Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-08-26

DEFENDING LAW VIOLATIONS

DEFENDING Law VIOLATIONS,
1t 10 natural perhaps. that County
Clerk Cannon. the recognized politi-
cal leader of the Democratic party in
this county. should come to the
rescue of the nth ward election
oficsrs as he does in a communities
ton which we publish today. These
election officers are accused of in
competency and their removal from
the election board has beer request
I'd.
Mr.. Cannon has. perhaps, allowed
hts ardor in defense of his party col
leagues to lead him slightly astray
as TO exactly what was said in the
EVENING NEWS in commenting on
the matter. He refers to our editor
ial of Thursday evening in which he
says wa LAY great stress on the fact
that had school teachers been on the
board Of the fifth ward there would
have been no funny business
There was no mention Of school
teachers in our editorial on Thurs
day. In an editorial on Saturday,
however, in commenting on the Ger
an law and the safeguards it is sup
posed t place about elections, we re-
ferred to the fact that an effort WAS
made to have embodied in 1t a pre-
vision that I'm school teachers
should be engaged to take charge of
the polling places during election
but that a compromise was made
whereby the county Judge might ap-
point school teachers II he wanted
to, but usually he didn't want to. We
went on to say that where there had
sscsn I'M election officers in past
elections the elections in the polls
where they had charge was most
satisfactorily conducted and the
count was quickly and accurately
made. We said that it is "a safe bet
that with the right kind OF women
in charge there would not be any
fanny business such as was brought
ut in the fifth ward last year"
Mr.. Cannon lays great emphasis
n the fact that there was a school
eacher on the election board In the
tcond poll of the fifth ward. We
ire well aware of the fact, but the
.prinkIing of a few school teachers
lcre and there at the various poll
ng places throughout the city, with
.arely two teachers to be found at
any one polling place, means moth
ing except, possibly, an attempt TO
discredit teachers entirely as poll
clerks, making them the goat"
when anything goes wrong.
According to Mr.. G%annon's ready
explanation Of the situation in the
fifth ward last year the Republican
member who was writing the names
of the voters in the book. which in
itself is contrary to law, missed a
few votes during the rush of the
closing hours and did not get down
adj the names OF the persons who
voted. In the first place, the law
does not intend that the two election
officers of one party shall have
charge Of the books and the two OF
the other party have entire charge
Of the ballot box. There should be
n Republican and one Democrat at
the books and one Republican and
n Democrat should be at the ballot
box. This was not done. OF course,
the law was also grossly violated in
having one of the election officers
sign the poll book instead OF having
the voter sign in person. The law
requires that the signature of each
voter be compared with his sigma
ture on the registration book as a
means Of Identification. How could
such a comparison be made when
one election officer did all the sign
ing?
But in Mr.. Gannon's opinion what
txer blame there is in the fifth ward
asts with the Republican member
.sor not getting all the names written
n during the rush before the polls
.osed. 1t is natural. perhaps. for
Democratic leader to place the
lame on the Republicans But as
lly Democrats were In charge OF
he ballot box. what Is to prevent
he Republicans claiming that the
smocrats made a mistake" and
laced more ballots In the box thar
1cre were actual voters? Such
ing has been done In other places
I'D 1t is to guard against this pos
3ii.ry that the law is made so strict
In other words. might not the Re
9u5licans claim that they surely az
;et all the anne of all the voters
ven though an election officer wrote
n all the names himself. and that I
here were more ballots in the bob