The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-05-23
Tho Growth OF Popular Interest In
Elections.

A comparison OF the election returns at
the end Of the last century. about the time
of the adoption OF the Constitution Of the
United States. with the returns for the last
Presidential election. shows how widely the
suffrage has extended in the United States.
In Massachusetts,. between 177s and 1874.
the proportion Of votes cast to the popula-
ton varied from two to five per cent. In
several counties OF the State OF New York
there were .ast at tho election last fall al
most one-third as many votes as there were
Inhabitants.
1t Is the habit OF many people to take it
for granted that the earlier Institutions Of
the United States were more democratic
han the present ones. and that the ten
dency OF these times is to put the political
power In the hands Of a few men and to
take 1t away from the multitude. No such
theory is borne out by the election returns.
At one OF the most holly contested elections
In Virginia. when Chief Justice MARsHALL's
father was a candidate for membership In
the House of Burgesses, or what would cor
respond to Assemblyman hero. there was
only one vote cast to every ten inhabitants.
o ratio smaller than that cast in any county
In this State for a great many years. There
was n property qualification for electors In
this contest. and it was frequently the case
that the voting. instead of being by secret
ballot. was viva voce. There were 80 few
electors that they would all come together
on election day. and their names would be
called, every man naming his choice.
With all the talk about the large vote OF
the city Of New York and the power OF its
majorities to settle the result In the State,
1t Is somewhat contradictory that the cleo
ton figures should show that New York
has the smallest ratio OF voters to inhaD-
itants. less than half as large as the ratio
In many OF the rural counties. Brooklyn
comes next. and Buffalo third.
Throughout the State it is general that
the Democratic counties cast fewer votes
to the number OF their Inhabitants than the
Republican counties. In New York the
number OF inhabitants to each voter is 6.s9.
In Kings sos. and in Erie SOC. while In
Cortland and Otsego the ratio is 3.11 to /;
BIG in Yates, 3.35 in Genesee. 3.33 in
Delaware. 3.S5 in Allegany. 1926 in Madison.
8.37 In Ontario. 1922 in st. Lawrence. This
shows q ratio twice as large in New York.
and almost twice as large in Brooklyn and
Buffalo as In the rural counties.
There are two main reasons to account
for this. One is the difference In the cleo
lion law In the cities and in the counties,
and the other is the difference in tho charac-
tor OF the population. 1t cannot be a differ
ence In politics. for ~Schoharie, ono of the
few rural Democratic counties, shows a
ratio OF 3.13. and Greene. another Demo-
cratic county. has a ratio of 1886. The per-
centage OF voters Is lower in the cities than
In the rural districts. The two counties OF
Schenectady and Schoharie are Democratic
and contiguous. Schoharie is a purely agri-
cultural county. while a great part Of the
population OF Schenectady county Is In
Schenectady, which is a fiourishing little
city. Schenectady has 5000 more popula-
ton than Schoharie. but 1t casts several
hundred fewer votes. and there Is a differ
snoe OF a third in their ratios.
One reason for the high ratios In New
York. Brooklyn, and Buffalo Is the large
number OF aliens In those cities. The aliens
count In the population. but they do not
count In the number of voters. According
to the State census New York's population
Is one-fourth alien. and the ratio In Buffalo
Is almost as high.
Another thing Is the difference In election
laws. In the cities a man has to go to the
polling place twice to vote: once to register