Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-10-23

named, The registry agent is not al
lowed to call on the voter.
This municipal election is one in
which every person qualified to vote
should take special care 20 exercise
that privilege, and In attending to the
preliminary step necessary TO doing 80
registration. No citizen, muic or fe-
male. who has q reasonable comprc-
hensIon OF the duty and responsibility
of citizenship will fail to secure n place
ON the registration list The obllga-
ton upon this point is so clear and
pressing. that It is surprising that so
many presumably intelligent people. as
reports assert, are not registered. Ger
tainly their derelictlun Of duty should
be put an end to by next Tuesday,
through their going before the registry
agent and subscribing to the affidavit
required.
In connection with the subject there
are complaints that certain registry
agents in this city are obstructins
registration. If the charge be true,
each registry agent who does so ought
to be not only held up to public exc
Grafton by exposure of his nets, but
should be prosecuted under the crlm-
inal law. The duty OF the registry
agent is to facilitate the registration
of qualified voters, not TO obstruct IT.
The law leaves the registry
agent no option upon this point. 1t is
his duty, when called upon, ito receive
and register the names OF all persons
applying for registration who, on cleo
ton day, win be legally qualified and
entitled to vote in that election dis
trlct." He may ask certain ques-
tons which the law indicates, and II
answered as the law prescribes
to be satisfactory, the applicant must
be registered" NO person Is required
TO make affidavit twice before the same
agent, or the successor Of such agent,
having in his possession the former
affidavit" says the law; hence names
cannot be stricken off in this regis
tration merely to require the voter to
re-regIster. Further, this is n muni~
cipal registration, In which the registry
list Of 1896 Is taken as a basis, and the
names of qualified voters not already
there are TO be added, the names Of
qualified voters there not to be dis
| turbed.
Some registry agents have required
voters in one precinct to bring trans
| fers from the precinct where they
formerly resided, before registering the
applicant. Such a requirement is Who'll
ly unauthorized by law. a person who
has registered already in an election
distrlct-whlch in this city is not q
| probationary receive transfer to
another election district in the same
precinct, If circumstances Justify it.
But in no case IL transfer required
or allowed from one precinct to
another, or from one municipal ward
to another. If n person is a qualified
voter under the law in any precinct
where he resides, and not being regis
tered in the particular election district
where his home is he makes applica-
ton for registration. the registry agent
has no right to say nay. Hence what
ever cause of complaint there may
have been against registry agents foi
their action on the 18th instant-tht
first day of registration this year
should be removed by the agents them
selves on the 26th.
The way being thus open, and tn,
duty of the citizen plain. let every
proper place on the registration list b'
occupied by the evening of Tuesday
next.