The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1913-07-22
Secretary of Territory Mott-Smith
Points Out Features of
New Measure.

Violations of the spirit or letter of
the new primary law, save as TO fraud.
uient voting carry no penalty except
such public shame as may be visited
upon the malefactor, said Territorial
Secretary +. A. Mott.Smith last night,
while explaining the new primary law
to members of the Republican county
committee.
During his concise and lucid explana.
tlon of the statute and its purpose,
Mott-Smith called attention to that sec.
ton which provides that no person
shall sign nomination papers of more
than one person for the same office.
He said that while it was presumed
that Republicans should sign for Re-
publicans, and Democrats for Demo.
Gratis, there was no penalty for violat.
ing the. pledge appended to the effect
that the signer intended 10 support the
candidate and the party which he claim
ed to represent. He said that with the
secret ballot there was no way of de.
termining whether a man kept faith or
not, and that the only remedy was to
make him feel the weight of public dis.
pleasure if found out.
No Platform Provision.
The speaker mazda it plain that while
the purpose of the primary law was to
do away with conventions, there was
nothing to prevent the holding of con.
ventions before the primaries. But he
pointed out that there is no provision
under the new primary law for form.
ing platform for forcing a man to
abide by his platform or for controlling
his vote at general election. The law,
he said, contained provision requiring
candidate to stand by his platform,
but made no provision for a platform.
Secretary Mott-Smith explained that
the primary ballot could carry any
number of parties, providing the word
party complied with its definition as
regular political organization with n
county committee and a central com
mittee. He explained how a candidate
receiving a majority of registered votes
cast would be elected at the primaries
without further ado, and that in de-
fault of majority the high man among
the primary candidates ON each ticket
would make the race at the general
election, this with the exception of the
non-partisan or independent candidates,
each of whom receiving twenty per
cent of the registered vote cast, would
become candidate at the general cleo
ton.
Convention Is Possible.
The speaker said that it would be
entirely possible to hold a convention
and name a candidate who should re.
ceive the support of the party at the
primaries, but that there was nothing
to prevent disgruntled member of the
same party, securing fifteen signatures
and running on the same ticket against
the convention nominee. The primary
law, does prevent, he said, the entrance
in the field of any candidate after the
primaries and before the general cleo
ton.
The secretary said that he was at
work on a pamphlet, explaining the
primary law in its relation to the other
election laws, which he hoped to finish
before he left office.
He said that as a result of expert
ment, he had learned that it was posi-
BILE that the ballot at a primary pre-
ceding general election may measure
two feet in width and be about six feet
long, if the present type and arrdhge-
ment is used.
He said that in his opinion there were
several serious defects in the law but
there was no necessity of calling atten.
tion to them at this time.