, 1874-09-01
VOTING NJ WHOLESALE.

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VOTING DY WHOLESALE.
Tho tioketn printed for tho fall oleotions re-
somblo directories for tho stato, county, and
townahlp In which they aro circulated. IN Town,
ovory yotor can cast ballot containing dozen
names, boaldcs thoso Of tue township nominees.
III Michigan, tho tickets bavo twenty-five nauloa+
In Indiana, thoy have t'senty-rino. Thta systom
Of voting by Wholesale Is open to eomo gravo
objections. It If Impossible for nnJ man to IN
form himsolf aufiiOicntly about 30 many nomi-
noes. uo must dofer to tho opinions OF tho
mob, that is, tho Convention TINT nominated
them. This nccosslty Is tho groat oauBc Of party
erciBo Of his own Judgment, and bocomos tool
In tho hands Of tho linen inside politics"
Again, tho System Of Wholesale voting destroys
responsibility. Whom an official blnndcr
is dotooted, the Governor throws tho
blanc on tho Cabinet which the sloc-
tton has forced upon him, and tho
latter either accepts It In ailence, conscious that
tho share falling upon oach member will DO in-
finitoBitna1, or elsa bandiea worda with the Gov
ernor, until tho dispute riponB into I'll unaoomly
squabbe. Tloro Is no ono person to whom tho
people can say: Somebody Is roaponslblo for
this, and thou art tho man." It iB matter OF
no meou Importance TINT this stata of things
should be romcdod. Somoshing uko IL allowed
tho TammhnY Hing to rob for years.. neaponHi-
billty and power must 60 together. No man Gnu
i,,,IJ IJ,-4. l. a. rk,1.1 fox
ordnates whom ho did not nppoint. To fit ro-
Bpopsibility md to o,yiato tho necessity ok vot-
inR for multitude OF unknown personB on tho
strength Of q party nomination, It might be woll
to have many offoials who axo now elected By
tho pouplo haroafter appointed by thoir iuamo-
diate auporiors. Tho number Of officers render
Cd necessary by our complex system Of govorn-
mont8 within governmental Ia 80 great TINT Bo1no
change aoonlB almost cssonsia1.
It would bo, IN moasuro, I roturn to old
customs An recently a. 1920. Secretaries Of
stato. Attorney Gonora1s, State T1eaauress, oto.,
wero alnost invariably either olocted by tho
Legislature or appointed by tho Governor. In
Maine, Now Hampshire. Maryland, Ohio, and
Illinois, these two methods Of choice wero CON-
binoa. THO Executive Cabinet WAS part1y ap-
pointed By the Governor. partly elected by the
Legislature. In Nov York.. Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Mtssissppi,
and Indiana, the Legislature oloctcd all Uabtnet
officers. This was also tho rule, IN 1870, In
Massachusetts. but It was afterwards SO changed
that thai State, like Vermont, Pennsylvania.
Delaware, Loulsfans, kentucky, aud Tonneasoc,
gavo it's Governor the appointing power. In
tho last half-oentuH, = revolution has
boon wrought. Office aftor office has
been made elective, until nov tho pooplo aro
clamoring for tho right to voto for thsir own
Postmasters. Tho abuao Of patronage has DO
doubt had much to do with this. Tho reaction
against it might go too far. It Is well worth
consideration, however, whether the Governor
Of State should not have tho power which the
President on1oys Of choosing his own Official
advisers by and with the conRont Of one brunch
Of tho law-making body. Then, Ii anything goes
| wrong, tho Executive Is responsible. He cannot
dodge that fact. Now, il Secretary Of State Of
a stato Treasurer proves grossly incompetent,
allllAB Eh4 NJ AAAhs Il laElhlAb0l 04A nGbu
elected instead Of appointed Secretary OF the
Treasury, ho would be disgracing US In
that position to-day. But Grant waa ro-
sponsible for him, and popular clausos
forced 0raut into buying his resignation
| with 4 minor Judgeship. 4 Goyornos electedlfo1
| Bhort torn, not over two years at tho fartlest,
aud endowed with tho powor Of SOLICITING his
own Cabinet would fool directly responsible for
| the whole executive management Of tho State.
| He would realize that bis future lay IN bis OWL
hands, and that hia errors and those Of lis suh-
ordinates would bo stern1y laid up against him
! Ho would therefore chooHo good men aud would
watch tloln closely. It Is true that tho magni.
tudo Of such power would rcnder It Nablo tc
| gravo abuse It, tho hands of lad man, but thc
consciousnesH Of this fact would produce groatc,
care in choosing good mon. This Same system
could DO carriod into effect In lower sets ol
ofilcos, It might bo especially applicable II
| large cities.
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