The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-11-14
ELECTION DIFFICULTIES,

, form. The last campaign showed ouI
laws can be They were restrictive OF
| popular rights, and destructive of in
dividual liberty in voting
The provision OF law forbidling the
carrying Of names Of candidates on diff
fcrcnt tickets WAS real grievance in
Il number Of eases. There is 10 rea'
son why the name of Superintendent
A. G. Nelson, for example, should not
have been upon every ticket that was
offered to the voters, because the three
leading parties all wanted him; and TO
rule him off any ballot. as he was ruled
off the Progressive ticket. was an in
Justice both to him and TO those who
were Progrcssives and wished to vote
for him. This restriction was put into
the law as partisan legislation directed
against the American party; but it re-
turned TO plague those who were it's
inventors. 1t is conspicuous exam
pie Of the evil of cpacting partisan
laws, especially when those laws ham
per the liberties OF the people and pre-
vent them voting as thew wish.
| Another difficulty was in leaving
the method Of voting as between the
machine and the Australian ballot to
the discretion of partisan commission
ers such as we have in Salt Lake coun-
| ty These commissioners scented an
advantage to their party in forcing
the use of the machines, and they or.
dered them used accordingly. II was a
vicious abuse of official privilege, for
which there ought to be punishment,
but unfortunately the law is silent on
this point.
There is agitation here also for what
is known as the short ballot. This
would mean. as applied to county of
fices, the election Of the county COM
missioners, and leaving them to ap-
point the other county officers. If
commissioners were Of impartial mind
and of ability sufficient to sense the
obligation they are under toward the
public, it might not be bad idea
but with such commissioners rs we
have generally had in this county, the
experiment would be an extremely dan
gerous one, for they would be certain
to build up vicious sort of imitation
Tammany which would be more un.
scrupulous, more arbitrary, and more
indecent than New York's Tammany
ever dared to be
Another proposition is to favor the
direct primary, but that has been such
a dismal failure everywhere that we
are surprised to see any vitality left
in it.
Other propositions are to pass a cor
rupt practice law, to abolish hauling
of voters free to the place of registry
and to the polls, to forbid the distri-
button of campaign literature on cleo
tion day, to abolish the paid worker
aud the campaign booster at the poll
ing places. We think it would be well
to abolish all of these, except the pro-
hibition against the distribution of
campaign literature on election day,
for. though the aim OF this proposition
is probably TO do away with election
canards and vicious and irresponsible
attacks on the candidates made too
late to be met, it still remains true that
the newspapers on election day might
be held to be campaign literature; but
the newspapers printed on election day,
both morning 'and evening. are depend
ed upon TO make last appeals TO the
voters. The newspapers are responsible
public agencies that are not likely to
indulge in any unsupported or vicious
election charges. But we agree that
the circulation of anonymous cards,
dodgers, or circulars, bearing vitupera-
tive and reckless charges against can
didates, or making false appeals, ought
TO be suppressed
In the country at large, great com
plant is made about the use Of vot-
ing machines, il being held everywhere
Just as it was held here, that the ma
chimes destroy the liberty of voting,
and virtually compel the majority of
the voters to vote straight tickets. To
be sure. it does not always occur that
this acts in favor of any one party.
1t IS as apt to work in favor of the
Democratic party at times as Of the
Republican party; in favor of the
Roosevelt party as much as in favor
of the Socialist party, But the we'll
supported allegation is that hundreds
OF thousands of voters all over the
United States, wishing TO vote for some
particular person or group Of candidates !
have been virtually compelled 10 vote |
for large numbers of other candidates |
on the tickets which carried the per
sons they wished to vote for and this, |
while these other candidates on that |
ticket, were not favored AZ all by the |
voters Indicated. That l., they felt |
that. they had 10 vote for men they |
didn t want, in order 10 vote for those |
they. did want. Therefore, the use Of |
the voting machines is generally con
dcmucI ha I,,,,