Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-01-13

tickets, the essence Of tho matter being
that it shall be q secret method. The
definition as contained in the Interna-
tional Dictionary Is as follows: IA
method Of election or choice by voting
with a ticket or ball which are placed in
a box or urn in such manner that the
voter can conceal his choice il he SO de-
sires."
Now. gentlemen. We should not delude
ourselves with the idea that We are the
first body to have met with this propo-
sition and to have had the question put
up to US. The question has been before
the courts repeatedly in the several
states of this country, and l will ask
You to bear with me while l give you
some of the opinions or extracts from
them calculating this particular matter.
N the case of Brsbin VS.. Clary. %
MINI. los. the opinion of the court con-
tains these words: "Such an inquiry
shows that as applied to elections OF
public officers, voting by ballots signifies
mode of designating an electors choice
of person for Office by the deposit OF
ticket bearing the name Of such person
in receptacle provided for the purpose
in such a way as to secure to the elector
the privilege Of complete and inviolable
secrecy in regard to the person voted for.
This privilege of secrecy may properly
be regarded as the distinguishing feature
Of ballot voting as compared with open
voting. as for instance, voting viva voce
The object Of the privilege is the indie
pendence Of the voter"
The Kansas court which was con-
fronted with the question, said this:
1T Is conceded that the word ballot
means bit of paper having printed or
written thereon the designation of an
office and the name of the person who
wills it and that the person casting
it has the right to do SO with abso-
lutte secrecy
The Indiana court has gone to great
er lengths, deeming the matter one
which required not only the laying
down of its opinion but the giving Of
its reasons therefor and because Of
the special application of the argu-
ment there to the case in hand,
will read as follows. in the case Of
Williams against Stein SIS Ind. So.
There the court says:
The Constitution of Indiana re-
quires that AL elections by the peo-
pie shall be by ballot A statute was
passed by the legislature of that state
requiring the inspector of any election
in receiving ballot to have the same
numbered with figures on the back -
correspond with the number. placed
opposite the name of such voter on
the poll lists. The Court held that
this statute was void as being in con-
flict with the Constitution which de-
clareS that all elections of the people
shall be by ballot and further held that
by the ballot the Constitution secures
to the voter the protection and i'm
! muAity of secrecy The ballot i'm
plies absolute and inviolable secrecy"
The Court says:
According TO an article in the New
American Encyclopedia, the ballet
| did not necessarily imply secrecy in
Greece; but in Rome. during the re-
public, it did
A very able and instructive paper
on the subject of the ballot is found
in the Ency. Britannica. 1t may be
gathered from that article that n
France and Great Britain the term
ballot" implies absolute secrecy.
May. in his excellent work on the
Constitutional History of England
| thus speaks Of the ballot, at T. 355,
Vol. l.
The ballot is another question re.
peatedly debated in Parliament and a
| popular topic at the Hastings, at pub
lie meetings, and in the newspaper
press. No sooner had the reform act
passed, than complaints We're made
that the elective franchise, so recently
enlarged, could not be freely exer-
cised. II was said that the landlords
I in the counties. and wealthy custom
ers in towns, coerced the free willsof
the electors and forced them to ve,e
against their opinions and consciencec.
AS protection against such prac-
tees, the necessity of secret voting
! was commended for. To give the fran
chise without the means of exercising
/ it. was declared to be a mockery.'
! Then they go on to say: The COM
mon understanding in this country
certainly is, that the term ballot i'm
dictum TO the contrary The Supreme
| Court of Pennsylvania, in a case in
! volving the validity of an election,
| held, that an eagle printed on fhe tick
ct as a party badge, violated a Ger
| tain law, since it deprived a vote OF
| that secrecy to which he was enti-
| tied in the exercise of his franchise, so
as TO avoid the odium and violence OF
party prejudice"
! In the case of People vs.. Pease, q "
Y. A, which was an action in the nature
Of quo warranto, DEMO. chief justice
/ uses the following language: Il have
/ already alluded to the policy OF the law
providing for secret ta.lot. The right
| to vote in this manner has ,sla.ly been
| Hn"H"Hn NJ ~ ~"