The Monitor-register., 1897-10-01
The Special Election,
THE PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMEND
MENTs DEFEATED.

MENTS
All three of the proposed amendments
to the Constitution OF New Jersey were
overwhelmingly defeated at the special
election on Tuesday.
The amendments, In brief, were:
Prohibiting the Equalization of race
track gambling. pool-selling, etc.
Epjoining the Governor from appointing
during the legislative recess persons who
had previously been nominated but not
confirmed by the Senate.
Permitting to vote at district
school meetings.
The estimated majority against them
in the State is some $40, and this on a
very light vote. In fact those who would
naturally be expected to support them
seem not to have had enough interest In
the election to go to the polls and vote,
while the opposing forces, especially in the
upper part of the State and In Camden
county, marshaled all their strength to
defeat them. One of the methods used
was the liberal distribution of the follow
ing circular, which in many places was
| placed in the hands of every voter:
VOTERS VOTE NO
On the Constitutional Amendments on
September 20. 1897.
One of these amendments, purportirg
to suppress racetrack gam bling, is in
reality an attempt to reinstate intolerance
and interfere with the personal liberty of
individuals. Under the pretence of sup
| pressing ~bookmaking, it indirectly pro
hibits innocent games of chance, card
playing and all forms of amusement, and
imposes a penalty of 81, 900 fine or a term
in prison for the most trifing breach of
the law. 1t interferes with the individual
choice to select ones own pastime, and
is an effort to revive the old Blue Laws,
under which even homes were invaded
by minions of the law. Amendment No.
2 takes from the Governor his time
honored and constitutional ~prerogative
of selecting State officers to fill vacancies
during the recess of the Legislature.
Amendment No. 8, giving women in
the country school districts the right to
vote, though harmless In itself, il adopted
will prevent more important amendments
of the State Constitution for a pc riod of
five years.
Vote No on all three of the amend
ments. The way to vote no is to scratch
each amendment and deposit the
scratched ticket in the ballot box.
Another method was the giving of
marked ballots to voters in the voting
places, clearly in violation Of the law,
and they were as we'll used outside.
None seem to know where these ballots
came from, but it would not be difficult
to guess. Very black lines were printed
across each amendment. The opposition
to the anti. raoe-track gambling amend
ments seemed to be extended to all the
negative ballots were observed to scratch
the whole face of the ticket.
This means that when any Legislature
gets ready to do so it may pass a law
legalized pool selling on race tracks. II
means that women must wait at least
five more y ears for the coveted privilege
of voting for members of school boards,
and that the appointing power of the
| Governor of the State will not be abridged
How the race track men view the re.
suit may be gathered from the followin g
expression given by William J.
Thompson, owner of the Gloucester race
track, and was perhaps. one of the most
active agents in defeating the amend
ments: SIT looks to me as though the
people favored a limited racing law,
say, for 60 days. The vote shows that
the people have taken the matter out oil
politics entirely, and that's a good thing
good for politics and good for racing"
He further expressed the belief that
the next Legislature, or the one imme'
diately following, would pass a racing
bill such as the one referred to.