The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-11-26
THIS paper is Democratic IN principles
and Is Independent IN its Uieaos on au
local questions.
Ballot Reform-Real and sham.

buiiOC FOeIOfIl-IhedI anu Suhuus
Mayor Cleveland's views we are
told, are not pleasing to ballot re-
formers" This is one of those vague
generalities which may mea some
thing or nothing. Uttered as it is by
a virulent Republican organ, N only
competitor, it means very little until
we are told who the ballot reformers
are. Down to date, only two are on
record, and these two, at last advices,
were by no means on terms of cor
diality with the general body of re-
formers in this city.
Be that as it may, the two gentle
men named have always belonged in
a special way to the class who seem
ingly care little for the underlying
principle in this matter, but are
tickled to death with the complex
machinery, like a child with a new
mechanical toy.
We have read these interviews with
great attention. We sought for argu-
ments combating those of the Mayor.
We found quite some rhetoric (lnuch
of it of the ready-made ~reportorial
kind, but arguments-no, there were
no arguments.
Mayor Cleveland's main objection
to the long State ballot he expresses
thus
nh nj olaa+iono non he aoola On far .Aw r,,rn~ 80
better in any sense by having the State print
and furnish the ballots l do not believe. On the
contrary, fear that a vast power will be welded
by the State against the freedom of the voter.
AS a matter of fact. freed from all nonsense
and political ~claptrap, the voter should be al
lowed to write out his own ballot if he so desires,
or any candidate should be allowed to print bal
lots with his name on them and distribute them
amongst his friends and the people in general
for their use in voting. Any abridgement of this
natural and common sense method is an en-
croachment upon the rights of the common peo-
pie and an effort at monopoly.
1t is an imperial method not suited to the free
expression of the desire of a voter in this free
country. It was a taking idea to put before a
labor association to tell them that the poor man
should be allowed to run for office and the State
should print his ballot for him. But the voice
that sings that song is the voice of the spider to
the fly. 1t is an effort to prevent the working
men from distributing his own ballots. If the
only object was to furnish ballots free of cost it
would be an absurd pretence of aid, because the
actual cost of the ballots is so small that a poor
mans friends could aid him to print them easily.
and if they cared for him they would gladly
do SO.
We do not think that this opinion
can be successfully combatted. The
danger, the injustice, the awkward
ness, the impossibility of the proposed
system grow to huger and huger pro-
portions the more it is viewed. But
even admitting for arguments sake
there was some slight virtue in it, how
can it be regarded as important in
comparison with the cardinal prin-
ciple of secresy, insuring freedom from
coercion and publication from brib-
cry. is it not straining after a shadow
and passing by the substance to dwell
on this phase of the question
The fact appears to be that the Re-
publican plot to defeat the whole
reform will take up some such pre-
tence as this. Some accidental unes-
sential point will be seized upon, mon
strous impossible proposition will be
made regarding it, and from these the
Republicans in the Senate will refuse
to recede. Thus the designs of that
party will prevail. Those who are
setting up crotchety ideas in OPP
position to fundamental truths are
simply aiding and abetting this evil
design.
THE new Free Public Library in
Newark is working wonders. Over a
thousand books are drawn from it
daily on an average, and the demand
seems rather to grow than diminish.
Fiction, of course, leads by a large
maioritv bnf works on lifnratrra