Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-03-12


party no longer had that supposed adj
vantage. The outcome was somewhat
different. and ii was charged--and l
don't know why we cannot suppose it
was charged with equal propriety, that
the Democratic party somehow or 9TH
er came to the view that perhaps after
all the old method of the Australian
ballot might be to it's advantage; and
il has been talked about more or less
in the State that that sort of consid-
Grafton had something to do with the
attitude of the last Legislature upon
his question. | don't know whether that
is true or not, but ii certainly seems
TO me that when We look at it from
the party standpoint or the political
standpoint, j. is as broad as it is long.
and those considerations may be as
they always should have been utterly
disregarded.
If we have disregarded the matter
in its political aspect, let us now get
at it on its own merits. | think the
mistake has been made in the past,
in more than one instance, of failing
too long to heed what was a popular
demand, when that popular demand
was for a right and for reasonable
thing. / think we Should not hesitate
here to do something if we are in
clined to support the motion that is
before the House We had better hes
itate and consider whether or not III
voting to Indefinitely postpone this
matter we are repeating the error and
not yielding to what the people want.
None of us can deny but what the
spirit of Progressive-ism is abroad.
We do not need to ally ourselves with
a party of that name in order to es-
pouse Progressive principles or to rec
ognize progressive demands. And right
here, it seems to me, if we good Re-
publieans or if we good Democrats be-
lieve in our respective parties, right
here is an opportunity to demonstrate
that we, as Republicans or we Us
Democrats can be progressive, and
hat we can recognize and heed pop.
ular call. ft
Now, gentlemen, is there any rna-
sons for that call, is there reason
sor that demand2 1t is not necessary
% inquire whether there is a reason.
1r not; if it exists and is well recog
1ized, that should be sufficient. But /
submit that there is every reason for
he demand: there is every reason in
good principle, in good honesty and
N good citizenship for the demand and
For asking a change in our system of
voting.
1t has been intimated that the con-
clusion is only a legitimate one from
he arguments which have been ad-
luced here on the other side that the
cal reason for retaining our present
system is that the party organization
palms shall be supreme, il is to de-
Drive the individual voter of express
ing to the full his individual prefer
nee. Now, however much we may
desire party organization. however
proper it may be for us during a cam
oaign by our efforts in speaking and
by our publications to win to our re-
spectiye parties the opinions and votes
If the people. have we the right to, so
legislate that when those people hav-
ing heard all the arguments and hav-
ing read all the campaign literature,
when they come to vote, have we
right to legislate so that they cannot
freely and fully and completely ex-
Dress their opinions and the conclu-
sions which they have arrived at? II
may be said that they can at the pres
mt time. You and / know that they
ean. You and l know that We may go
nto the booth. if we wish to split a
ticket we can mark our Democratic
square, which takes only an instant
We know that we can go in there. the
laboring man who is conscious that
people are watching him and that
tabs are being kept on what he is do
ing,-he can go in there and he has
he alternative presented to him of
making q cross in his column and
coming out. thereby giving the opinion
% those who have talked with him
hat he has done what they wanted
rim to do, voted a straight ticket
he can do that or else he can do the
other thing. He can take a sticker
one, two or three as he may wish, and
take his chance of getting them in the
wrong place, although that chance as
has been said is now largely elimi-
mated but in any event demonstrating
20 those who are waiting outside that
the party has split his ticket. He
knows that il is going to be known
that he split his ticket and that it is
kllOWH just ABOUT WHO he voted LOT
and how he voted.
Now, it is true that many people
who would desire to split their ticket
do not split it for that very reason.
You may say it is not a worthy rea-
son. You may say that man with
the courage of his convictions, ought
not to care, but the fact is thatAmany
people do care, and many people are
deferred from splitting their ticket
and voting in accordance with their
own opinion from that very consid-
Grafton.
1t has been said to change to the
Massachusetts ballot would deprive
somebody of voting a straight ticket
That l fail to see. If any man is 10
telligent enough and is willing to de-
vote the 80 seconds necessary to COM
pete the act, fail to see how he can
be deprived from voting a straight
ticket. All that he has to know is the
name of the candidate for whom he
wishes to vote and the nominees of
his own party, to pick them out on the
ballot and go right straight down
through and make a cross and mark
as he wants to vote for them If there
is any simpler method of voting a
straight ticket than that, would like