The examiner., 1882-03-04
Republished by request.
"Long live Corruption y

the 16tb day of February, A. ID. 1882, by that body of "Honorables" known as the House of Representatives of the State of Connecticut. Ballot stuffing, bulldozing bribery, intimidation. and all the various corrupting influences now surrounding the machinery of the ballot box, are to be re- tained and cherished. 1. The lawmakers of Connecticut have so ordained. But the saddest feature of all, and that which is most galling to the honest heart, is the fact of this piece of unblushing rascality being perpetrated in such 8 manner that a knowledge of it is entirely hidden from the people at large. This feat was per formed through conspiracy with the press. It chronicled the doings of every thing else, even matters of only private and trivial importance, yet on this subject on which depends the stability and perpetua- tion of our republican institutions it was as silent as the grave And yet this same press is called "republican" and tits called ssdemocratic" while in reality it is in league with a class who to-day are con- spring for the overthrow of the system which those once honored names repre- sent.
 Reader, the matter to which we here refer is the act for instituting a strictly secret ballot in our state. This bill was prepared and introduced by men who saw the utter futility of striving for an honest expression of the popular will under our present elective system. They saw that no matter how honest and capable man right be, if not having the power and influence of money at his back, it was next to impossible to secure for hlm an election to any department of the government, while the rich man no matter how incapa- ble and dishonest, was generally assured of victory in advance.
 They saw the great mogul of the factory village made rich through the earnings of hundreds of poor slaves, by intimation and threat intimidate and buIldoze the voting portion until docile enough to enter the big corporation wagon and be driven to the polls. like sheep to the shambles, there to assist in placing him in another position whereby he is enabled to formulate laws for his further aggrandisement and their destitution and utter enslavement
 They saw the wealthy politician of the big town or city, with his thousands of ''split" tickets and "pasters" and his hun dreds of poor scavengers to distribute and foist them on the unwary.
 They saw and heard of agents of those men offering in as public manper as such offers could safely be made, !, 2, 3, and 5 dollars for single vote. They saw money contributed and expended for the express purpose of confounding the voter and de- passing the man through the degrading in- auence of intoxicants: then taken to the polls in his stupid condition to perform an act which should only be approached with the same amount of deliberation and responsibility, as is experienced by the most conscientious juror when passing on the life or death of fellow mortal.
 They saw and knew of Christian men" --E~- Al0S. &<rn y~1a honor, could so for forget the simplest pre- cepts of Christianity as to enter into league with the most acknowledged corruption ists, going hand in hand through all the various ramifcations of political debauch- cry and they saw the hordes of political hen-Iice who in consequence swarm around the polls especially in our large towns and cities, employing all the arts and artifces known to their low-lived despicable call ing, in misguiding or corrupting the voter and polluting the sacredness of the ballot-the birthrights of American free men. And the present legislature of ''the good old commonwealth of Connecticut, has proclaimed, though quietly, most em. phatically, that this condition of affairs must continue, even though. the result should sink the nation into perdition. As it is our intention of producing re. print of this article in circular form fol the express purpose of counteracting as much as lies in our power this nefarious conspiracy of the lawmakers and the news. makers, in withholding from the people a knowledge of the existence of the docu- ment referred to, we consider it again necessary to give brief description of its main features, which we confidently assert are so simple and easy of enforcement that it cannot fail of commenting itself to every oikS1or, r,oxv 1ooIrinnr for com okbipo whereby the present corruptible pratices may be overthrown.
 It provides for the publication by the state of electors enUelopes, furnished by the Secretary of s ate to the different town clerks, who are to place in the hands of some person or persons appointed by the selectmen to have charge of such en- velopes, number precisely equal to the number of registered voters in such town or district, such person IS to hand each elector as his name is checked one of said envelopes. The elector is then required to enter private booth Cor room) prepared for the purpose, and there in secret, select the ballots he desires to vote, seal the same and then passing out of such booth or room deposit the envelope on the ballot | box.
 Such in brief, are the simple provisions of the bill. There is nothing complicated in it's machinery, and no feature to which any honest man can object.
 Among the many reasons why the bil should become incorporated into law, is that it is the highest duty of the legisla ture to provide for the purity of the ballot as being the source through which the vii of the people, the sovereign people, if made manifest and exercised; by institu. ting some plan that will 1oreve,at the possi bility of committing fraud successfully ir our elections.
 That our elections are now manifestlJ impure. that large amounts of money are raised and used for the purpose of corrupt ing the weak and needy voter, that large numbers of operatives in our different mills and factories are intimidated by thei1 employers is a matter beyond dispute.
 Bribery and intimidation are the order of the day (to accomplish that part of the work left undone by the hireling press and the hireling orator) and there is no me. thod under heaven by which their damna. ble influences can be met and completely, nullified other than the adoption of g system where one man cannot possibly know what another man votes.
 ~ But it was evident from the start that there was nothing to hope or expect from