Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1892-09-08
uoW no porE.
Clear Directions to Voters From the State
Department of Elections for the City of
Wilmington.

department OF Elections Tor the City of
Wilmington.
The State Department of Elections
for the city of Wilmington, comprising
Messrs. James s. Dobb, Thomas g.
Doud and Charles F. Thomas, have just
issued manual Of practical directions
for the use of inspectors of elections,
poll clerks and other officers of election
in the registration, polling and can
yassing of votes.
brief but extremely valuable intro
| ductory chapter is on the subjects
'How to Vote.n It so directly apper-
tains to the individual voter and is Of
such timely interest that it is reproduced
in full.
HOW TO VOTE.
When an elector is ready to vote, he
should enter the passageway, announce
! his name to the election board, il chal-
| lenged establish his right TO vote, and
enter the door of the election room:
when admitted, procure from one of the
clerks ticket that has the initials of the
| clerks written on the left-hand corner
OF the back, and a stamp from the other
| clerk. He should then 20 alone into u
booth and mark his ballot with the
] stamp. If he wishes to vote straight
ticket he marks with the stamp in the
square opposite the title of thc party
with which he votes Ii he desires to
| vote mixed ticket, or TO omit entirely
one or more offices, he should stamp the
| square in front of the name of cach*
candidate for whom he desires to vote,
and should stamp but once ON any
| square. If he desires to vote for any per
son whose name does not appear on the
ticket, lie can substitute the name by
writing il tt iRb in the proper place on
the ticket. Ii he does not understand
how to mark his ballot, lie should ask
the voters assistants to instruct him.
If any eector declares that by reason
of physical disability or inability either
to read or write, or beth, he IS unable to
mark or alter his ballot, he may call to
his assistance the voters assistants, who,
in the presence ot the tlector, and in
the presence of each other, shall pre-
| pare the ballot for voting, and, on re-
quest, shall read over to such elector the
names Of the candidates as marked or
written.
If, by accident, an elector tears, mu-
tilates, defaces or spoils u ballot, he
should go at once to the clerk, return
the same, explain how the accident &C.
Cured and nsk for another ballot.
Before leaving the booth he eshould fold
his ballot so that the initials of the
clcrks, on the back, will show, but SO
that no part OF the face of the ballot can
be seen. When he has marked and
folded his ballot, he should leave the
booth, deliver the stamp to the clerk
from whom he received it, and hand
the folded ballot to the inspector, who
will put it in the ballot box in his
presence.
He should then leave the room and
remain 30 feet away from the polls.
The following foot-note is appended
to the chapter and refers to the line in
the first paragraph where an asterisk is
found:
*Wnere there are two or more candidates
for the same office OH the same ticket Us
in case OF candidates for State senators, on
mtmpets oi the House Of Representatives,
and Ihe title OF one ticket. and the names
| of one or more, but less than all, OF such
candidates ON another ticket are stamped,
the intention of the voter cannot be deter
mined and the part of the ballot affected
| thereby will not ue counted. To avoid
mistakes the voter, if he desires to vote q
mixed ticket, should stamp the square in
front of the name Of each candidate for
whom he desires to vote.
The commissioners add that the
manual is not intended to take the
place of the law--copics of which will
be furnished each election otficcr-but
for presenting in condensed form,
such points as should receive special
attention.