Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1907-01-10

gible to the ordinary mind. and no new
law should be passed unless the public
welfare will suffer from the failure Of
its enactment.
The average number of laws per year
for the last decade has been about $50,
There are 5000 acts now in force.
Such mass Of law is so conflicting
and perplexing as TO be a sealed book
to the lay citizen and to the lawyer a
mass of intricacy which battles profes,
sional skill and research. We have had
no revision of the statutes since that
Of 1874. The general statutes publish
ed. closing with the acts of 1895, was a
mere compilation, The time is ripe for
a condensation and revision of our
statutes.
Jury Reform.
Reformation Of our jury system was
at the last session made subject Of
legislative enactment A great step in
advance was made by providing that
the petit jury lists should be subject
to revision in the way of substitution
anu GllHlludllOu dl LlG ndA0o VI tA1S
judge Of the court of common pleas.
The method of selecting the grand ju-
ries should be likewise carefully re-
viewed and If possible better method
devised and enacted into law.
Civil Service.
Good government demands both
probity and efficiency in public Off
Gals. 1t is difficult to induce the best
men to enter public life. Much less
can they be induced to do so where po-
sition is the plaything of partisanship
instead of the sure reward of merit.
Patronage is the blight of office. Of
fceholders whose. position depends up
on the service they render to the APP
pointing power necessarily give their
allegiance to that power in preference
to the people. Public business should
be conducted upon the same basis as
private business.
A state civil service commission
would be necessary to the execution of
such a law. l would vest in this COM
mission the power of confirmation over
all appointments to the classified serv-
ice and would make all such appoint
ments subject to trial for period be-
fore they are made permanent.
Corrupt Practices.
The purity of the ballet is the foun-
dalton of good government. Corrup-
ton begets dishonesty, and a corrupt
and fraudulent ballot produces a gov
eminent of like character. The legis-
lation Of last year for a purer ballot
was based upon two principies-a
broader definition of what constitutes
bribery at the primaries and at the
polls, so that no form, however in
sidious, of debauching the electorate,
either by money, promise or hospitality,
should be legal, and better method of
securing the conviction of both the
bribe taker and the bribe giver. Too
severe penalties for these offenses make
detection and conviction well nigh i'm
possible A penalty, such as that pre-
scribed in the act of last year, that
merely DISTINGUISHES for the first Of
Tense and for the second imposes both
Acknowledgement and punishment is
more likely to eliminate bribery than
seyerer penalties that can never be en-
forced. To this was added immunity
of the informer for his own offense,
so that the bribe giver or the bride
taker is now always in danger of be-
ing betrayed by his confederate This
provision makes bride giving and bride
taking dangerous experiments, as 1t
puts wrongdoers at the mercy OF
wrongdoers.
Ballots Confined to Polling Places.
The present method of distributing
ballots outside of the polling place,
while it may serve convenience in
some few instances, aids the briber
and bride taker. / recommend that Of
fetal ballots hereafter be not allowed
outside of the polling place and that
laws be enacted to this end
Voting Machines.
It is not the province of the execu-
tive or the legislature to impose upon
the people any form of voting which is
distasteful and unsatisfactory. 1t is
proper, however, that the merits OF
every system should be fairly dis
cussed.
There is an apparent opposition in
many parts of the state to the voting
machine. Whether this opposition
comes from disappointed political am
billions, whether it is due to the care
less management of the voting ma
chine by election officers, whether it is
due to that conservatism of mind
which always opposes innovations,
whether it has been developed by self
ish interests or whether it is well
grounded and sincere | shall not at
tempt to discuss. As a prevention OF
the corrupt and fraudulent ballot, how
ever the voting machine has merit Lit