The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-05-06

80 tns oeSt altalnaole results out or the ma
terial In hand.
The lawmaker may safely assume that a
large portion Of the voters will continue TO be
ignorant, selfish and wicked. and that unscrura-
ious and corrupt place-seekers will continue to
exert their baleful influence The law should
trst reduce the temptations aud opportunities
for evil 10 the minimum aud then provide
adequate puDishment for transgressors- To
this end, the law should recognize and
regulate primary elections necessary part
OF the machinery Of government. In some
States, as in Ohio, this has already been done.
Primaries determine both candidates and
principles and are the very fountains of govern
nent and Law, but by singular omission. they
are for the most part wholly unknown 70 the law.
Laws regulating elections should be enacted
which have some relation TO the conditions that
actually exist and will continue. Legislatures
should know by this time that at most elections
party nominations will be made, printed tickets
used, and part.sans and bribers will be at the
polls. The existing situation should
De accepted the government should
furnish printed tickets bearing the
the names of all party nominees printed that
the voter may indicate with q pencil for whom
he desires 10 vote. No one should know how
any other person votes. The ballot-box should
be made In fact what IL 10 in theory-the free
and untrammsled register Of the popular will
In some States Of the Union steps have already
oeen taken looking 20 this end. In Wisconsin,
in cities OF $4,000. the State distributes the bal
lots, and they are arranged in . room near the
voting room. bat separated from It Each voter
enters the first room alone and there selects his
ballot and marks it az be sees ft, then passes
into the voting room and deposits it. State Of
ncers select challengers from each party, but
they are so placed that they cannot see what
the voter does while In the ticket room. This
law Is recent one but it is though. that il will
Danish ticket peddlers from the polls and with
them the whole army of intimidstors and brib-
ers. Ii Is hoped that 1t will diminish bribery by
rendering it uncertain and Improbable. IL the
or1oer cannot see the voter while in the ticket
room. and all tickets alike in appearance
he cannot tell whether his bride sccomplishes Its
purpose. and few voters who sell their votes can
be trusted TO deliver them.
A more compref snsive act containing some
OF the same features passed one branch or the
Michigan Legislature last year. It's provisions
were intended TO secure purity and secrecy OF
the ballot. and its principles were drawn from
very successful English ballot act Somewhat
similar laws looking to electoral reform have
been proposed in New York and Connecticut
ORGANIZATIONS a large part Of the work that, un-
Ger the present system, must necessarily be
done by them. and to removs temptations
to and opportunities for corrupt practices.
There 10 little doubt that some Of the most glar-
ing defects in our election laws viii soon be re-
moved by laws recognizing aud regulating party
action. Such laws. If wisely framed. will
duce the authority and work or the party
machine within narrower limits and will furnish
y partial remedy Tor some existing evils. Inero
must. however, always remain a large field that
must be left to the voluntary action of the voters
regulated by 50 ch rules as they adopt for them
selves The machine will continue to do most
important work. and II it 10 to be well dono il
must have the steady support and assistance Of
the most intelligent and public-spiritsd eitlzena
The highest officers are often chosen by bare
majority. and sometimes by mere plurality.
Nominations and platforms are determined by
the majority Of the dominant party, being In
al al h.
people. In some sense, this one-fourth governs
the country. This situation renders it all-im-
portant that In this one-fourth should be in
cluded q sufficient number Of the best citizens
TO fairly represent the wishes Of the most intell
gent and patriotic classes.
All this means, of course that good citizens
must obey the hackneyed call TO turn out to the
primaries, but il means moro than that. 1t
means that they must have such knowledge of
the work in hand, such conceptions Of political
organizations aud their relations to them as
will enable them to be Of some when they
get there. Statutes to secure honest elections
are well, and so are political organizations pro-
Tossing 10 promote the same purpose, but moth
ing Of this kind works automatically. All must
have constant attention. 1t is the absolute duty
of the so called good citizen to know the bound
aries Of his precinct and to make the acquains-
ance OF those living in it most likely to act with
him In securing wise and effective party action.
Having done 50. the next thing often Is Q
lesson In humility. He must appreciate, If be
can, Just how small factor be, as an individual,
ia in voting population Of ten millions. Hav-
ing done this. he will discover that be will be
far more likely to accomplish good results by
spending bur little time in denouncipg rings and
party managers and writing cards for the news
papers bewailing the evil of the timea He viii
rather find IL profitable 10 spend little time IN
finding few honorable men among his neigh
bors who will for the time being dsmount their
hobbies, lay aside their whims unite upon the
best thing thai all will agree upon and be pres
emit at the proper time aud be counted Some
one scared by the sound Of words will exclaim
with bated breath this would be ring, caucus.
Be it 30. 1t is democratic government. pure and
simple If it cannot be done safely and with
propriety then government by the majority 10
unsafe and improper. We have all seen a num-
Der OF citizens at primary who thought they
were doing their duty, who believed themselves
to be influential and had an air about them
which seemed to say that they we're sacrificing
themselves for their country and would like to
be informed as TO the most dignifed way of do
ing il. Having given the matter no thought
until after supper and each being possessed of o
theory and proud Of his independence Of rings
they unable to unite and are utterly power
less in the presence of dozen youths who have
agreed and are ready to Be- counted with such
recruits a. each can bring to the column. The
so-called good citizen gets out OF humor because
men more interested in government than him
self, and more Intelligent as to the means Of
effecting their purpose. have taken the pains
necessary to do so. The good citizen denounces
the ward politician and the machine, and vows
he will never attend again. Yet excluding cases
of fraud, what have the politicians done
more than they had right to do where the
principle Of majority rule obtainsl If he stays
away, the selfish politicians want nothing bet
ter. He was but little in the way while on the
field of action, because he was part Of mob
opposing men in ranks when he quits it alto
eether, his interests simply committed to
the justice and forbearenes Of those who re-
main
Nor is there any remedy at tho polls. The
men who give attention to the business control
all parties. Many, whose votes and influence
would naturally tend to good government ex-
cuse themselves from any effective efforts by
appealing to what they term their conscientious
scruples. They will vote for no man and act
with no party unless representing their indi-
vidual views what they deem important
questions Such persons forget that only few
important questions settled at once, and il
their action Is 10 DO effective it must relate to
such as, By the action Of tho majority, are pre-
scented for discrimination. It is not a question
of what the voter thinks absolutely right, bat
what is the best result attainable 10 q given
situation. Nor is that reformsr wise who is
ahead of his time IN casting his ballot. The
ballot is for the present and cannot wisely be
made TO represent the voters views Of what the
future should be. There IL field for the re-
former and the prophet who march in advance
Of the multitude Wendell Phillips was wise
and influential when he denounced slavery from
a thousand platforma He was making public