The morning journal-courier., 1908-04-30
MANY FOR MACHINES
Associated Civic Societies Leaders Favor Moderate
 Experiment.
SOME OPPOSITION SHOWS
Interesting Discussion of Voting Method Before the Reform
 Committee.

Voting machines were the subject matter of consideration by the alder- manlc committee on retrenchment and reform at q public hearing held last 1 night and q number of citizens took Doccaslon to talk on the subject Gen eral opinion seemed to favor q con servative investment in few ma chimes for a more thorough trial than | has yet been given here, One or two were entirely opposed and a few fla vored tho complete equipment of the city If possible.
 Tho hearing was held as the outcome of communication from the United States Standard Voting Machine com pany offering to equip the city with machines at $500 per machine. The demonstrator for the company a Mir, Hamilton, has been in the city a cou pie of days exhibiting a machine In city hall The offer was addressed to the mayor and board of aldermen and referred by the latter to this com- mlttee.
 Professor Charles Foster Kent open. ed the case, but stated that he was doubtful whether he could say he was for or against the matter He said he was not certain that the Associated Civic Societies would favor moro nt present than further experimentation by the purchase of a limited number of machines.
 Mir Hamilton then explained the proposition of his company. He declar- cd that the machine offered a great Im- proyement over the present ballot sys, tenn and told of instances where 1t had been adopted and was now considered the only thing in the voting line,
 Professor Irving Fisher favored a trial of the machines on limited scale, but was not prepared to advo- cate tho expenditure of the total , amount needed to equip the city al present. He queried regarding the life of the machines. to which Mir. Hamil- ton stated that about 5000 machines of the company were out which had i, never had any repairs made on them. z William I O'Brien strongly favored the machines. stating that he had held communications with other cities where machines were used and that they all spoke in the highest terms of them. Ernest L. Warden of the Associated Civic Societies and Arthur E. Booth took the same view that Professor Kent had expressed. Joseph ] Reilly prominent Trades Council man l spoke of the value of the machines as doing away with the counting and the troubles incident thereto.
 Arthur c. Graves led the opposition He said he thought the movement should come from the people rather than from a concern ont of town. Not he said, that he did not consider the action of the firm perfectly proper business action. He thought the bring ing of the people to a method of vot- ing by machines was not genuine way of purifying the electorate While there might be corruption under tho present system he declared he did no' think it bad enough to warrant turning the franchise into machine work. The present ballot he asserted called for q higher type of intelligence than tho machine
 Continuing. Mir Graves remarked that he believed 1t would be perfectly possible with machine to tell If 6 man voted straight or not c II. scran ton arose and vigirously defended tn, mechanical accuracy and value of thu machine He declared that while h, was not sure about the voting ma chine proposition he was convinced that mechanically 1t was all right ant that the statement that the ballo could be detected was unfounded
 Alderman Emil Loos also opposed tn machine, chiefly on the ground of tn difficulty of the average voter castinl his ballot as he wished.
 The committee has decided to lool up the election expenses of the cit and determine how much the machine would save Chairman Russell says h believes enough could be saved eac year to purchase one or two machines If the committee decides to make
 favorable report 1t will be for bon
 issue to fully equip the city at a cos of about s25,OOO.