Smyrna times., 1878-09-04

OUR ELECTION LAws.-Last spring, in dis
cussing the unfairness of our election laws
in their qualities of disfranchising men who
were unobservant of time, or were too poor,
or were purposely left off the list by the
Assessor or Levy Court, we stated, as ap-
peared then from the best record, that
there were 1000 delinquent voters, thus
largely reducing the revenues of the State.
But as large as this number seemed, it was
not, it appears, near large enough. A re-
porter of the EVery EUening went to New
Castle last week and found on the records
of the Levy Court over 1000 delinquent
names for Wilmington city alone and not
less than $500 in the county outside, or
$500 in New Castle CO. At this rate, for
the two other counties have been subject
to the same legal regulations and political
influences, putting Kent and Sussex each
at 1,500, there is clear showing of say
$500 men in the State who will not have
the privilege of depositing a vote at the ap
preaching election, and if, as it is said,
these are largely in one party, it is no won
der they retire from the field entirely, as a
contest too unequal. Another and very
important feature of this political episode
1--WE wish to characterize it mildly is the
injustice it is doing our tax payers; those
we mean who have to foot the bill. BY
this political jerry Wandering not less than
$l2,500 is lost to the State by persons who
ought to pay; and as certain required
amounts are needed to carry on the county
expenses, the deficit must be met by in
creased taxes from those who will pay. II
is wrong to the man who honestly pays
his taxes by increasing the same, and it il
a wrong to the others who ought to bt
made pay for the privilege of citizenship
and left to their own volition as to the ust
of the ballot. Our Fourth of July orator.
i, have glorifed the high privileges of Ameri
can citizenship, where every man can vot
! according to the dictates of his conscience
! but to him who has been robbed of hi
ballot, it must sound like the verries
mockery. We speak from the broad plan
Q of right and justice. The rights of citizen
f ship should not be tampered with, and n
s party has ever done it without in the en-
t suffering loss.
e Our old election laws requiring an assess
# ment to be made six months prior to tn
J. election and before the attention of tn
T. people at large was called at all to the ma
s. ter of voting, was the cause of many bein
@ disfranchised, who remained in blissfr
II ignorance perhaps until election day, ths
IT dilatory or designing Assessor had robbie
J. them of their highest privilege. This ws
b bad enough, but the law as it now stant
10 goes further and says that if they do NJ
hunt up the collector and pay their tax
by a specified time, about eight months
D. advance of the time of election, they sha
be deprived of their vote not only for tn
Sc year, but, by being put down a delinquen
'n cannot vote for two years longer. I'll
9 citizen loses his vote, and the county los
1g the taxes for the space of three or fol
ne years.
ne In no other state in the Union are II
H. laws SO arbitrary as in Delaware.
81 Pennsylvania, New York and other leadil
ne States, the limit between the time of pa
m ing an assessed tax and the day of electi,
las is only thirty days. Such law should ex
u.s. in our State, and as Gov. Hall in accepti
ne the nomination declared himself in fav
of "equal justice to all" we shall expt
In him to recommend such reform in
'SS; inaugural.
ks.