The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1884-04-19

New Orleans States.

New Orleans States.
The inguiry.is made in another col
umn by a correspondent as to whether
voter can write ont his own ticket
with the names Of such candidates as
he desires to support. The question
is an interesting and important one
and is eliciting some discussion, as
will be seen by the communication Of
can Old Citizen"
Section 23 of the election law Of
1882 provides that all the names of
persons voted for shall be printed on
one ticket or ballot of white paper,
of uniform size and quality, "fo be
Furnished By the Secretary Of Stat" "
While this is the letter of the law it
is SO palpably and grossly violative of
the plainest and dearest constitutional
rights of the citizens, that it is unwor-
thy of respect or attention, as no court
in the land will sustain it.
The right Of suffrage is the preroga-
tive of every American citizen, guaran-
teed to him by the Constitutions of
the United States and OF the State
No Legislature can deprive him of that
privilege except for the causes spe-
cially enumerated in the Constitution.
1t is true the Legislature can direct
the manner OF holding elections, but
it cannot by such regulations deprive
the voter of his right to express his
preference for the candidates in any
way he may please, by prescribing
conditions for voting which may at
times be impossible to be observed.
When a law, then, requires that
election tickets shall be printed, and
only certain size and quality of pa
per shall be used for printing them,
which can only be procured from but
one person in the State, it is quite
plain that this is a restriction, and a
very dangerous one, upon the right of
suffrage not countenanced by the Con
stitution and not to be tolerated by
the people.
At all elections scratched tickets "
arc voted, and the printed names are
frequently erased and others substi
tuted in writing. This is the right of
every eIector to vote for whomsoever
he pleases, whether the names be
printed on the ticket or not. 1t has
even been held that if a voter has
scrittem upon his ballot the name of
candidate for a particular office, and
fails TO strike out the printed name of
the candidate for that Office, tie tOrtt-
ten nURte must be counted. This is
upon the most reasonable and sensible
theory that the writing is the highest
and best evidence of the intention and
choice of the voter. Therefore
ticket fully gritten out instead Of
being printed should and must be re
ccivcd and counted as the unmistaka-
bic and undoubtcd choice of the voter.
The custom recently obtained here
Of printing election tickets with the
names SO closely together as to pre-
vent their crasure or the substitution
of other names either by writing or by
printed slips" pastors as they are
calIed-is great injustice to all voters
and reprehensible effort to compel
the voting of a certain ticket by
making its alteration difficult if not
impossible. The fullest freedom should
be given to the people to exercise their
right of suffrage. Every facility and
convenience should be provided in the
way of polling places and no attempts
by fraudulent or deceptive tickets
should be countenanced, by which
fair expression of the popular will may
be defeated. The whole purpose Of
the law should be to secure free, fair
and honest elections, without which
there can be no solid or good govern
ment; and when it fails in that object
there will be an end to the Republic.