The National tribune., 1909-11-11
THE RESULT IN MARYLAND.


tions held last week was the defeat in
Maryland of the iniquitous Constitu-
tional amendment by a majority ap-
proximating 10000. This is spoken
of in the Associated Press dispatches
merely as a defeat of an attempt tO
!disfranchise the negro. This is an abb
surd pretext, and an attempt to gloss
over d most vicious proposition by an
IappeaI to race prejudices. The real
spirit and intent of the amendment
was not to disfranchise the negros nor
to rescue the State from negro domina-
tion, but to put the State politics for
ever in the control of q little gang of
politicians against whom the better
class of the Democrats in the State are
in revolt. 1t was the Democrats them
selves who defeated the amendment,
since, owing to the grossly unfair laws
which now prevail in Maryland, the
People outside of Maryland have no
conception and cannot be brought to q
realization of the extent TO which the
ring has gone to perpetuatc themselves
in power. There is a system reigning
there which the people of no State in
the North would submit to for day.
In the first place. there is no uniform
ity in the ballot law, but special ballots
are prepared for certain Counties III
order to throw out the Republican vote.
A special ballot is made for each
County, prepared with express refer
ence to this object. Under the law
elections are under the control of three
Supervisors in each County who are
appointed by the Governor. Two of
these are Democrats and one Il Repub-
lican. AS may be imagined, 10 Re-
publican is appointed in any County, if
it can be helped, who will stand in the
way of the designs of his two Demo-
cratic colleagues who are appointed for
the purpose of carrying the County.
The ballots are great sheets, nearly
five feet long. The voter is compelled
to go into a booth in which there is Il
narrow shelf about six inches wide, and
make up his ballot without assistance,
three minutes being allowed for this
The ballot must be folded in a peculiar
way. Here is where the trick fire.
quently comes in. No political en-
blems or badges are allowed to guide
men ne wants to vote for from this i'm
mense sheet, placing his cross exactly
inside the little circle opposite the
candidates name. If the mark extends
to the circle or beyond it the ballot
is thrown out. The Democratic can
didates are usually grouped together
in one small space on the first fold of
the ballot and separated from the rest
by heavy black line. The names
Of the Republican, Prohibition, Social
ist and other candidates are scattered
over the rest of the great ticket and
must be hunted out by the voter. To
further confuse him number of fake
candidates, usually men of similar
names or initials, are scattered thru the
mass. After hunting out and marking
the names of the candidates that he
wishes to vote for, the voter must fold
hand it to the judges.
In one County in the recent election
more than 500 ballots of Republicans
and others We're thrown out because
they were not folded properly. Some
thing OF this was done in every County,
and thousands of ballots were also
thrown out because the mark extend
ed to the circle or beyond it.
The Democratic voter is given no
trouble about the folding of his ballot.
since the names Of all his candidates
are in a bunch on the first fold, and
he does not have to open the sheet.
1t has been alleged that the judges,
when all other means for throwing out
opposition tickets failed, secretly draw
the crosses over the circle. There have
been many attempts to bring this ini-
quitous system before the courts, but
these have all failed. At the last cleo
ton Judicial proceedings were taken
TO prevent the ring candidates being
punched together and separated by a
black line from the others The At
torney General decided that this was
illegal. but the courts before which the
matter was brought decided that it was
out of their Jurisdiction.
Therefore, 1t seems that these tricks
must continue until they get so bad
that the moral sense of all the better
class of Marylanders will manifest
itself SO Indignantly that the ring will
be driven out Of power.
The shallow pretext Of negro doini-
nation is too absurd for serious con-