Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1892-11-09

BOOTHS AT VOTING PRECINCT.
both sides. There were individual mis-
understandings, of course, and several
fights went on record, but IL was moth
ing as compared with the sort OF thing
usual In Presidential elections In Wheel
ing, and much satisfaction was ex-
pressed by citizens generally at the
change in this regard. Probably the
largest crowd assembled 1t the Hope
hose house, whore probably half hun
dred negroes gathered in the afternoon.
A LATE START.
As rule the polls were OF med
promptly at the designated time-6:S9
q. M, but In several Instances there
was a slight delay, The most serious,
however, was st precinct No. 1, Of Clay
district, where the polls were not la
order until eight O'Clock, nearly IN
hour and half OF precious time having
been lost. 1t was stated later In the
day that the difficulty was In securing
the services OF clerks, but whatever the
cause, several Democratic votes were
lost, the men having TO go out with
their trains on the Ohio river road. The
matter created q good deal Of kicking
for q time. The vote was gotten into
the boxes, as rule, very promptly. In
most OF the precincts fifty per cent
OF the votes had been polled ct
noon, and by two o'clock seventy per
cent. of ii had been cast generally. By
three it was nearly sill in, aud at four
only few scattered citizens had ne
elected to register their opinion OF
things political. At ten minutes Of
i've, the hour agreed upon for the clos
ing, 1t was the general opinion OF cleo
tion officials that they had gathered a
full crop of ballots, and that very few
people had been missed. OF course
there were some lste-comers-there al
ways are such, and would be II the polls
kept open until ten o'clock at night,
but it is pretty nearly useless to at
tempt to make provision for such peo-
pie.
The law was carried out by the Com
missloners Of election and their clerks,
almost without exception, in a manner
which reflected great credit upon them.
Every little detail was closely watched,
and voters were we'll taken care Of
Even in the little particular of folding
ballots properly, the Commissioners
would often call the attention Of q citi-
zen to the fact that no didn't have it
quite right, and he would be shown
lust how it ought to be. There was
generally time at all the precincts for
the proper observance of these details,
and it created favorable impression
among citizens.
KICKING ON THE BOOTHS.
There was great deal of criticism
and complaint by voters OF all parties
regarding the booths. They were too
small, they lacked the element OF being
substantial, the curtains were too mar
row and too short to secure the privacy
which many voters demanded, and the
blotters were often missing, the pens
bent or broken, the candle in the way,
etc. In several instances voters set
their ballots on fire while endeavoring
to get them turned around In the booths,
and second ballots had to be asked for.
People who only handle pen once a
year, would grab the quill, and wreck it
at the first move, aDd there was FREE
Quently delay while additional writing
materials were secured. The location
of the booths in the voting rooms was
very frequently bad, and IL was an easy
matter for any one in the room, TO tell
how voter scratched his ballot. 1t
was the opinion Of a great many people
that In actual practice the accommoda-
tions were insufficient, and that the
booths should have been larger, more
substantial, and furnished with better
curtains.
HOW QUIET 1T WAS.
One Of the features of the day notice
able to politicians Of experience was
the great dearth of street rumors.
Those who started out early to find out
what was going on, ran against obstruc-
tions very promptly, and in some OF the
precincts 1t was even difficult thing
TO get the number OF votes polled at
any given time. The election officers
sawed wood and said nothing, and in
many cases people were hustled out Of
the voting rooms rather uncermonious-
IL. Reports OF scratching and OF cut
ting certain candidates were put into
circulation, Of course, but when traced
down il was almost invariably ascer-
tanned that there was no substantial
foundation behind them. 1t was a poser
in this regard, and when the polls clos
81 ->2 ~ho ordinarially know some
thing about how certain district had
voted confessed that they couldn't
grasp the situation, and would have to
await the returns like ordinary NOR
tails.
The percentage Of votes cast Ia pre-
cincts In the same nsaglsteriah district
othfr than those to which the voter
wee properly assigned. was quite small.
there were &tewau ia sverY