The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-11-01
PRESIDENTIAL MACHINERY.
If a Bale of Ballots lie Lost There
Can BE No Election Next Tuesday.

III a Bale of Ballots lie Lost There
Can he No Election Next Tuesday.
New York. Oct 9O-Clacketty- cIack-
clackl The printing press, as 1t turns
off large sheets with peculiar looking
squares upon them. snippety-snip-snip
The click of the scissors as the ballots
are cut apart. Burr-r-r! Whackety-
whsck-whack! The saving of boards and
the making Of boxes for transporting
the ballots to the election polls.
The machinery that makes a President
has been set in motion. On Tuesday the
people will do the rest.
Without the ballots a President could
not be elected. True, there is a fable
that a President could be elected by ac-
clamation. But the attendant difficulties
are too great. a written out ballot would
elect a candidate as truly as a printed one.
But the work of preparing the ballot is
200 great. The most intelligent man
could not write out his election ballot
accurately in less than two hours A
slow writer would take twice as long.
The unintelligent man could not do it at
all.
Certain words must be written upon an
election ballot and in a certain way, ac-
cording to the laws of the state. The
ballots must be numbered consecutively.
Certain heads of police officials must
certain emblems and markings. All of
which goes to show that the printing of
the election ballots is the most important
part of the canvass, for without the bal
.ots there could be no New President.
The presidential ballot is the work of
the state printer. Every state gets out
its own ballots in it's own way. In some
states there is a law that the candidate
must provide his ballots. In, other states
the cities and the counties do 1t, each be-
ing responsible for part.
All over the United States allowances
are made for ballots that are spoiled in
the using. man takes a ballot and
marks upon it wrong. He shows it to
some one who points out the error. The
man in error destroys his ballot and the
state allows him to take another one.
There are generous states and sttngy
states in the matter of ballots. New
York allows each man four ballots. He
can thus spoil three and still have the
privilege of voting. Other states give
him but two. One state generously al
lows him six. Anything to secure his vote.
The getting out of the ballots is a job
eagerly sought by printers, not because
there is such fortune in It, but from the
attendant honors. One printer who has
managed the presidential ballots for his
state for twenty years says the work
has turned him gray. 1t may have in,
creased him financially and ii has surely
made him famous. But 1t has given him
gray side locks, when none of his family
for three generations has had gray hair
under sixty. He is but fifty.
The thing that keeps the ballot printer
awake nights is to obtain copy" 1t is
very late before he knows what is to be
in the ballot Last presidential election
a printer got anxious week before cleo
ton, and over one of the disputed bal
lots ventured to print an eagle. The law
hnt % liz
vidual emblem of that party and forbade
IL to be used as a distinctive emblem.
All the ballots had to be thrown away.
over one of the ballots this year there
is a ship. over another a large star.
over another an arm welding a hammer,
and another has the clover leaf. Each
party has its own picture or emblem above
it's candidate upon the little slip given
you for voting purposes.
1t Is impossible to name one general
ballot law for all states, because each
Is a law unto itself But in nearly all
a ballot is a broad piece of paper with
ten panels upon It, Each panel has a
separate candidate and party printed. AT
the top is the party emblem, and in the
middle a place TO vote. A circle, in most
ballots, is left blank, and In this circle you
make a cross. This means that you
choose the name below the circle for
your presidential elector representing the
party there named. 1t is not complicated.
On the contrary. the system is very
plain one considering the great amount
Of red tape and the Importance behind
the little piece Of paper.
The ballot printer gets word what to
put upon his ballots about a week be-
fore election. The law requires him to de.
liver the ballots at least two days before
election. This gives him hve lays
in which to get his ballots printed. In
one city he must furnish three million
ballots. In another city two million. In
another a million and half; and there
are numerous cities and counties thas
need a million.
These ballots are 80 big and so numer-
Gus that placed end to end they would
form a bridge from New York to San