Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1921-03-10

VOTE BY MACHINERY
HOUSE AND SENATE RETURN
AFTER RECESS OVER MARCH
SETTLEMENT PERIOD.
(By G.. L. Caswen)

1
1t is magical.
Think of a machine that will per-
NIT 1O8 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
photograph on the desk of the chief
clerk-all in one minutes time.
If that is not magic. 1t is invent
i've genius, and the General Assem-
bly, at the session two years ago vot-
ed $4,000 for the apparatus that
now makes all this possible.
Visitors in the House chamber
have wonderingly view the large
board up in front over the Speakers
desk with all the names of mem
bers printed thereon in large white
letters. They have been amazed
when suddenly this board was all
lighted up with red ana 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, leaving the names as they
were on the board.
Taking the Voue
( A bill for an act IS before the
House. 1t has been duly presented
and perhaps argued at length. The
time has come for vote, and Mr..
| Speaker announces the bill Is ready
for passage, instructing the clerk to
| prepare the machine. Almost in
stantly there is clicking of locks,
as the members insert keys In the
voting locks that are on their desks.
Turning the key in this lock one
way causes q red light 10 glow and
the red light votes "Yea.', Turn
ing the key back to the right causes
blue light to show pm the board
and the blue light votes mo" A
white light may also be shown IL a
member desires to simply vote pres
ent 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 rea-
SON the machine has become out of
order in any respect and vote is
recorded wrong thereon, the men,
Der can call attention TO the fact,
and have his vote recorded properly
by the clerk This is an incident
that occurs rarely. however. II
Speaker Notes the Result
| Looking down at the desk in front
of him Speaker McFarlane presently
4 asks, Have all voted?" And IL there
is no response, asaen comes his gavel
and the vote is closed. He then
states One hundred Cor any other
number have voted, eignty-five vot-
ing aye and fifteen voting no-the
measure has carried" The sneaker
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
circular and each has pointer like
the pointer on some kinds of self
calculating scales you've seen. The
pointer in the yea glass swings slow
~ 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 his 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 ey-
en- though the result of the vote has
been announced, there could be no
complete and detailed record of the
vote taken. Magis again-and more
wonderful!
Within small room back of the
name board above the speakers
desk are couple OF electricians
men of skill who keep this wonder
ful machine in order and do other
things. On their side of the board
are the names of all the members
Just as they are on the front or out
side OF the board, except that in
stead OF lights to indicate how the
members have voted are letters "Y,'
and IN" indicating yes or no.
These letters showing in wlite be-
side the names of the mem bers are
suddenly illuminated as by the
MONDAY sun when the electrician
turns on a couple OF powerful blue
white electric lights. Back of these
lights stands a peculiar-snaped cam
era, with the lens exposed and car
rying the reflection OF the names
on the board to some specially sem
sitized Photographic paper about s
by 10 inches in size. Turning a lit
Tie crank the operator runs a sheet
OF this paper down behind the lens.
taking the picture of the inside or
back OF the voting board. Turning
another little lever he cuts off the
sheet from its roll and runs II into
developer bath. In a few seconds
this photograph is developed and
the operator takes it out. puts IL
through a wringer that takes most
Oh the moisture out of 1t, rolls 1t up,
places the roll in a small cylinder
and the cylinder goes into a tube
that is connected with the desk Of
chief clerk down below.
Permanent Record Made
There is no. discounting or disput-
ing this vote after the clerk has this
photograph. There is the perfect
picture Of every name IN the House
membership. with the "Y'' showing
by the names that voted yes and the
| showing by the names that vot-
ed no. The clerk takes mis- time to
making up the record-but the next
day in the printed house journal APP
pears the complete list OF members
voting. how they voted, and the
number as announced by the Speak
er the day before. These photo
graphic records are then filed away
and kept for future reverence. No
member may complain mat ne is
wrongly recorded or that he was
absent or not when the vote was TAX
en-. The photograph will not lie
about 1t. and the printed record may
be verified at any time years after