Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1890-09-10
SECRET BALL0TS TRIED.
New York's New Law Given
an Initial Trial.
LITTLE CHANCE ron CORRUPTION.

1 F N""0 1hueH hhe new hegtsnes
The Voting Was Not Absolutely Secret.
Three Men We're DIsfranehised.
New YORK, Sept. 10-The Herald has
the following:
The first election under the new ballot
reform law was held yesterday In the in-
corporated village Of Far Rockaway. in
the town Of Hampstead, Queens connty.
The tEst question to ask about this tno.is
of eleeting Of officials is, WAS absolute. Sc
crecy maintainedY' The answer is 60 .
There was not absolute secrecy, and ild..-
ing from what took place at Far Rock
away yesterday there never can be absolute
secrecy.
In the next place. did this mode OF cleo
ton work TO reduce or abolish the corrup
tion OF votersf Emphatically Eyes. TIE
chances Of reducing corruption are very
great.
IN the third, is il a more expeditions way
Of polling the votesp BY no means. 10
go back to the first question on secrecy,
voter after voter exposed his ballot to one or
more OF the six men in the enclosure win
hln and to the inspectors But it may be
said It was done through Ignorance.
The Polling Place Described.
The polling place was In the village
court house, three story frame structure
On entering the ground floor from the
street the writer found wooden bar ar
resting his further progress 10 tho RIGHT
were six wooden boxes. one for every ,tftv
voters, and there were 800 voters in the last
election.
With the door having a spiral sprinr at
tachment and the bottom OF it two fees
from the floor, these boxes looked sng-
gestive and peculiar On the opposite sido
OF the room there was first, on a table. the
onlclal ballots, numbered. Beside thom
were five ballot boxes.
How II Was Done.
The voter approached the ballot clerk.
who stood behind the desk, and gave ma
name. AT the other end OF the table sat
the poll clerk. The ballot clerk called ont
.he voters name, and the poll clerk regis
tered 1t, together with the humber Of fhe
ballot which the ballot clerk called. Then
the voter went into the box with his t,vo
tickets.
Now, It happened In innumernble cases
That when voter came out he had for
gotten all about folding his ballot. The
constable, the inspector or the two cor
Stables present TO keep order all had an
opportunity Of seeing which ticket the man
was voting, OF 1t happened when the man
had folded his two ballots he forgot whicr
one he had intended TO vote, and he wouli
open ono TO make sure. for the person.
named 70 see. / saw many a man ask th.
inspector to fold the ticket for him.
IA these different ways it will be seen
that the law Of secrecy was violated. But
y may be assumed that practice viii make
perfect, for the voting occurs twice year.
Stili, certain class of men will never
learn.
Trouble with Folding.
The trouble is with the folding. Even
when they made the longitudinal fold,
Whlch was the first one, they didn't know
whether TO make the second fold TO cover
the description of the ballot or not This
last fold had 70 be made below the stub
and the stub contained the voters number
1 coursed within two hours four men ,abo
came cut and threw their ballots down II
was SAID they were disguised with the fold
ing business.
A Black Eye for Corruption.
AS TO the reduction or abolition Of cor.
ruption, it is certainly utterly impossibls
for candidate or a "captainn Of a district
TO rely upon any man to whom IA has
given money If the votes Knows how To
lold ms ticket aud lands IL TINS ~ tbe
chairman or poyson whose duty it is to re-
ceiye ~, y : an absolute secret. Look AT
Y ~ sVery possible way, the purchaser OF
yoses mas now no certainty of getting the
worth OF his money. The law SAYS the
feler may bring paster with him even for
the whole ticket. But that is no help or
guide 10 the purchaser for the voter mnv
bring II out with him again and the other
party OF the contract be none the wiser.
slow Way Of Voting.
40 answer in detail the third question.
3 It more expeditions way of votineg
NO. Tor here the law allows a man to re-
nam ten minutes in the booth preparing
his ballot and compels him to remain at
east three At Far Rockaway tLe ,ersI
lime Tor voting was 8l9 n..snutes. There
we're ooo VOTES cast, or hearty one per min
lee. Hix men at time were allowed IN
" one for each booth. If each man took
the full limit only thirty-six could ia
voted in an boWi without deducting haIt
minute for depositing the ballot Und.r
ne new law voter can spoil three tickets.
There afe four tickets of each kind allowed
voter Very few came back for the fourqh
et OF tickets, but there were frequent calls
or q second set
The Law Not Strictly Observed.
Yesterdays election may be called an
Experimental election in this state. The
rovislons Of the law were not strictly os,-
rived. The public was allowed to oceonv
ie space in front Of the bar. Moreo..1
e act says that no electioneering shall 70
Wlthln 100 feet of the polling place. and
at was utterly disregarded. 1t must be
N every locality where there are no po-
e TO see that the law is carried out.
occasionally three or four men would
me out OF their boxes and hold con
ltation-an against the law. There was
great outcry when those who had voted
lgered in the inclosure
Come out of thati Put him outri was
outed by the watchers
The counting began al twenty-five min
es past o'clock and lasted up Ia t.n
inutes to 3 IL therefore took two bnars
d twenty-five minutes to canvass :as
tes There were five ballot boxes-one
the reception Of the ticket voted the
'ond for the stub of the ticket, the third
the unused ballot, the fourth for the
10 OF the unused ballot and the fifth ior
resolutions.
Three Men Disfranchfsed.
'hree men, unable to read or write, eoald
tell one ticket from another, and were
refore unable to vote, as the new law
IS not provide that assistance within The
ling place may be given. James Finley.
ID 81, who has lived in the place all bis
; was disfranchised practically HIS
nds and many present at the time
i'm that he spoiled two sets Of tickets