The Washington times., 1920-08-19
100000 SUFF
VOTES IN ND.
Number Taxes BaIIotlng System
in State-EIection Super
visors Have Big Job.

BALTIMORE. Aug. 1o.-The rati-
ncstion by Tennessee of the suffrage
amendment 10 the Federal Constitu-
ton confers citizenship on approx
mately 800. 900 Maryland women. and
provides the State with that number
| OF new voters, that Is assuming that
| there Is a woman eligible to vote for
I each male voter.
There may be more. but II is doubt
| full N registration Will show II. IL is
| likely that a large number OF women.
who have been Indifferent to suffrage,
will not bother. either to register or
| to vote.
READY FOR NEW VOTERS.
The passage of the amendment did
not fnd Maryland unprepared. al
though this State had refused to- ratify
! the amendment at the session OF the
| legislature last winter. Governo,
Ritchie had received an opinion from
Attorney General Armstrong In which
| Il. Was stated that in the event of the
passage of the amendment no new
lC Cgislation would have to be enacted
| TO enable Maryland women to regis
ter and vote, and he had instructed
| the election supervisors to provide
| sufficient books for the registration
of the women. This has been done.
The difficulty in the situation, 50
| far as Maryland women are concerned,
| is physical and not legal. 1t Is ques-
| tion whether the registration ofncials
will be able to register all who Will
want to get their names on the books
or whether those who register can be
voted on election day by the present
force of election officials.
| Governor Richie said yesterday
| that nothing would be left undone to
facilitate the registration and the vot-
ing of women.
| The only thing that an extra ses-
sion of the legislature could provide
to facilitate the registering and the
voting of the women would be addi-
tional registration days and to split
up precincts in the city and counties
so as to facilitate the casting OF the
votes on election day. 1t Is believd
there would be so much confusion In
any rearrangement of precinct. dis
trict and ward lines that 1t would be
better to handle the situation in the
best manner possible under the pres
ent arrangements and to make any
| necessary changes in the election laws
at the next regular session of the leg
islature in the light of the experience
to be gained next November.
TWICE AS MANY VOTERS.
1t is estimated that the granting OF
| the suffrage to women will just about
double the number Of voters in Mary
land. There are now registerd in Bal
timore city 1913 voters, and IL there
| Is a woman voter for every man, there
will be 286,39O. There are approx
mately 10000 voters in the counties,
and the action of Tennessee has prob
ably doubled the number who are en-
titled to registration, making the total
800. 900. and giving the State voting
population of between $50. 900 and
SOC, 900, or about 100000 more voters
than it had yesterday morning.
The city is divided into 3S2 pre-
cincts with an average of 400 voters
to a precinct. This number being as
large as experience has shown can
be voted comfortably in the course
of a day. and their ballots counted
| in a reasonable time. Doubling the
number of voters is going to throw
more work on the election officials.
not only to get the vote, in, but to
count it.
Election officials are OF the opinion
that unless the voters go to the polls
in a steady stream all day, there will
be many who will be unable to get
into the polling rooms at all. and that
there will be hardly a precinct in the
city from which the returns can be
had before midnight, and many from
which they will not. be had before
daylight next morning.
County returns always are much
later in getting in than those Of the
city, and it is expected that in many
of the county districts the election
officials will be counting ballots all
night
One reason why fewer women will
be registered in time for the Novem-
Der election. in the counties than in
the city is the fact that there will be
only two registration days in the
counties, September % and October
8. while in Baltimore city there will
be five days for registration and one
day for a revision of the lists.
The registration days in Baltimore
will be September 81 and % and Oc-
tober 8, 6 and 8, with October II for
revision day. The hours Of registra-
ton in the city are from noon until
10 D. m, while in the counties the
offices are open from a. m. until
z n m.