The Somerset reporter., 1904-09-29
An Unfortunate Error

Inc hOcRIh0u OOuflef-GhHeNke HI @ai~
urday last contains the following refa.
tive to the matter:
In view OF the Roekland Opinions
claim that the ballot mixup In So
George and Rockport was fraud aud A
Republican trick. Congressman Little
field few days ago mailed to the Score
tary Of State a copy OF the Opinion aud
asked for a full statement As 10 the
cause OF the error. The following reply,
received by Mr.. Littlefeld, Thursday
morning, certainly disposes Of the absurd
cry of fraud, and Is an explanation that
should satisfy the most exsetlng person
as to how the unfortunate mistake &C
Cured. The letter follows.
State OF Maine.
Office Of Secretary OF State.
Augusta, Sept. d, 1904.
Hon. Charles +. Littleneld, Roekland,
Maine.
Dear Sir: The frat intlmation that
the secretary OF States flee had Of The
error 10 the official ballot for Rock port
and ST. George came from Hon. Herbert
l.. Shepherd OF Rockport. This was
followed soon after by telephone mes
sage from Hon. William I. Cobb, Hon.
c. E. Littlefeld and Hon. Maynard =.
Bird, asking what the trouble was with
the ballot. Later had similar telephone
messages from Chairman Andrews Of
the Board OF seleetmen OF 81. George.
Immediately saw Mr.. A. d. Russell. the
clerk who has been In charge OF the
printing of the official ballots ever since
the Australian ballot law has been In
force, and we went at once TO the jour
nal office and started u thorough inYesti-
cation OF the whole matter. We found
that the nomination book WAS correct and
that the copy furnished the printer was
correct. In order to complete the print
ing Of the official ballot within the linn
tied time allowed by the law 1t is neces-
sary to divide the work and carry along
several counties at the same time, cleo
trotvpes are therefore made OF each
county ticket exclusive of the Repre-
sentatives, which must Of course be
changed for each class OF towns. The
ballot form as made up for printing
therefore Is composed of three sections.
The top section containing the voting
squares, and the gubernatorial tickets
the middle section the county Tickets
and the bottom section the representa-
tives to the Legislature. In changing
from one town to another In the same
county 1t Is only necessary to change
the representatives to the legislature,
but In changing to town In another
county the plate containing the county
officers must also be changed.
The error In Rockport and st. George
was due to the failure OF the eompositor
to change the county plate when he
changed the representatives.. The work
of making up the official ballot, since
the establishment of the law, has been
In charge OF Mr.. Arthur l.. Brown, one
OF the oldest and most careful printers
in Maine and a man whose personal In
tegrity will not be questioned by any one
who knows him. In all the years that
Mr.. Brown has handled this work, the
error In the Rockport and st. George
ballots, Is the frat that has been made
by him-a most credltable record 10 View
Of the thousands OF forms he has had to
handle and change.
Mr.. Brown 10 a lifelong Democrat and
was one of the Democratic candidates
for the Legislature on the official ballot
in this city at the recent election. /
have seen Mr.. Brown about this matter,
and he frankly admits that the error was
his. No man could feel worse about It
than ne does He Is especially hurt to
think that his unfortunate error has
been made the basis of a charge that he
undertook to commit a fraud upon hls
party. IL 10 to be said, however, in his
behalf that the responsibility for the
error rests more upon the proof-reader
from this Office, who In the rush OF bis
work, failed to detect and correct It.
1t Is not the fact, "a has been stated,
that the lists and specimen ballots are
printed from the Identical forms used In
printing the official ballot. Il Ia neeeE-
sary, In order to make connections with
In the time limit, TO print the lsts and
specimen ballots on separate press. and
they are handled by an entirely different
crew, both departments Of the work be
ing carried forward Al the eame time,
When we consider that IL takes about
a week to prepare the plates after the
copy reaches the printer, and that the
ballots must be In the hands Of the cleo
ton officers three dAys In advance OF the
election, II will be seen that, allowing
the necessary time for transportation,
the printing, proof reading counting and
handling OF the ballots Tor 626 pre-
cincts must be crowded into period ot
about two weeks. The fset that the
errors 10 Rpckport and 81. George are
the first thst have occurred In the thir-
teen years since the establishment OF the
law is fair proof OF the care thar has
been exercised by those charged with
the responsibility Of preparing sud send
log out the fiielal ballots.
Yours very sincerely
Byron Boyd
Secretary Of state.
Mr. Brown. the printer. ~ho was con
nected with the Somerset REPORTER
some 20 years ago, makes lengthy siii
davit explaining the method q pnntlog
tue ballots IA which the following clause
appears
"Io making up thu form Tor 81 George
and Rock port. mual have taken form
which had bern used fer some town 30
Lincoln County and have changed the
name OF the representatives OF the Leg
islsture without changing the county
electrotype plate. This left the ballot
correct, except that the Lincoln county
officers (sll contained ou one plato sp-
pesred in place Of those nominated FOR
Knox county. Any statement that th.s
error was iutentiuusl uu ms part ls
absolutely sod utterly fstsf. II Vas
purely a. oversight. sua az man can re-
greet ig more lhsn d..
Good VIII FArm
The annual elections 81 odletn OF the
SUNDAY school aad todeavot Society
tool place sept n Charles S K bcrts
80 -I~-,aH sftH.ef4stvnaas4 81 The sunday