The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1904-09-21
LAURENS, $. c., Sept. FL, 1904.
Guard the Primaries.

institution?
On the whole we believe that the
primary has so far proven q success in
South Carolina. While 1t is probable
that q convention system would result
In the selection of a higher ge set
OF ofice-holders for a time at least, we
think that 1t Is perhaps better tina,
there should be general protection by
the people at the polls than in club
meetif gs. TIE larger the vote the less
as 8 rule is the opportunity for trading,
trickery end corruption. In most South
Carolina counties buying and selling in
the primaries has up to the present
been little practiced and In nearly all
cases the count CT the votes has been
s~crupulously honest.
Nevertheless, signs have been plenti-
full in late years that threaten the use
fulness of the primary. Undoubtedly
the wrongful employment of money Is
gradually creeping in Notably in
Richland, Aiken and Charleston has
there been complaint Of this abuse and
some years ago it was said that In
Greenville county bribery was possible
in certain small districts. Moreover,
money is employed in a legitimate way
which may yet have a bad general re-
suit. The primaries year by year grow
more expensive.
For STATE offices the candidates find
the canvass of the Al counties a col.
siderable expense. 1t means the
spending Of about $500. by each, The
people have in large measure aban.
doned the habit of attending the meet
ipgs and the candidates are therefore
driven to appeal to the press in order
to place their views before the voters.
The newspapers cannot and will not
print in the interest Of individuals
without compensation and of course
the advertising tax on the candidate is
heavy.
Besides this. the use of circulars and
the postage bills swell the general ex-
pense. Where the candidate under
takes a general campaign, paying the
expenses OF friends who give time and
work to his cause in many counties,
the cost is very great We have re-
Gently heard a defeated candidate sly
that the cost of his race was upwards
of 81 200, all of it perfectly legitimate,
and we are sure that this was not the
highest figure reached.
1t will readily be seer from this that
of a poor man for a State office out Of
the question. In fact we have seen
actual instances in which men of no
property were at a great disadvantage
in races with men who were not pinched
for a few dollars. Even in the county
primaries some money, enough to be a
considerable object to o poor man, is
required. If then the Legitimate ex-
pense of the campaign be so great, how
much more will be the handicap Of the
poor man in q race with a well-to-do
candidate whose conscience does not
restrain him from bribery, from treat
ing, from giving barbacues and distri-
buting largess in other ways?
One possible improvement to the
system is to require by law that only
quail fed electors shall participate in
the primaries.
There is a considerable number of
people in this State who move from
n county to another. Many do not
remain in one locality long enough to
become qualified voters in the general
elections. Naturally thess have not
the same interest in choosing good
men for county offices as have those
who are and expect to be permanent
residents. Some of them, many of
them doubtless, are honest and patrio-
tic but that the wandering citizen may
be more easily purchased than the man
who has established a home is not to be
disputed. In the first primary the
writer voted in Columbia. He was in
Laurens at the time of the second. His
name was still on a Laurens club roll,
he might have voted in Laurens
(though he did not) and probably no
que ,tions would have been asked. 1t
would have been manifestly unfair. 1t
would have been fraudulent. Suppose
that he had voted and his ballot had
elected one man and defeated another
it would have been an outrage on
Laurens county, u case of a non-resi-
dent selecting an officer for the county.
Nevertheless the law contains nothing
to protect the people against possible
frauds of this kind. We suspect that
possibly an average of so OR 100 votes
were cast in every county in the late
elections by men who are not and do
not expect to be permanent residents.
These were not fraudulent votes for
the law requires but &C days residence.
The prinGary in this State is the real
election so far as State and county OFF,
GERS are concerned. The Safeguards
around 1T should not he less rigid than
those which protect the general cleo
tions in November-which are merely
p~erfuoctory, having little substantial
significance under present conditions.
DON'T Harm Them.
Old men tell us that when they were
young there were hundreds of insect