Evening star., 1905-11-05
UNDER WILSON LAW
Ability of Illiterates to Cast
Correct Ballots.
CONFUSING DEVICES
AN ALLEGED ATTEMPT TO MIS-
LEAD THE VOTERS.
Republicans Teaching the Uneducated
to Distinguish Names-Absence
of Party Designation.

Special From a Staff Correspondent.
CAMBRIDGE, Md, November 4.-To the
practical politician one of the most inter-
esting DEVELOPMENTS of the election Iuesday
will be in relation to the ability that Will
be shown by the illiterate voters of the
eastern shore and southern Maryland to
vote the ballots that will be given them
To the casual observer it seems impossible
that men who cannot read can be taught
to vote as many as fifteen names in lists
that in some Instances include as many as
sixty names of candidates. when there is
nothing to designate to what party the va
rous candidates belong, or when various
devices are resorted to in order to con-
fuse the voters who will be given no more
than seven minutes In which to mark their
ballots.
In this county of Dorchester, in which
the Wilson law does not prevail, and In
which in consequence there is not as great
opportunity for confusion of the names on
the ballot the conditions such as seem
to make 1t impossible that any man un-
able to read should be able to properly
mark the ticket. Yet the leaders expect
that they will be able to instruct them to
correctly mark the ballots. In this county
the names of candidates are followed with
the name of the party to which they be-
long. In order to mix up names in way
that 1t VIII be difficult to pick them out, 1T
is declared. democrats have caused TO be
placed on the ticket the names of an addi-
tionaI set of candidates who are of the
''repudation' party. Reputation was
adopted as the name of this party which
consists only of the candidates whose
names used, for the reason, it is alleged
that II Is very similar to the name re-
publican and every republican vote that Is
decoyed to the Reputation candidates is
unnCh gained by he democratic H.
d.dates.
Methods of Instruction.
But this difficulty is being overcome by
teaching the illiterate voters TO look only
for the last three letters of the name of
their party-"can' While Reputation
looks. as a whole, very much like "repub-
ncan," by cOnfining the eye of the voter to
the last three letters the distinction be-
tween them is very simple, and the schools
of instruction that have been established
have developed the fact that nearly any
voter can be taught to correctly mark the
ballots in that way
Although this ticket is confusing, the
ticket in the adjoining county of Somerset
is so much more difficult that it seems
simplicity itself in comparison. In Somer
set the Wilson law prevails. and under It's
provisions there is no party designation on
the ticket In addition to that confusing
condition, a third set of names very much
resembling those of the republican Candi
udteS nave Deen duueu 10 the DdlIOt. Any
young and ambitious man with name very
similar to one of the republicans on the
ticket has found himself in demand lie
has discovered that after all, there is sGme-
thing In a name. Greatness has been
thrust upon him. and although unknown
in the past he has found himself in the
public eye as candidate for office.
BY this method the Somerset ticket was
apparently placed beyond the power of the
ordinary man to vote, but in that case, tCo,
a plan has been devised which will make
ths voting of the ticket a simple matter
provided 1t is carried out fully. BY that
plan strips of paper have been made ex-
actly the length of the columns of the
ticket marked so that the index niger Of
hand points to the place for the marking of
the ticket That is one of ;he plans iliat
has been so far carried olt that the mark
ers have been printed and circulated rot
only in that, but also IN Kent county,
where very similar conditions prevail.
Another plan which Will ;re used in some
of the counties provides for a strip of paper
with squares cut out. so that they may be
laid down on the ballot. leaving the uIen-
ings just where the ticket is to be marked.
Democratic Task Easy.
While this confusion In voting the re-
publican ticket prevails the democratic
ticket In these counties is made doubly
easy by placing all the names of demo-
cratic candidates Immediately above the
heavy black line that separates the differ
ent classes of voters
But across the bay, In Charles county,
the limit has been reached In the construc-
uon of a ballot that is difficult to mark
That ballot is also without any party desig-
nation. and 1t is printed extremely wide
without any guiding lines to connect the
names Of the candidates with the SQUARES
IN which the marks are TO be made 1t is
conceded TO be the worst that has been
developed in the interest of confusion Ii
is regarded as so bad that Chairman Hanna
has sent sample of IT. together with a let
ter of protest to Governor Warfield ask
Ing him to remove the supervisors who de-
NSed and permitted it's adoption
Since the campaign began 1t has been
an open question whether the illiterate vot-
ers in these lower counties could he taugh.
10 vote the entire ticket or would be ad-
Vised to contine their efforts to voting
against the amendment and perhaps for the
members OF the legislature.
The ballot when returned to the iudges
of election must be folded lust as II was
when handed to the voter which might
seem TO be simple requirement. but II has
been shown to be far from simple in many
cases. In past elections ballots have been
folded so that the lowest fold has not
readily opened, with the result that part of
the ballot has been practically hid from
view. That was In the last congressional
election In the first district.
Must Be Free From Spots.
The ballot must be perfectly free from
an marks other tHan those Tor the candl-
dates and free from any soiled spots such
as might be made from the hands of the
voters. 1t has been charged that judges Of
election in some OF the counties have pur-
posely concealed a small piece of lead in
their finger rings. in such way that when
ever they handed out or received back
ballot they could scratch IT so as to destroy
its validity.
A score of other devices have been adopted
In order to injure ballots or to keep men
from the polls. What money will do on
next Tuesday no one can tell. In southern
Maryland and along the eastern shore
money talks on election day. and 1t talks
very loudly. In some voting precincts a
separate window has been provided for the
colored voters who have been detained and
made to vote so slowly that when the sun
has Inr - .l.,,.