The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-10-25

CompoSitors. Butchers
Every trust regards the workingman's
vote part of its assets. to be controlled
by it. So to repeat it, and despite what
may be said to the contrary, the ballot
is as secret as the grave. No man can
possibly yearn how another man votes IN
less the voter chooses to tell. No poll
tician can ind out. The judges and clerks
OF election are absolutely ignorant of how
any ballot is marked by the voter.
The coupon On the official ballot bothers
many persons.
They cannot understand why 1t should
be there unless for the purpose of keep
ing tab on the voter Election Supervisor
Porter explains the object OF 1t IN this
way:
When the Australian system was intro
dueed into Maryland il was considerably
cruder than now. One of its purposes
was to prevent bribery, but at first 1t did
! not do so. A voter who had bean bought
would be handed ballot already marked
by the briber He would approach the
judges, get another ballot, go into the
BOOTH take from his pocket the marked
ballot that had been given him and CON
ceaI the ballot he had gotten from the
judges. He would leave the booth and
vote the already marked balloi, and would
carry the ballot he had legitimately re-
ceived back on the street to show that he
had carried out his bargain The man who
was buying votes would then mark that
ballot and give il TO another. who would
go through tbs same procedure Thus an
endless chain Of ballots could be Kept GO
Ing all day.
another lrathod was for the briber and
the bribed Eeter TO enter adjoining booths
at the sd me time. The briber would mark
the ballot and hand it over the top OF the
/! booth TO the other.
The coupon was devised to stop all this
When a ballot is given a ser now the
ballot clerk writes the voters name on
the coupon and also the figures showing
the voters number in the order Of ballot
ing The voter then gees into private
booth, where no one can see him. and
there secretly marks his ballot with q
soft pencil he finds there. He then folds
il carefully just as il was folded before,
with the mark inside He comes out CT
the booth and hands the ballot. folded. TO
the Judge representing the party in power
in the State This year, Of course, ii is
the Democratic Judge
The FIRST thing the judge does is to
tear off the coupon and string II on 6. file.
The ballot is then placed in the ballot box
When the coupon is torn of there Is
nothing left on the ballot that could in any
way indicate who cast it Every ballot is
exactly alike No Distinguishing mark or
number is placed on the ballot itself at
! any tine.
IF any one places or attempts 10 place
any kind Of q mark on ballet SO that il
can be Identified. he is liable to imprison-
ment in the -penitentia-y. The Law is
/ clear and strong On this point and applies
/ especially to election officials. II judge
or clerk should attempt to do such thing
/ he should be arrested Immediately.
! After the polls are closed and before
! the ballot box is opened every coupon must
! be carefully destroyed by the judges. When
| that is done there is no name OF number
anywhere indicating any vote, for the bal
/ lots inside the box are all exactly alike
The supervisors OF election have taken
( extra precautions this year to insure the
/ secrecy of the ballot. Heavier paper will
/ be used than before, so that there can be
no possibility of the mark made by the
! voter being seen from the outside OF the
/ ballot The ballot is folded SO that al
! least two thicknesses of paper conceal the
mark, and the marks made By those vot-
! Ing fer Democratic or Republican eandi-
! dates are concealed by several additional
! thichnesses of paper as those tickets are
| at the head of the ballot. or the extreIne
/ left When the ballot is folded toward the
right. as it IS. those tickets, OF course, are
! farthest inside.
No one need fear detection by means
| of the coupon. for it is perfectly harmless
! I have heard many keen politicians hewail
| this fact and when you can conceal the
| identity of a ballot from a politician No
one else on earth can learn Its secret