El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-09-13
REGISTRATION WINS.

NOTWITHSTANDING the position
taken by two OF the organs OF unclesn-
ness in this city the county commits
sioners' court yesterday determined to
order registration for the elections this
fall. Thus Is IL proved that the forco OF
q clean and Intelligent public opinion,
unified and rightly directed, Is greater
than the forse Of q corrupt press such
rs unfortunately Is at present recog-
nized "a the mouth piece OF the city sd
ministration.
They do not want registration!
Why. of course not. Why should they,
indeed? Every movement to purify the
ballot box and add one
more safeguard to the free
dom aud sanctity OF the voting
privilege means q direct attack against
the stronghold OF their corruption.
They live and thrive by dishonesty,
they win by rsscality, they maintain
their hold by criminal connivance.
Their whole political life Is protest
against decency and truth.
But unfortunately they have the
faculty of putting palpable untruths
into guise that may confuse and mis-
lead many worthy people. So, although
this preliminary bait is already won 4,
IL Is well worth while to set the facts
before the people so that they may see
the true character OF the spscious al
Legations OF the administration news
papers.
The Australian ballot law, passed by
the Texas legislature, was never ex-
pected to ''do away with corruption in
Texas politics." That is and will al
ways be an impossibility as long as
there are such people in control of the
machinery of government as at pres
ent blink their eyes at crime in this
city. That will De impossi BILE as long
as We have officers sworn to enforce
the laws who themselves publicly VIC
late them. The system WAS never
guaranteed to purify the ballot box. 4"
1t Is claimed for it that 1t is step in
the right direction, that it affords q
legal means by which q fair number of
legal voters can enforce their claims to
recognition in the face of organized
opposition among the forces of illegal
ity and dishonesty. Like all laws, it
10 but q means to an end. Like all
laws, the registration law is absolutely
worthless-more than that, it is posi-
lively hsrmful-unless it is sustained
and enforced by the activity of it's sup
porters. In this case, sentiment counts
for but little. 1t is hard work that
counts. And If the forces of wrong
are organized for evil, all the more
must the forces of right organize for
good.
I'll Psso has not given the Australian
ballot law a fair trial, and if it has
proved deficient in some directions it
Is not because of the fault of the sys-
TEN, but because the officers sworn TO
enforce the law deliberately set about
to make Ineffective its wholesome pro-
knowledge that during the elections 81
which the Australian law has ostensi-
bly, been In force, tho police, whose
business 1t is to see that the law is
enforced In every particular, did per-
nit 1--WE will put IL that wsy) hagrant
violations of II. Some people assert
that the police actually influenced
voters-corralled them, bought them,
turned them In, ard got their pay.
Others simply say that the police were
careless" and thereby permitted a
great deal of dishonest voting to go I'M
punished. However that may be, it
would not be very hard to prove that
the law, rs il stands on the statute