The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1880-11-13
THE VOTE OF NEW YORK.
IIl,gal Ballots Cast by Republicans
Hotests from the Democrats.

40 -
Hotests from the Democrats.
/ The Legislature Of New York which Is
largely Republican in both branches, last
winter passed the following law concerning
ballots to be used;
''SgcrIoS l. Az all elections hereafter held
within the limits Of this State for the purpose
Of enabling electors TO choose By ballot any
officer or officers under the laws Of this State,
or Of the United States, or TO pass upon any
amendment, law or public act or proposition
submitted to the electors TO vote by ballot
under any law, each and all ballots used at
any such election shall be upon plain white
printing paper and without any impression,
device, mark or other peculiarly whatsoever
upon or about them to distinguish one ballot
from another ~ appearance, except the names
of the several candidates, and they shall be
printed with plain black ink.
"SEc. 3 Every ballot shall have a caption
las provided by law) but such caption shall
be printed in one straight line in black ink,
with plain type OF the size now generally known
aud designated as Great Primer Roman Con.
densed Capitals, and the names Of all caBdi
dates shall eprinted ia plain type with letters
Of uniform size.
"SIc. 8. II shall be unlawful for any per
sou to print or distribute, or TO cast any ballot
printed or partly printed contrary to the pro.
visions Of this act, or to mark the ballot of any
voter, or to deliver to any voter such marked
ballot for the purpose OF ascerlaining how he
shall vote at any election.
''SGc. 4. Amy person or persons who shall
knowingly or wilfully violate or attempt to
violate any Of the provisions Of this act shall
be guilty OF n misdemeanor, and be punished
by Imprisonment in county jail or peniteuti.
airy for not exceeding one year, or by 6ne
OF not exceeding $3.50, or by both such ine
and imprisonment.
''Sec, 8. All acts or parts Of acts iueonsisl.
cut with the provisions OF this act are hereby
repealed provided, that nothing in this act
contained shall be construed to prohibit any
eleetor from voting any ballot entirely written
or from voting any printed ballot which in out
ward appearance complies with all the require.
ments OF this act upon the face OF which he
has personally made or caused to be made an
erasure, correction or insertion of any name
by pencil mark or otherwise
The ballots which were cast throughout the
State for the Hancock electors were furnish.
ed by the State Committee, and in every par
ticular complied with the requirements or d.
reelions Of the law of 1880. ltis likewise un.
deuiable that ballots issued and cast in yari-
Gus parts Of the State for the Garfield elec,
tors did not comply with these requirements,
but are, on the other hand, in direct violation
Of the law in short, illegal ballots, made lille,
gal by statute exacted by the Republicans
themselves. The law prescribes that the bal.
lot shall have caption" as both the
Democratic and Republican ballot for elec.
tors had; but It further preScribes certain
things that the ballot shall not have, and this
part is just as mandatory as the provisions in
regard to what the ballot shall have. Among
the things which the Legislature at the last
session decreed that the ballot should not con.
tain is, that they shall be without any i'm.
preston, device, mark or other peculiarly
whatsoever, upon or about them, to distin.
gulsh one ballot from another in appearance.
The Republicans violated this provision OF
the law by printing the Garfield ballots with
a device in order to distinguish them from
the Hancock ballots. The design Of this
print on the back Of the ticket was made up.
parent at the polingplaces throughout the
StAte-it was used in direct violation Of the
law, and for the very purposes which the stat
ute was enacted TO prevent. The law was
passed in order TO preserve the secrecy of the
ballot aud 10 prevent any person from know
ing by the appearance of the ballot how a
citizen voted. The Republicans used this
ballot to defeat that purpose of the law and
the bettes TO carry out Discrimination. The
Oswego PdtiddiaA says Of the action that has
been taken in reference TO these unlawful bal.
lots in that city:
1.-THE election inspectors in the Eighth
Ward Of this city in their return have thrown
out the l72 Republican electoral votes cast
and return the Democratic vote of 29S as the
electoral vote of the ward. This is done on
the ground that the Republican ballots are
illegal in not conforming to the staiute in this
respect-thNt the title ELECTORS is printed
on the back Of the ticket, aud in such way
as to clearly mark and distinguish il from the
Democratic electoral ballot, thus violating
both the spirit and letter Of the statute. As
GIs , thy ia<afetnrS refused TO receive these
their nature, but under advice of counsel re-
sumed taking them, making protest in order
to reserve their tights as TO return. These
ballots were furnished by tho Republican
State Committee, and since their electoral
ballot is supposed to have been the same all
over the State, the question OF its legality is
Of some importance. It will be fully tested
here
II need not be imagined that these ballots
were confined TO 0swego, for information has
been received that the same kind Of ballots
was used in Lewis county, st. Lawrence, JET.
ferson and, in fact, throughout the rural sec
tons of the State
The Buffalo Courier says in regard TO the
Republican ballot used in that city:
Some, il not all, Of the ward tickets voted
by the Republicans Tuesday had two. lined
caption, the upper line being in the legal type
and the lower in smaller one.
Can the eanyassers throughout the State
proceed to count these ballots which the law
says are illegal and declare in face of the IN.
lawful ballot that the Garfield electors are an.
pointed in that State7
The chairman of the Ulster county IN. W
democratic committee has served upon the
board Of oanvassers Of that county protest
against counting the republican electoral bal.
lots, claiming that those ballots do not conform
to the requirement of the statute, in that they
contain both caption and Endorsement, and
that the names of the several candidates are
not printed ia plain type with letters of uni.
form size. Ulster county, heretofore largely
democratic, on the I'd instant gave the Gar.
field electors 1870 majority.
The chairman and secretary of the Colum.
biA county IN. " democratic committee
have served upon the board Of county can.
vassers protests against counting the republi.
can electoral, congressional, Assembly and
county tickets, on the ground that such bal.
lots were illegally inelosed. The protests
were placed on file aud the board adjourned
10 take legal advice on the question. The
board comprises IL republicans aud 10 demo.
Gratis.
A democratic protest against the vote of
Chemung county N. T., has been made.