The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-11-07
HASLAM EXPOSES
ELECTION F|ASCO
Describes Methods by Which
Citizens Were Robbed
of Their Votes.
RANK FAVORITiSM SHOWN
VOTERS DISTINGUISHED AFTER
STANDING IN LINE FOR HOURS.

In describing the manner in Wnlch d
number of voters in the Twenty-elghth
district were robbed of their right of fran
chise at the city election on Tuesday ana
the angry demonstration following the
closing of the doors of the polling place
in the faces of the waiting citizens, Jo-
seph II. Haslam, of S53 North Sixth west
street chairman OF the DemocIauc coIi
nittee of the Third precinct, last nlSht
said: ,o-,,
Now that it is all over, I don't know
that we can do anything, but the Iacl re-
mains that about seveaty-flye cltz z's.s
were deprived OF their opportunity 10 vote
through no fault of their own -
From 3 o'clock on Tuesday unth Z
O'Clock a line of from fifty to seventy
five voters were kept standlhs outsIue W
the polling place, waiting for chance 10
vote Slow work on the part OF tie reg
fstrar INSTRUCTED the efforts 10 get ali OF
the voters into the polling place before
the hour for closing and when the doors
were locked, as many were standing on
the outside as at o'clock, when the OBJ
structing tactics were first noticeable
Seeing that many voters would be com
pelled to go away without the privilege
of exercising their rights as citizens.
American party workers began to pick
out their partisans in the crowd and
maneuver TO get them inside the polling
place. | was told by man who stood
at the poll for two hours that American
party voters were allowed TO enter
through a back door and take precedence
over members of other parties who were
kept standing in line.
Legal Warning Not Given.
las I am chairman of the Democratic
precinct committee, / was sent for be
fore the closing of the polling place and
asked to do something to protect the vot-
ers. who seemed threatened with loss of
their rights. l had already voted and
returned to the polling place about $50
O'Clock. l saw at once that the waiting
crowd was so large that all could not pos
sibly vote before O'Clock. On making in
quiries, | learned that the voters standing
in the street had not been notified Of the
closing of the poll. As understand II,
the law requires the election officers to
give the people thirty minutes warning
of the closing of the doors.
II said nothing until $50 o'clock. when.
meeting Judge Holman and hearing him
say that the poll would close promptly at
Z o'clock, l told him that the voters were
under the law entitled to thirty minutes
notice. Judge Holman. who was there as
an American party worker, at once
rushed into the polling place and shouted
TO the American judges to give a warn
ing Of the closing or the door. This was
done, although 1t was ten-minute and
not thirty minute notice, as required by
law.
For this interference Judge Holman
was at once thrown out of the polling
place by deputy sheriff. This was what
tsiuSGu ilAS ilOt call " tIt ppICes
pose.
Crowd Is Angry.
When the door was closed at 7:O5
o'clock, the men AMI women who were
shut out We're naturally angry and indig-
nant. They of course expressed their
feelings warmly. For my part, I did all
! could to force the election officers TO
allow those citizens to vote who had
waited for hours in the line outside the
polling place. l did not succeed in this
When wagon load of policemen arrived
the crowd quietly dispersed.
During the five minutes after O'Clock
that the poll was kept open. an 'Ameri-
can party precinct committeeman took
Miss Caroline Gress, of So Roselle street
into the polling place through a back
door. This young woman was not regis
tered and had twice been refused the
right to vote during the day Over the
protest of he Democratic Judge Dave
Goodyear. the two American party
judges allowed her to vote. The registrar
will admit this fact
Now, as illustrating the unfairness Of
the American party judges, while they
were so anxious to allow Miss Gregg to
vote. they refused that right to Miss Lot
tie House of Third North and Eighth
West streets, although she was regis
tered"