The record-union., 1898-12-30
VOTING MACHINE RAsCALITY.

Through the expose made by our San
Francisco contemporary, the "Chroni
cle," legislators are now forewarned
and forearmed against a most atrocious
attempt to plunder the State Treasury
by the sale of a worthless and ineffi-
cient voting machine. This was to have
been accomplished by the corruption
Of some legislators and the deception
of others. The arts of the uncon-
scionable lobbyist were to be employed
to push through bill early in the ses-
sion for the purchase of machine
which had been prepared for the ex-
press purposes of sale, but not for
service.
Most of the men in the scheme were
involved with full knowledge that the
thing was a swindle from the outset
while others were probably deceived
and We're to put up their money as a.
simple investment in a seemingly fair
business venture; that is, to capitalize
company to manufacture and sell g.
voting machine to be adopted by the
State.
The bottom schemers themselves were
not so tied up to the fraudulent ma
chine that they were not ready to take
up any other device, provided they
We're allowed to have the lions share
Of the plunder in consideration of their
nefarious work in pulling legislators
and manipulating the necessary bills
to effect the robbery of the State.
The Record Union has favored for
some years diligent inquiry into the
system of machine voting, in order TO
fall upon some device that would with
out at all limiting the rights of voters,
further protect them from fraud. en-
able the returns to be speedily an
nounced and avoid the mistakes which
invariably occur where the counting
and tallying are done by election
boards, which in largest part are made
up of incompetent persons, clerically
considered.
But there must be no schemes put
through to fleece the State, even for
these desirable ends. It is not the
fault of a system that rogues fall upon
it and attempt to pervert it to their
damnable ends. If it is desirable to
| adopt a machine voting device. the
State must be amply protected on all
sides. It must know beyond all man
ner Of doubt that the machine is what
is necessary, efficient, economic and
thoroughly reliable in it's methods of
| operation. It must know that the en-
tire right to the use of the machine in
California can be vested in the State.
It must deal directly with the original
inventors or controllers of the ma
chine, and have no go-betweens. It
must as a guarantee against extortion
and fraud, have distinct pledge, bind
| ing in law, from all parties presenting
machines for inspection, as to their
price for the right Of use, and the cost
per machine in case of adoption. That
| is to say, the cost must be a part Of
the competition.
But beyond all this the whole subject
matter must be committed TO such
hands that not even the suggestion of
fraud and corruption will be tolerable.
Any attempt on the part of the Leg
islature to settle upon a machine by
vote will be open to- the suspicion, after
the exposures just made, that there is
| a steal behind the whole matter. In
it's own interest the Legislature must
wash its hands of any legislation that
will by any possibility open a door for
fraud, or even leave room for the bare
suspicion of wrong doing.
! In short, the Legislature must pur-