Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-03-25
18th MAINE LEGISLATURE.
Continued from Page six.)

as 1t applies to the sending of all bal
lots within "a hours to the secretary
of State. The section is somewhat
complicated but it means substantially
this, that within "a hours after the
close of the polls the ballots shall be
sealed. put into the express office pre-
paid and sent to the secretary of State
at Augusta, and that he shall be the
custodian of the ballots of every cleo
ton In every town. plantation and city
in the State of Maine. 1t further pro-
VideS in Section Eight, Mr.. Chairman,
that after obtaining the custody of all
the ballots used at the last election
that any candidate or other interested
person may inspect all these ballots
so returned in the presence of the Sec
rotary of State or in the presence of
the clerk in his office whom he may
designate for that purpose, and after
they have been inspected they will
again be sealed mp and marked that
they were inspected at certain time,
and still be in the custody of the sec
rotary of State; and if any other per-
son for long, period of time wants to
inspect them under those conditions
they may come from all over the State
and inspect them in the presence of
the secretary of State or in the pres
ence of the clerk in his office.
The practical question. Mr.. Chair
man, is this: Shall the people of
Maine who have counted the ballots in
open town meeting, who have had the
ballots inspected by their municipal
officers and their town clerks and the
record made up accordingly, shall they
Cllrrpn1ar ari1nnpa that
proves their record to be correct? Shall
they surrender that record of what
they have done into the hands of any
one man or his clerk? DO the people
of Maine want that done or would
they rather have the ballots remain
in the care and custody of their own
municipal officers or their town clerks
and in the custody of their own towns.
] can easily see, Mr.. Chairman. that
after ballots have been returned to the
office of the secretary of State and
after these several inspections have
taken place there may be a question
arise between the secretary of State
or his clerk in his Office as to whether
the ballots are the same as they were
when they We're inspected in the town
or in the plantation. And in case
THERE ever tolilt d GbiiillCt lear
the people of the State of Maine would
not be satisfied to be bound by the
statement of the secretary of State or
his clerk when opposed to that of their
town officials. There has been a time
in the history of this State, not a great
many years ago. when the Capitol at
tempted to count a Legislature not
elected by the people, and attempted
10 do so by a change of the returns IN
the office of the secretary of State;
and the time may come, Mr.. Chair
man, when even the State of Maine,
no matter under whichever political
party it may be. may not have in the
secretary of States office a man. like
Caesars wife, above suspicion. there
may come a time when the clerk in
the secretary of States Office here in
the Capitol may not be the best court
of last resort to sit and settle this
question between the people and the
politicians here in the Capitol as to
who is elected or who is not when the
ballots have been counted. l don't think
the Democratic party wants to go on
record as taking from the people of
Maine the authority for their own To-
cal self government and put il into
the hands of any POLITICIANS here ut
the Capitol, no matter what party they
belong 10. When YOU take the ballots
Of the State of Maine in every town.
city and plantation and place them
here in the custody and in the charge
of one man and his servants and allow
the Inspection under the circumstances
set forth here you have destroyed the
confidence of the people in the servant
If you would approve such n bill as
this.
do not wish to accuse anybody of
trying to change our election laws for
political purposes, but you never could
get the people to believe if you should
pass this law but what it is done for
the purpose of taking from them their
rights. AS for these little errors which
creep into the town clerks reports.
like some VIC had at the last election,
it is not the fault of the law; those
are little errors which almost anyone
might make. i have no objection to
your ballot boxes being changed and
made uniform, but where the mu-
nicipa1 officers of the towns, cities and
plantations have counted the ballots,
when they have inspected them and
when they have made up their rec
ord they shall retain them in their
hands as proof of what they have
done, and they should not be turned
over to anybody else; and if there are
any amendments made to this law al
lowing those ballots to be inspected
by the proper authorities and on prop
err occasions afterwards. l agree to
that and you will agree to that; but
the final keeping of those ballots. it
seems to me, must be in the hands of
the people themselves through their
properly constituted officials at home.
! say, MIR. Chairman, that it seems to
me that it is our duty to see that that
section and those parts of the section
that say the ballots from home shall
come up here to the Capitol to be put
into the hands and custody of one
man is wrong.
Mr.. DUMMY of Turner. Mr.. Chair
man, / would like to say just word
upon that point. / noticed at the last
election when these official ballots
came, from Augusta to our town.
don't know how it is with others, but
you can answer for worcestershire
official ballots were rot counted cor