The midland journal., 1917-01-05


anted to deal with the Democratic
ader and he offered them two dol
rs apiece to stay away from the
Ills. This they would not do be-
use such action would have for
tied the three dollars promised
lem He, therefore, promised them
vo dollars apiece to keep their feet
icing outward when behind the cur
in of the election DGoth, so that he
build see tnat they were not mark
lg the ballot, and hand in their un-
harked ballots to the ballot clerk
his they did and when the votes
Fere counted, there were twenty
lree ballots with no marks on them
nd the negroes received the sum of
/ I'VE dollars for exercising their
rights as voters.
| Our election laws including the
so-called corrupt practices act, facil-
itate the use of large sums of money,
while limiting the amount of money
candidate may contribute to his
own cause. This limitation may be
limit the amount of money which
may be paid by others into the party
treasury. It would be better to
have no limitation whatever upon
the amount that the candidate can
contribute than to have no limitation
on the amount others may contri-
butte. The candidate who is inbedt-
ed to others for the major part of his
campaign expenses becomes the
slave of others if elected. His first
allegiance will not be to the public
which elects him but to the private
individuals who make his election
possible.
Just as there is no limitation upon
the amount of money treasurers may
handle, SO there is practically no
limitation upon it's disbursement.
They may appoint sub-treasurers in
every election district, and these sub
treasurers may and do pay out
money with the utmost freedom and
upon the baldest pretenses of SER
vice. The owner of an automobile,
the use Of which at $500 would be
excessive, receives $4,000, it being
thoroughly understood, but never
expressed in terms, that the vote OF
the owner and the votes of his
family go with the machine. This
is new-fangled species of property
vote. The man whose services on
the farm are we'll compensated
$3.50 a day, finds himself the re
cipient of $500 for the Performance
of a public duty, being employed
ostensibly as watcher, messenger or
in some other unnecessary way. The
calculating commercial voter sits on
fence within hundred feet or SO
of the polls until the hour of closing
the election approaches when he
slowly moves toward the pclline
place, after first making satisfactory
arrangements for his lost days work
with that party at the polls, which
is most appreciative of his descent
from the fence and journey to the
ballot box.
In one town in Prince George
| County at the last election, two bust
ness men within one hundred yards
of the polls demanded $2.C0 a piece
before they would vote their own
party ticket They would probably
deny having sold their votes. but on
the other hand would not perform
their public duty or agree to do so
unless paid. They might be excused
as being too old to know better. but
a more regretable thing was that two
young men just returned from a tour
Of service with the militia on the
Rio Grande, did exactly the same.
A law capable of such evasion is
worse than no law at all.
can not in the course of these
articles deal with all the defects of
our corrupt practices act or with all
phases of corruption. I do not de-
sire to convey the impression tina.
corruption is more prevalent today
than it was, let us say twenty five
years ago, except that the election
of 1896 familarized a certain por.
ton of our population with the idea
that it was entirely legitimate for &
man to be paid for voting his own
party ticket, and that the man re
ceiving money therefore was s,
much to the good. When we recall
the old days before the Australia
ballot came into being. when the re
cipient of money held the ballet
handed him above his shoulder as he
approached the ballot booth so tha'
the bribe giver could see that he wa
Ngetting his moneys worth, we arc
bound to believe conditions today,
when the ballot is practically secret,