Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1921-03-09
REPRESENTATIVES
VOTE BY MACHINERY
UNIQUE ELECTRICAL APPARATUS
IN HOUSE SUGGESTS MAGIC
IN RECORDING VOTE.
MANY BILLS BEFORE soLoNs
House and Senate Return After Re.
cess for Ten Days Over the
March Settlement Period.
fRx G. u. Caswell..
Des Moines, March Z,

, Z. .
A unique feature of the present
session Of the Iowa General Assembly
that has not heretofore been men
toned to any extent Is the new cleo
trio voting machine used In the
House Of Representative.
1t is magical.
Think Of a. machine that will per-
NIT 10S members to vote all at the
same time, show how every member
votes, permit the announcement Of
the result, and then photograph the
names Of the members with the
marks Indicating how they voted and
have the developed and printed pho
tograph on the desk OF the CHIEF
clerk-all in one minutes time.
II that is not magic, 1t is inventive
genius, and the General assembly at
the session two years ago voted $780,
600 for the apparatus that now makes
all this possible.
Visitors in the House chamber have
wonderingly viewed the large board
high up in front over the Speakers
desk. with ali the names Of members
printed thereon in large white let
ters. They have been amazed when
suddenly this board was all lighted
up with red and blue and white lights
for few seconds to be followed by
an announcement Of the vote by the
Speaker who does not even look up
at the board, and then the sudden
disappearance Of all the lights, leav-
ing the names as they were on the
board.
Taking the Vote.
A bill for an act is before the
House. 1t has been duly presented
and perhaps argued at length. The
time has come for a vote, and Mr..
Speaker announces the bill is ready
for passage, instructing the clerk to
prepare the machine. Almost instant
" there is clicking Of locks, as the
members insert keys In the voting
locks that are on their desks. Turn
ing the key in this lock one way
causes a red light to show. and the
red light votes Eyes. Turning the
Key back to the right causes blue
light to show on the board. and the
blue light votes "No." A white light
may also be shown il member de-
sires to simply vote present and not
take sides.
As the lights show on the board
above, all members glance upward to
note their own names and prove that
their vote is being correctly shown
on the board. II for any reason the
machine has become out OF order in
any respect and vote is recorded
wrong thereon the member can call
attention to the fact, and have his
vote recorded properly by the clerk.
This is aAincident that occurs very
rarely, however.
Speaker Notes the Result.
Looking down at the desk in front
of him Speaker McFarlane presently
asks, Have all voted?' And If there
is no response, down comes the gayel
and the vote is closed. He then
states Zone hundred (or any other
number) have voted, eighty-five vot-
ing aye and fifteen voting no-the
measure has carried" The speaker
is enabled to thus instantly announce
the vote by reason Of a couple Of in
dicators under glass cases in the top
of his desk. These indicators are cir
cular and each has pointer like the
pointer on some kinds of self
lating scales you have seen. The
pointer in the yea glass swings slow
ly around to the exact figure shown
by the number Of yea votes or red
lights on the name board above his
desk; likewise the pointer in the no
glass swings around to the number
Indicated by the blue lights on the
board-and he has the result plainly
and beyond dispute. He then strikes
on the desk with the gavel and in
a few seconds more the lights on the
board above disappear as by magic.
How Record Is Kept
You might think that when the
lights have thus been turned off, even
: