The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-02-23
Massachusetts Ballot Law Beat
en- in the Senate.
Will Be No Nonpartisan Elec-
tiOns in Kansas.
TRAVIS INTO MOUNTAIN
Senator Spurned Overtures of
the Administration.
Offered Concession to Vote for
Initiative and Referendum.

After an hour of heated argument,
the Massachusetts ballot bill was this
morning slaughtered in the senate. BY
a vote of Is to 13. the SO line first
paragraph-the backbone of the bill
was removed and the enacting clause
followed on the next division.
1t was this bill, originally prepared
in the minority caucus, that was to re-
move the circle, the bald eagles, the
| donkeys and kindred embIems of dis
| t1nct1on- The measure also provided
| that names of candidates should be
run IN the same column under a single
line head of the office and that the
candidates party affiliations should be
designated after the names. There was
a further provision that the state bal
lots and constitutional amendments
should be printed at the state print
ing plant. Another slap at the print
ers. The rate of printing was also re-
| duced to a considerable extent
But the section that brought real
tears from the soulful patriots was the
few lines which declared that no cleo
| tion judge should assist a voter except
for physical disability These public
| spirited members pointed with horror
to the defenseleSS position Of the un-
| fortunate gent who did not carry a.
| college certificate and relied on the
1
cramped up donkey to guide their po-
| litical destiny. They deplored the fact
| that a man must wade through sew
| eraI feet of closely printed matter with
no star to guide his footsteps and that
his final decision and guess might be
| for the very fellow against whom he
| desired to vote. They called upon the
| gods to pave safe path for the hun
dreds whose college training had been
neglected and would be permitted to
| hrTltr
ment of which they knew nothing.
On the other hand, StavelE of Usage
| county declared that the bill was a
good thing and that man who could
neither read nor write had little reason
/ for being turned loose in a booth to
decide on the destiny of his country.
Carey of Reno very gratefully offered
to settle the entire difficulty with his
motion to strike out the first section.
But this motion did not harmonic
things in the least.
Senator Hodges read opinions from
Senator Lodge of Massachusetts, in
which Lodge said the ballot was a
good thing and registered up under
| the pure food and drug act. He fur
ther cited opinions from Charles e.
! Hughes former governor of New
York, in which Hughes ventured a
guess that the law was filing long
| felt want in the pubic's bill of neces-
sities Then Hodges urged the senate
to try the measure on Kansas, but the
senate was inattentive and shocked the
minority leader by abusing the bill
generally.
Even many of the insurgents and
| original reformers objected to the plan
| Quincy, Brady, Stannard, and Ganse
| all objected to the bill. Reed and
Stewart declared that it would be
necessary to take several days off
every two years in order that people
might have ample time to wade
through the long winded provisions OF
/ the law They declared that double
the present number of election judges
and clerks and voting precincts would
be necessary If the Massachusetts plan
was tried.
Potter, of Marion, who is chairman
of the committee which reported the
| bill and substituted the minority meas
ure for one of Republican vintage, ad
vocated the passage of the BILL He
/ said it was a modernized system of
voting and that Kansas needed it. Iie
| pointed to the saving in printing the
bill and urged that it was not po-
| litical issue, but that the measure
should be supported irrespective OF
| party alignment. He was under fire
from opposition members while on the
floor and President Hopkins twice
called Senator Carey to order when he
pushed jokes at the Peabody man.
The roll call on the removal of the
4 working parts of the bill was as fol-
! lows:
i For-Bender, Brady, Brewster, Brown.
Caldwell, Cambern, Carey. Denton,
Fagerberg, Fowler, Ganse, Glenn, Har-
ris, Hostrup. Lower, Mflligan, Over
field, Porter, Price, Quincy, Reed,
Stannard, Stewart. Stillings, Travis.
Total, 25.
Against Anderson. Avery, Cooke,
Hamilton, Hodges, Huffman, Milton,
Murphy. Myers, Potter. Robertson,
Smith StaVelV. Total, 13.
There is a lively time in the senate
this afternoon over the passage of the
Porter bill divorcing the Pittsburg
training school from the Emporia state
: normal. The bill was called up on
. third reading shortly before noon and
! Porter and his seatnate, Potter, spent
the remainder of the morning session
in an argument of the merits of their
cause.
Porter and Potter seldom agree Con-
seauently when Porter urged the pas
sage of his bill. Potter took excep-
J ton. The Crawford county man had
told the senate that the school, which,
was established in 1903 had grown
from an eArolIment of 143, with a fac
ulty of three members: until at the
present time 927 students are enrolled
and 81 instructors are employed. He
said the school was able to sit up and
look about, that it did not want to be
maintained und a separate board of
regents, but that it felt it was en-
titled to an individual, resident head
Then Potter brought out the forgot
: ten pork barrel and declared that d
raid was being made on the state
: treasury. that three other schools had
been planned to further the cause and
that things were in bad shape gener-
: ally To these remarks Porter took ex
ception He quoted figures and sta
D tistics, but Potter still urged that there
/ was an organized loot on the stats