Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1896-07-02
Uncle Sam Leads.

Twelve million voters:.participated in the
presidential election in ls92, and 12.b00.-
900 voters, it is computed, will take part in
the presidential election OF 1896. There
will be one more state voting this year than
four yeals ago, but during the intervening
time restrictions upon the suffrage, great
| y demininishlng the electorate, have been
established IN various southetn states, par
ticularly South Carolina and Florida. The
total number of male inhabitants OF the
United States OF voting aye, as returned by
the federal census of 1860, was ID, $40, 900
but this total Is subject to a reduction OF
1850, 600 aliens, and about as many more
persons are deprived of suffrage bv legal
causes III various states, and particularly
by constitutional restrictions established by
the voters.
A recent computation made officially of
the electors OF the united kingdom gives as
the total 6,416, QUO out OF q total population
OF So, 600, GOO. OF these voters $780, 900 are
in Scotland and $4,000 In lerland. The
United States stands at the head OF all ma
tons In respect to the mere number Ut cleo
tors, though the changes OF residents,
which are frequent here, but comparatively
rare in Europe, keep the auctual number
number of voters far below those who arc
eligible. France, with q total population
much below. that of the United States
about One-half the population OF this
cOantSy-has 10. OO0, 600 electors. Germany
has 10, 600, 900 electors, and the number is
increasing steadily as the restrictions upon
voting are decreased. In Austria there
has been a radical reform in the electorate
by its wholesale extention. Up to a dozen
years ago the total number OF votes in Aus
trla was /, 200, 600, or less than the voting
population of the state Of New York,
though the total population on the Aus
trian empire Is 81, O0O, OO0. There is now
pending in the reichsrath at Vienna a bill
president OF the council OF ministers,
Count Bedendi. which adds two members
to the existing 1853 duputies in the reichs-
rath. The present number Ut electors in
Austria-H hungary is $500, O00. Or the
the members OF the raichsrath the great
landowners elect Sd, the chamber of COM
merce 20, the towns 116, the counties 1879.
The total number Ut possiable electors who,
under the present system, are excluded
from the franchise in Austria is 2l0, 600.
1t ally is peculiar among European gov
ernments having r~epresentive institutions,
III that, while the actual number of qualiti-
ed voters Is large, the number participant
is very small. In other words. a very large
number of Italian citizens qualified BY law
to vOte abstain from doing SO. desiring by
this method to record their opposition to
the course of the Italian government in re-
lation to the papacy. In 1892 5000, 600
/ Italians were on the register roll,of whom
1000, 900 voted. about S per cent of the
total population at Italy. Belgium is a
country which, up to ten years ago, had
less than 100, 900 voters, but this number
has been vastly increasedfby the introduce
ton of universal suffrage, which besides q
provision of cumulative, voting. whereby
some citizens are enabled to cast two bal
lots. In the confusion which has resulted
the advocates for universal suffrage have
been OutvOted.
In the United States there is one voter
to every four and One-half persons; in
Great Britain. u to every six persons; in
France, one to every three and ene-half,
and in Italy n to every ten persons.