an opposite class,-so that it is
impossible to tell which party will be most
injured or benefited. The objection to 1t
is, that it tends to defeat the ends of the
law and place men under restraint, where
restraint of the kind shohld not exist.
The occasion Of these remarks is found
| in what was done in our county at our
late election for County Commissioners
We see it stated, that in some towns the
vote for ant.Iicense Commissioners was on
colored paper, and those for license Com
mssioners on white. "The town Clerk,
and magistrate, seated on each side Of
the presiding officer, kept check list of
the voters. As the constable received the
ballots of the freemen, he gave the names
of such as presented ycllOr tickets, to the
town clerk, and such as presented arhite
ones, to the magistrate-lhus keeping run
and cold matcr entirely distinct and free
from mixture" BY this arrangement, at
the close Of the ballot it could be seen on
which side every man had voted.
Whether any such result was contem.
plated by those who provided the colored
votes we are unable to say, as no such
votes were used with Us. We trust that
such result was not designed, but if not,
as the arrangement was evidently suited to
destroy the freedom of elections, and as
we are commanded 10 avoid the appearance
of evil we trust it will in future be avoided.
1t is very proper that check list should
be kept at every ballot to prevent Illegal
voting, but no attempt should he made TO
show which side men vote Such poIti-
cal management the Temperance cause
does not need. If il canno; triumph with
out it, it cannot at all.
Let Temperance men, and women too,
do all they can to covince their fellow cl'l-
zens that rum-seling as beverage is in
furious to community, and morally wrong,
SO that from the promptings of an enllght.
ened conscience they shall vote on the
side of right; but if they fail to do this, let
them array no terror around the ballot-box.
Let this be place to which even the rum
seller may approach unappalled, except by
that monitor which speaks within. To
embroil the Temperance cause in measures,
or to conduct the discussion OF the subject
in the spirit which too often characterizes
political parties at the present day. is to
ensure its defeat. The old maxim, ,hat"i
is impossible TO foil the devil with his own
weapons" still remains true.
INAUGURATION BALL.
The Democrats of this region propose
celebrating the Inauguration of Polk by a