The Estancia news. [volume] (Estancia, Torrance County, N.M.) 1904-1912, 1908-06-19
:;,MOCRhTIC PLhTFORM
HIS MHNY GOOD POINTS
lar6S for Nomination Of Candidates by Popular Vote Honest
Count OF Ballots and the Removal of Pasuraqe
Fees in the National Forests
5MAND STATEHOOD
FOR NEW MEXICO

tions is this territory in the past, and
notably at the last general election. 1t
was conclusively proved by legal and
competent evidence and was not denied
that in the coal camps Of ColfaX county
the polls were established by the order
of the commissioners Of the said county
on the private lands of the respective
companies owning and operating coal
mines; that the managers of said COM
panies arbitrarily refused to allow any
democrats to be present at the polls i'll
said coal camps on election day; that in
some of said coal camps democratic
challengers were subjected to indignities
and forcibly elected from said camps by
deputy sheriffs acting under instruction
from the managers of said companies;
tkat the ballot boxes were stuffed and
the registration and poll books were
padded and hundreds of foreigners were
compelled to vote the republican ticket
under threats Of discharge. We call at
tention to the fact that these arbitrary
acts have been continuously practiced
in Colfax county for the past eight years
U..ttii t,,.1y ia, . .iDened iato an estaC-
Iished system,
The undisputed record Of the county
of Valencia in election matters for the
past quarter of century has been a
stigma and reproach upon the fair
name of New Mexico. 1t is proven
and established fact and i5 is not even
required that the voters should 60 to
the polls in that county, but that the
officers of the election board cast the
ballots for ell the absentees. While in
some instances the registration lists are
copied into the the poll books iii strict
alphabetical order At the last election
in this comty and in Torrance county,
republican ballots were substituted in
place of democratic ballots actually cast,
and in one precinct in the latter county
! the judge Of election openly refused to
permit any democratic ballots to be
cast.
The foregoing instances are but few
, Of the many open and defiant violations
of our election laws and is humiliating
to be compelled to acknowledge that
with the single exception of Mr., Frank
W. Clancy, district attorney of the sec
ond judicial district, no action has ever
been taken by any republican official,
national or territorial, to stop these abu-
ses or to punish the offenders
We demand, and if entrusted with the
power, we pledge ourselves to a strict
enforcement of the election laws by he
courts and prosecuting officers,
I'VE are heartily in favor of the noni-
nation of allparty candidates by aAjract
vote Of the people at primary elections
held for thai purpose under the sanction
of the law and hereby pledge our repre-
sentative3 in the next Legislature to
work and vote for such law
We believe that all county officers
should be paid fixed salaries instead Of
fees or commissions, for aliseWices re-
quircd Of them by the government
/ We condemn the policy of the federal
government in prohibiting the free gra-
zing of live stock in the forest reserves
of the territory, as unwsrranted and
arbitrary; such policy tends to injure
and destroy the Interests of many small
/ live stock raisers and may create a mo.
nopoly of that industry by the very few
wealthy owners Of sheep ard cattle The
conservation of our timber in such re.
serves and the wise regulation of its usS
in order to prevent its waste and de
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