The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-09-27
THE PATENT REFORM.
Foster NJ. Voorhees, discourses on
the New Election System.

Foster M. Voorhees,, of Elizabeth, 8
Member OF Assembly and one of the joint
Legislative Committee which formulated
the present Ballot Reform law, explained
the workings of that law last evening be-
fore the Federal Club. Mr.. Voorhees,
was late in reaching the club house, but
when he arrived there, escorted by AS
semblyman J. Herbert Potts and Richard
Brown, he was received with cheers. At
the time the meeting room of the club
contained a representative Republican
audience. Among them were State Treas.
urer Toffey, Freeholder Nelson, A. E.
Shippen. Captain John Graham, Colonel
W. A, Rogers, of Washington; Superin-
tendent. of Census John Bumstad, E. w.
Woolley, of the County Board of Regis
try; John Reid, of the Hoboken Board of
Education; Alderman Salinger and Con-
stable Joe Locke.
In introducing the speaker of the even
ing, Mr.. Charlie; w. Laws, said that tn g
meeting was the first of u number which
the club proposed to hold before election
for the purpose of having the questions
of the day explained by competent
speakers.
THE PROVISIONS OF THE LAW,
Mr.. Voorhees, said in part that he was
somewhat SURPRISED at receiving an invi-
tation to educate Jersey City in matters
pertaining to elections, as he had always
thought that the people of Jersey City
knew more about manipulating an cleo
tion than they of the rival districts.
Ballot reform came late in New Jersey,
because of tine Ssate's conservatism. MI.
Voorhees, did not favor personal regis
tration, but the committee Thought that
in the light of the developments in Hud-
son county, some means should be taken
to prevent manipulation of the ballots
and that the tickets should come out as
they went in. The, official ballot unde r
the New Jersey system will compare
favorably with that under the Aust ralian
system. Voorhees, then told how, when
the committee was discussing the bill.
many were in favor of the various forms
of blanket ballot until it was shown that
bribery and intimidation could flourish
under any system which provided for the
punching or making of a ballot.
When the committee was consider
ing the punching of the ballots
with an official punch it was
argued that they might get up corner
in punches as they did in stamps and dies
in this county some time ago. The great
safegu I'd which Nhe New Jersey law
threw about the ballot, Mr.. Voorhees, de-
clared was that it was as Tree as air. and
that it was free from any punch or mark
by which it could be identified.
THE BEST SYSTEM YET.
In speaking OF the manner in which the
law provided for an honest count Mr..
Voorhees, said that you could not make
800 votes come out of the box 600, unless
you did it in the Hudson county way, and
that was impossible under the new law.
The speaker did not think that under the
new system of registration it was posi-
BILE to work the grave yard and tug boat
scheme. No man will be left off the list
if he is entitled to be there. If the local
or county boards refuse to register him
he can apply to the courts The friends
of the Australian system admit that that
system does not prevent bribery, while
the New Jersey system, Mr.. Voorhees,
said, made bribery an exceedingly diff
cult affair.
He met an Australian last winter who
told him that the Australian system had
come to the pass that the party which
paid the highest for official bribery won.
Mr.. Voorhees, again and again declared
that the New Jersey system was superior
to any system of ballot reform yet de-
vised and he predicted that it would wipe
out the stigma now upon the fair name of
the State and rebound to her everlasting
renoWn.