The evening times., 1899-03-24
PRIMARIES IN THE
CITY OF BALTIMORE
Republicans Will Nominate
Local Officers Today.
A Difference in the Ballots Causes
Political Strife.
The Hooper Ticket on Thin Blush
Paper and the Ma1ster Ticket ON
Heavy White Paper.

Baltimore. March 24.-Republican pri-
mary elections will be held from II o'clock
noon until p. m. today in all the wards of
the city.
AT these elections there will be selected
twelve delegates from each ward TO the
city convention. which will nominate can
didates for mayor, president of the second
branch city council and city comptroller.
The election to these Offices will be by the
vote of the city at large. There will also
be selected twelve delegates from each
ward to the eouncilmanic district eonven-
yentions to nominate candidates for the
second branch of the city council. There
are four such districts, each containing six
wards, and from each district two mem
bers OF the second branch are to be elected.
The voters of each district determine at
the general election which candidates shall
represent them in the city council.
There will be nominated directly at the
primaries today a candidate from each
ward for the first branch city council, and
| there will be elected member from each
ward OF the new city executive committee
of the Republican party. This committee
will be new feature in the party organi
zation. 1t will at once take charge OF the
Republican municipal campaign.
At one time yesterday it looked as if the
primaries might not be held today, but
| might be postponed by legal action because
of difference in the texture of the paper
used in printing the tickets
In the rules adopted by the State central
committee for the conduct of the primaries
it is provided that every ticket printed
| by the supervisors OF primaries shall be
printed on paper of like color, quality, size,
i 49, ts4lr@
| folded it shall be absolutely impossible
! to distinguish any one ticket from any
| other ticket This provision was made
| in order TO guarantee TO every voter alb
| solute freedom in voting. 1t was feared
| that a distinguishing ticket might cause
some persons holding Office under the ex
listing administration or being allied with
any one faction from voting for candidates
| of the other faction although believing
| such candidates to be better qualified for
| the offices.
The contract for printing the ballots was
awarded to the ]. W. Bond Company and
| the work was ordered rushed, as it was
| desired to have the tickets in the hands
of the voters early yesterday. Late We'd
nesday night number of the tickets were
| issued by the printers to the party organi-
| cations, and yesterday morning it was dis
| covered that the Hooper ticket in some
| instances was different from the Malster
| ticket The Hooper ticket, or the unpleg-
ed ticket where such existed, in the first
eleven wards and in the twentieth ward
| was of thin paper, with blush tinge. and
unglazed The Malster ticket in the same
wards was heavier, whittier, and glazed.
! The difference in the paper was so marked
| that it was held to be easily distinguish
able in the hands of voter.
cry of fraud was at once raised by
both sides, each claiming that the other
had gained an advantage by the difference
in tickets. The Hooper leaders said it
was a trick of the Malster people to in
| timidate voters holding office from voting
| the Hooper ticket. A protest was at once
filed with the primary supervisors by Mr..
George r. Gather, jr., representing the
Hooper campaign committee, and by Mr..
Charles L. Wilson, representing the NAL
ster campaign committee. In the mean
time there had gathered at the Office of the
| election supervisors in the City Hall a
crowd Of ward leaders representing each
faction, and accusations were freely made
! by one against the othe~
people in addition claimed that their tick
cts had been held back to their disadyant-
age in not giving time to get them out to
| voters, while the Hooper tickets had been
| rushed through and were already out and
| in the hands of voters.
The supervisors sent for the printer, and
| a representative of the firm said that.the
| changing of the paper was solely the fault
| of the printer and had been prompted by
| no one. The glazed paper on hand, he
| said was not sufficient to print all the
| ballots because of the demand for extra
used the thinner paper to help out. He