Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-11-16
THE VOTING MACHINE.
Pertinent Objections to the Mechan-
zeal Ballot.
Chicago Chronicle.

Chicago Chronicle.
There is reason to believe that the adop-
ton of the voting machine will tend to
Increase the percentage Of voters who will
vote what is called straight ticket"
The average man, who has not train
ing or practice in the use and manage
ment Of machinery turns naturally away
from a machine for doing that which he
has long been accustomed to see done in
another way. There are still thousands
OF people who feel rooted aversion to
the use of the typewriting machine.
There are many who see little to ad-
mire in the element of secrecy in the
manner of voting. They think that there
can be no faith in any man who dare
not vote his sentiments except In the dark
They are willing TO accept. out of defer
enSe to the opinions OF others the ballot
whose makeup and contents are secret
from all the world except the voter him
self.
But when II comes to a ballot that is
so secret that the voter himself is not
sure how he voted nor even that he voted
at all not few voters hold back. Each
wants. by and for himself. TO know pre-
cisely what he is doing.
When a man prepares his own ballot
and see it In the presence Of sworn off,
GERS of both parties in action dropped into
sealed ballot box he knows that he has
voted and how he has voted.
When he presses button or a key in
a voting machine. the operation OF which
he does not understand, even though the
machine shows him what is said to be
record of his action, he does not actually
know whether he has voted not. nor
has he confidence that the records shown
20 him will be the same counted into the
aggregate.
Moreover, he knows that any and every
machine is liable to get out OF order"
to work erratically or refuse to work at
all, and he hesitates to put his freeman's
highest privilege into the keeping of an
inanimate machine the action of which
might be juggled by a crooked expert
into something other than his will and
without his suspecting the fact, or 1t may
fail altogether through disorder in the ma
chine or a dishonest manipulation.
Worse than this, an impression has
grown that wherever voting machine is
used the percentage of straight tickets"
increases. Voters have found 1t more than
difficult under the blanket ballot system
TO cast Independent votes. 1t is easy to
make one mark and be sure your vote is
counted.
To split a ticket without risk OF losing
your vote requires considerable skill and
vast amount OF instruction, not a little
of which is itself wrong.
If It be true that the machine makes
splitting a ticket any more difficult than
| it is now with our blanket ballot thousands
of voters will hold that that fact alone Is
SUFFICIENT to condemn IT,
| 1t is openly charged in some places that
the form OF the blanket ballot was made
up with the purpose of making split
| ticket more difficult than under the old
system and that it attained its purpose,
thereby swelling the number of straight
| tickets and increasing accordingly the
power of the boss and his machine.
II the voting machine adds still fur
/ Their to this condition it is thing to be
| avoided.