The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1904-12-17
THE VOTE OF MARYLAND

managers, in Maryland not to
contest the declaration Of tn
States electoral vote. as made by tn.
State Board of CanvasSsrrS will be gen
orally acquic>>.cd in. President RooSc
vrlt'S majority in the Electoral tolleg,
is - crDrInUls that IL slight addition oi
subtraction can i'll no way affect the sig
piioHnce Of last months popular verdict.
To contest the Maryland return would
involve n tedious and annoying legal
struggled struggle hardly worth the
friction and effort it would entail and
the delays and ann1yptncrS it might cause
in tn" declaration of thc electoral vote
by the two houses of Congress. Seven
of Maryland'S eight electors will there
fore be allowed to cast their ballots for
Parker and Davis without protest, even
though they thereby validate election
practices which have Stiiicl the real voice
of the State and vested Ievcn-eighthS of
its electorate.
Complete and official returns from the
State show clearly THAT the real will of
the voters WIS defeated when the Can
wasting Board issued seven ont Of eight
certificates Ia Democratic electors. The
highest vote east for any candidate for
lSnnHprrtc. who. headed the Republican
ticket. He received 1921 veto. The
next highest Republican candidate for
r,ct"r received 1O6,9G,. The eight Dem
prIAtic candidates received votes ranging
from lO7.I71 to l07.27G. The luwr>t
Republican candidate received lWi.G9i,
- that On the Republican side There W..
war iation IN the vote for r.r,tlr> ot
2.SW'. tn Il variation on the Democratic
side Of 200. This difference. can hv ac
counted for in only one way. The Mary
Legislature at its last session pas, Il (;
law empowering the county Hutnuritir
i'll certain counties to take the party dies
gnaion from the official haIGl ana I,
arrange tn" names of candidutCs for of
fee in amy way they might see iii. Tn,
law applied to counties III Souincn
Maryland and on the E;,;>trln SHORE
where Republican majUritic> were nor
mnl!y given, and was intended to mak,
voting AS .tiicult Il puzzle IL pc. .ihlv
for the uncducatcd voter. But in the
rrunle> where Democratic maioliti,S
ate usually given the official ballot with
the party designations waS retained.
The effect of this partisan and unequal
legislation is apparent in the greater
discrepancies on the Republican side
between the votes, cast for the heads Of
the two electoral tickets amd the votes
cast for their respective associates. and
in 50 close II contest aS that of 100.
these variations - though slight were
sufficient to throw seven of the States
eight votes /" II party which would have
been defeated except for this vicious
election trick. Even the vote east fol
Mr.. BonalTtrtc scarcely exhibits the real
Republican strength in the State. Fol
III inc SIN congress districts the Rcpubli'
can candidates pollcd Il total of 1U3.9%3
votes to % 100 for Democratic candi-
dates. AS President Roosevelt ran hun.
dredS of thousands of votes ahead of the
Republican Congress ticket throughout
the country. it is only fair to assume
that trick election ballot cut the totals
for Republican electors far below the
actual Republican, strength. There could
hardly be a clearer ease made of the
fraudulent triumph of Il minority than
that offered this year in Maryland. But
we cannot think the intelligence and con
science Of the State will long submit to
such an unworthy and despcablc sys-
TEN of rsncak-thief politics.