The record-union., 1893-01-23
LAUNDERING UNpARDoNABLE.

LAUNDERING UNPARDONABLE.
The people have the weightiest of rea-
sons for complaining bitterly of the stu
pidity of election board officials. These
boards in every election develop some
new blundering capacity. Returns are
sent in bunglingly; certificates are not
properly filed out; the tally-sheets do
not agree; the poll-lists are not dupli-
Gates; duplicate returns required to be
kept out are sealed up with the originals;
blanks in returns essential to be filed
are not touched; counts of tally markings
are not properly made or aggregated, and
so on.
But that there should be blundering
by Electoral College officials that would
shame a crossroads store clerk is amaz-
ing. The work of the Electoral College
does not take an hour; it is done in the
Office of a Secretary of State who sup
plies all the assistance needed. The law
defining the work is short, simple and
within the comprehension of a child. 1t
tells the college just how to cast and
record its vote, how to certify, seal up its
original and duplicate returns, how to in
dorse and mail one package and indorse
and send by messenger the other pack
age. Indeed, to the plain business man
it would seem impossible for citizens
who are of sufficient importance to be
nominated to the Presidential Electorate,
to make any mistake in following the
plain directions of the law.
Yet we have the statement of the Presi-
dent of the United States Senate that a
great number of the returns delivered to
him by the collegiate messengers re-
Gently are lacking in essential details to
be shown upon the exterior of the pack
ages. What the blunders Oh the interior
may be no one can now tell. Al the
Vice-President has to depend upon in
number OF cases, he declares, is the word
of the messengers that the packages do
contain the returns Of the collegiate bal
loting for President and Vice-President
of the United States. If the election was
a closely contested one this might involve
most serious difficulties and give rise to
dangerous complications.
We have seen SO much of election re-
turn bungling in State, county and city
elections that we have well-nigh settled
upon the judgment that a sure method
for converting bright man temporarily
into an ignoramus is to place him upon
an Election Board. In San Francisco st
the recent election, out of over 225 Elec-
ton Boards not twenty sent up their re-
turns absolutely correct; that is, over 200
of them failed in some respect TO follow
the very plainly printed directions placed
before them and that a child of average
capacity ought TO be able to comprehend.
In Sacramento there was much less blum
dering, nevertheless some of our boards
committed errors that would not be for
given in the economy of a corner grocery
business management.
In view of these facts, and as Congress-
proposes to stop laundering by electoral
colleges, it would seem TO be the part of
wisdom to take the matter of making re-
turns for State and city elections out of
the hands of election boards and COM
NIT it to boards that have nothing else
to do, and that have not had any relation
to the holding of the election. In cities
and large towns perhaps the ballot boxes
could be taken to a central place and the
count be had and the returns made up in
the presence of the public by an official
corps of clerical experts, under the direc-
ton of officials of the county who have
more at stake than one day in authority.
Certainly blundering, miscounting and
slipshod work as of the past cannot be
tolerated in the future. five are capable
of self-government we must demonstrate
our capacity to ascertain in prompt and
business-like manner the exact result of
balloting by the electors, when they are
called upon to manifest their will at the
polls. Under our present system this is
not now done with reasonable speed, ac-
curacy or business neatness.
When it is possible for an election board
count of the ballots in precinct of 200
votes to vary thirty-five from the truth,
as was developed in San Francisco court
last week, there is need for such a change
in the counting and returning system as