Evening star., 1944-07-13

DN SOIlSI COO, buV
not the New York Governor.
1t seems to be agreed that the
percentage of New York men and
women in the Army, Navy, marines.
Coast Guard, Merchant Marine, the
WAC and the Army Nurse Corps,
who succeed in voting next fall will
be much the smallest percentage OF
those from any important North
ern State.
Following passage OF the New
York State law back in March, when
its full effect was understood, Gov.
Dewey was urged to reconvene the
Legislature so that the law might
be amended. Among those appeal
ing for such action was the New
York City Council. A very special
appeal was made by James A. Far
lev, who, over a Statewide radio
network, said:
Gov. Dewey, on behalf OF our
hundreds of thousands of citizens In
the armed forces, and confident that
I am voicing the sentiments OF
their loved ones at home, I ask you
to convene the Legislature at the
earliest possible date to amend the
present So-called soldier vote law,
removing its obvious defects and
making it so workable that we all
Democrats, Republicans and indie
pendents-can acclaim it as real
statute that will make it, to use
your own words, a perfectly simple
solution to the problem
Appeals Unanswered.
These appeals have gone un-
answered.
Meantime, however, the State War
Ballot Commission convened a
meeting of representatives of all the
Boards of Elections in the State.
The call for the meeting said: The
War Ballot Commission has i'm
PEELED this meeting in order that
there may be a unified and correct
Interpretation of the new war ballot
law, concerning which we are SO
uncertain"
The meeting resulted in the an
nouncement of a "liberalizing inter-
pretation" of the law about which
the ballot commission was so un-
certain" 1t is Mr.. Farley's opinion
that the liberalizing Interpretation
actually adds to the uncertainties
of voting so far as men in the armed
services are concerned. He believes
that under the ballot commissions
interpreta ton it may be possible
to throw out almost all<of the over
seas vote. even the small number
likely to reach the election boards
four days before election day as
required under the State law
All in all, the former Democratic
national chairman seems to find the
New York Governors handling of
the soldier vote quite as repugnant
as he finds the fourth term. In
that same broadcast he used some
rather large language He called
the law "a monstrosity. reservoir
of antiquities, and a perpetra ton
of deception"
Not So Simple.
This soldier-voting issue is not as
simple as this column makes it
seem. 1t is so complicated, in fact,
that hours or even days could be
spent in legal debate over the pro-
visions of the State law. After No.
vember 7 plenty of hours and days
doubtless will be spent in legal de-
bate. The views indicated here are
merely those of men who have had
experience in getting out the vote
and getting it counted.
One phase of the question. how
ever, is relatively simple. New York
requires that a soldier, to vote in
the primaries, must appear in per-
son. In New Jersey soldier does
not have to appear in person or even
make personal application for his
ballot; the State itself registers all
absent voters and on August Is bal
lots 60 to all those who have been
registered. Should any one fail to