The record-union., 1892-12-03
vAGARIEs OF VOTERS.

The San Francisco Chronicle finds by
comparing figures of returns of the cleo
ton with the total vote cast that in San
Francisco 1000 voters did not vote for
Presidential Electors; that outside of San
Francisco, as well as in it, many did not
cast Presidential votes; still greater
number, some $500, did not vote for
Congressman, and a goodly number did
not vote on all the propositions and
amendments submitted.
So far as the falling off on the Presiden-
tial vote is concerned, that is not novel.
In every Presidential election held the
Chronicle will find that the Electoral vote
was always smaller than the total
vote, and that not all the Electors on one
ticket received the same number of votes.
This we say has been characteristic of all
our elections. The reasons we find with
out going far-irst, personal dislike of
some of the nominees serves to incite
scratching; second, there is a far larger
body of people than the Chronicle takes
account of who conscientiously refuse to
vote for candidates whom they know little
about. That is to say, they claim that
Notwithstanding all that is said and writ
ten about Presidential nominees, they do
not know which should command their
vote, that having no opinion in the mat
ter they offend themselves by voting for
any of the nominees for President.
We know some of these people and
they are so far from being ignorant men
that they are recognized as peculiarly in
telligent and some of them are sociolo-
gists of distinction. That there should be
thousand or more of these people in
San Francisco is not at all surprising.
We have an idea that we could name
single organized body in the metropolis
in which more than thousand votes of
this class can be found. To these pecul-
iarly conscientious, if not cranky, voters
are to be added a considerable number
who come into the polling-place so un-
decided, so knocked about by the con-
tentions of the campaign that they can
not come to a conclusion and get rid of
the whole business by skipping the
Electoral ticket. With these people the
motive is not the same as with the second
class. On the contrary, they represented
q rather a weak-minded, nerveless class
notable for its want of decision and firm
ness.
As to the failure of so many to vote for
Congressman religious preiudices, local
issues, personal disikes and indifference
sufficiently account. 1t has always been
noted that like the Presidential vote.
the Congressional vote falls below
the total vote. In this city it
has been repeatedly noticed that
whatever the total vote the votes of
the candidates for Mayor aggregated
never equals it, but always falls consider
ably below the total. Personal feeling.
disgust with the methods by which all
the candidates for the place received their
nominations, non-acquaintance with the
men and indifference account for the dis
crepancies.
So there is nothing in these failures of
total votes cast for a particular office 40
equal the total votes cast at the election to
indicate that because of any particular
system of voting some men could not un-
derstand it and vote under it, because the
''vagaries" noted have always been man
ifest.
That not all the propositions submitted
were voted upon by all the voters is ex-
plainable upon other grounds and per-
fectly satisfactory ones. Not all the vot-
ers understood the propositions. For
though much had been printed in the
newspapers about them, not all the papers
elucidated them; the press did not agree
concerning them all, and very large
body of voters do not read editorials or
heavy articles expository of laws and
constitutional groundwork.
FOR QUARANTINE.