Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1885-06-19
ELECTION LAWS.
.sADlNo FEATURES or THE STAT.
uTEs OF THE sTArEa
Viva voce Voting in Ksnsueky-CsrsiA-
Gates OF Reeistration-Poll Tar Re-
csipts-Form and Size Of Bal
IotS-"Saving'' the Ballots.

ing features Of those laws in form con-
ysnient for reference and comparison. In
the performance of this service it has had
| tho ASSISTANCE Of state officials and private
citizens in every state but three, and the
requisite data for those three have been OBJ
tained from their latest statutes The aim
has been 50 far as possible to give the pres
ant requirements Of the laws. and it Is BE-
| lie we'd that success has attended the effort
in this direction.
| Nine states have no registration laws
These are Arks nsas, Delaware, Georgia, In
LLAMA, Kentucky. Ohio. Oregon, Texas. and
West Virginia. In all the states except
Kentucky voting is by ballot There it is
viva voce. the voter appearing at the polling
place and announcing orally the persons or
propositions in favor of which he wishes to
express his preference. This was formerly
quite q common method Of voting; but,
though it still has many advocates through
out the country. Kentucky, it appears is the
snly one
The column giving the dates Of the regis
tration act shows that New Hampshire had
snch an act a, long ago as lS40. Nevada ap-
pears to come next, with law enacted in
1854. and Illinois next, with one en-
cted in 1865 Most Of these laws in
their present form have been enacted
since 1870 It does not follow, however,
that none IT the states had laws Of this kind
before the dates given in the table, since, as
above stated the aim has been to give, not
the origin, but the present state OF the regis
tration laws
In eighteen OF the states that have regis
tratiou laws, registration is required in all
voting precincts or towns. Those requiring
registration only in towns or cities having a
certain population or moro. with tho mum
Der cf inhabitants rendering registration
necessary are as follows: Iowa, 5000:
. Kansas, lj.000; Maine, 1000: Minnesota,
1900: Missouri 5000; Nebraska, . 900;
New Jersey, 10000; Tennessee, 1000; Wis
consin, 1900 All the others that have
registration laws require registration
throughout
In nineteen Of the states having laws Of
this kind registration is Indispensable. In
two others, Alabama AMI North Carolina 1t
is practically so, but in Alabama one may
register on election day, except in towns Of
over 5, 900 inhabitants and in North Caro-
lima il voter becomes Of age on election
day he may vote without being registered.
In Florida registration is practically indis-
pensnble, but there arc exceptional cases.
In Illinci', Iowa, Minnesota. Nebraska,
Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, votes may be
sworn in in cases where the voter Is not reg
istered.
Certificates Of registration arc Issued in
four statss-namely, Kansas, Rhode Islanl,
South Carolina. and Tennessee. In Ala
hanna certificates are issued only in cases
nf registration on election day. In Louisi-
ana certificate, are issued in the city OF New
Orleans, bat not elsewhere. 1t does not ap-
pear however, that voters arc called upon
70 exhibit certificates, except in doubtful
cases. The certificates are rather for the
benefit of the voters who are thereby pro-
tected against the fraudulent erasure OF their
names from the lists by the cleo
tion cheats and bulldozsrs. The col
umn showing what it costs voters
to obtain certificates of registration
10 very far from being satisfactory. II
shows nothing except that in Tennessee o
certificate costs the voter nothing, anu that
in Rhode Island q man must own property
assessed ut 1854 or more before he can OBJ
tain a certificate or cast q vote. In Della
ware, Massachusetts and Rhode Island q
man must be able TO exhibit q poll-tax re-
ceipt before he can claim the right to vote.
The annual tax of the first named of these
states is 81 to 81 50; in the seconl, 81, and
in the third, 81. 1t is something of a sur
prise to tni that from al the rest of the
states the report is that the pay ment of a poll
tax is not required Is prerequisite to vot-
ing.
in sixteen Of the statss there is no pro-
vision OF law prescribing the form and sizs
OF the ballots. The tabular exhibit shows
that there are sue provisions of law in Ala
bama, Colorado, California, Indiana, Mas
sachusetts, and Ohio, but does not show
what these provisions are. In Florida and
louisiana the only prescription seems to be
that the ballots must be printed on white
paper. In North Carolina and Oregon the
paper must be white AMI without device. In
Nevada nothing is said about the color Of
the paper, but the prescribed size IS by 10
inches. In Illinois II IS provided that
there shall be a blank space below
each name. This requirement seems to
be distasteful, as it is often observed
only i'm the mos. formal way In Minnesota
the ballots in cities must be on white paper,
and of equal siza In South Carolina the
tickets must he white and without device,
and 21S by inches in dimensions In Yer
mont the law prescribes only the form Of the
words in which the ballot shall lie printed.
In Rhode Island the ballot, are furnished by
the secretary Of state in self sealing en-
velopes of uniform size OF all the modes,
this is the best thus far described for the
prevention of ticket counterfeiting and such
frauds as were attempted in Chicago last
fall And yet 1T Is confined to this ono lit
tie state.
The tabular statement shows that in
eighteen states the ballots are saved" but
it does not show how long they are saved.
In California. Maryland, Missouri, Ne
braska Oregon. Texas. and West Virginia
the ballots are saved one year. In Connecti-
cut Nevada. and New Jersey they are
saved six months In Alabama they are
kept sixty days. In Michigan and Mime
sofa they are saved until the next election.
In Vermont they ara saved, the names are
cut apart and in this shape they are sent
sealed TO the canvassing board. In Maine,
New YORK. and Wisconsin they arc de-
stroyed: but in Wisconsin all ballots that
may be defective are kept rs evidence.
Officer, of election are chosen in all sorts
of ways perhaps the mot common being
by county boards of supervisors, or COM
missioner In this mode they arr ap-
pointed in California, Florida, Illinois,
indiana. Maryland, North Carolina. and
Wiscon-in But in some Of these states, a.
in Illinois, the election officers in cities are
appointed by the city councils. In Alabama
they are appointed by the probate judge,
sheriff, and clerk of the circuit court. In
Arkansas they are appointed by the county
Judges; in Colorado, by county committees;
in Connececut, by the registrars; in Della
ware, directly by the people; in Iowa. by
the township trustees; in Kansas, by county
officers; in Louisiana, by the supervisor q
the parish; in Nebraska they are elected en-
nuallv. And so on.