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About The independent. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907 | View Entire Issue (July 2, 1903)
4 THE NEBRASKA INDEPENDENT - JULY 2, 1903. THE EFFECTIVE BALLOT Th Scad Iottslinaat of Mr. Wilwfltld'i Editor Independent: The effective ballot was devised by Sir John Hare, ft noted publicist of England, in 184C. It was later improved in details by Sir John Lubbocir, the eminent sci entist, and yet later perfected by Hon. Alfred Cridge of San Francisco, hence is often called the Hare-Cridge meth od of voting. The Misses Harriet and Helen Spence, of Adelaide, South Aus tralia, have added a few finishing touches and have been mainly instru mental in securing its adoption and practical test as the legal system in Tasmania, New Zealand and South . Australia, where it has fully justified the high claims of its advocates. It has also been used In some of the Swiss cantons and municipalities so successfully as to clearly demonstrate its great superiority over the older and cruder forms of proportional rep resentation and is coming into use in Denmark, Belgium and some English and Scotch municipalities and in cor porations. , The effective ballot Is not only the most perfect form of proportional rep resentation, but represents the will of the Individual voter as no other sys tem does. It is' also the most secret of all ballots and renders bribery, In timidation, etc., of voters Impossible. A false count is -scarcely possible un der It, as will be readily seen when It Is carefully studied. Experience shows the counting to be very rapid and free from errors. . NO SINGLE DISTltlCTS. v Being a form of proportional repre sentation, the effective ballot is not adapted to single districts, but re quires, as all forms of proportional representation must do, elections at large, or in districts from -which five or more candidates are to be e'ected. Congressmen could be elected at Targe in the states having ten or less and in two or three districts from the mor populous states. Representatives In the legislature and district judges should be chosen from districts of six to -ten and state senators the same, while county commissioners, aldsrmen of cities, etc., should be at large. Where but one candidate can be elect ed, as for president, vice president, governor, etc., there is no proportional representation to require such dis tricts, yet this method of voting works effectively in giving all parties a voice in securing a majority. THE METHOD OP. VOTING. The effective ballot contains the names of all candidates to be voted for, like the .present Australian bal lot, confined of course to the district or state, etc., and these names may be either in party columns as now, or preferably, in alphabetical order re gardless of party, as under the Mary land law. The latter method might at first puzzle a few illiterate voters, but would be a great incentive to indepen dent and intelligent voting. The voter in the booth marks his ticket, not with an X cross mark, but with the Arabic numeral figures, plac irg the figure one (1) opposite his first choice, or name of candidate he ir.oct desires elected, the figure 2 op posite his second choice, 3 to his third choice, and so on to as many candi dates as are being voted for. or as lie cares to mark. Of course he will make first choice, or No. 1, of the candidate most nearly representing his own political views, No. 2, or second choice, of the one who comes next nearest and so on, nrt marking for those squarely opposed to his ideas, or taking the best of the ones he con siders inimical to the public welfare bo as to defeat the mot objectionable candidates of that party. A man's political prejudice may induce him to vote for an incompetent or corrupt candidate in his own party, but in his f.cond, etc., choices from other par ties he will always select the least objectionable candidates. Ten years experience in Tasmania shows that other than first choice ballots invar iably defeat the most objectionable candidates and has compelled all par ties to select only good and competent candidates to stand any show of elec tion. . - COUNTING THE BALLOTS. When the polls have closed th whole number of ballots cast is di vided by the number of candidates to be elected, rejecting any remainder, which gives the electoral quoia, or number of ballots required to elect one candidate. A spindle or other file, as a needle and strong thread, an envelope or a box, is provided for each candidate and labeled with his name. As the ballots are drawn from the box for counting the judge calls out the name of the candidate marked No. 1' or first choice and the ballot Is placed to that file by another judge. As soon as any candidate reaches an electoral quota of first choice ballots I Eager Shoppers Crowded ' f e v m m our large store every day this week to take advantage of the great 25 per cent discount sale. Were you one of them? If not you'll be glad to know that 'there will be Many Bargains Next Week Odds and Ends and Remnants left from the rapid selling this week will be placed on special sale at prices even lower than at present. It is safe to predict there will be no other such values in Lincoln. h is declared elected and his -quota of ballots sealed up and removed from the count. This is continued until all the ballots have been distributed ta their first choice files, each ballot be ing numbered on its back by a judge as It is placed face downward on the spindle and by the clerks on the poll books opposite the name of its first choice candidate. It Is found by ex perience that few candidates have an electoral quota of first choice bal lots where there are more than two parties beins voted for. When all the ballots have been dis tributed the surplus ballots first choice ones above an electoral quota of candidates declared elected are distributed to the files of their second choice so long i.s needed to form a ouota, but if second choice is already elected or cannot be elected, to their third choice if effective there, and so on until they become effective in help ing to elect a candidate. When all the surplus ballots of elected candidates have been distri buted the files of the yet unelected candidates are examined and second choices transferred to ones having largest number of first choices until another receives an electoral quota, which is sealed and removed from the count When no more can be given a quota by second choices, then third etc., choices are used so long as a quota can be secured, but when a quota cannot be given, the candidates having fewest first choice ballots are declared beaten and the others to the number to be elected are declared elected. W. H. T. WAKEFIELD. Mound City, Kas. i$ i$ 8 J COMING CONVENTIONS S Republican, Lincoln, Aug. 18. s & Populist, Grand Island, Aug. 25. & & Democratic, Columbus, Aug. 25. j & ' & & & & S j v & dt s&s&s&ji Populist State Convantion - Pursuant to action taken at a meet ing of the state committee held in Lincoln, Nebraska, June 23, 1903, the electors of the people's independent party of Nebraska are hereby notified that on Tuesday, the 25th day of Aug ust, A. D., 19o, at 7:30 o'clock p. m., of said day, a state nominating con vention of said party will be held in the city of Grand Island, Nebraska, for the purpose of nominating candi dates for the following offices to be voted for at the general election of 1903: One candidate fo.' judge of the su preme court Two candidates for regents of the state university. Said convention is also called for the purpose of selecting a state cen tral committee of said party , and for the transaction of such other busi ness as may properly come before it. The basis of representation is fixed at one delegate for each county and one delegate for each 100 votes or ma jor fraction cast for Hon. John H. Powers for secretary of state at the general election of 02. The repre sentation of the various counties is as follows: Adams ........ '..i,. 17 Antelope 11 Banner - 2 Blaine 2 Boone 12 Box Butte 4 Boyd 7 Brown 4 Buffalo 15 Burt '. 9 Butler 17 Cass 19 Cedar . 13 Chase X Cherry : 5 Cheyenne 5 Clay 14 Colfax 11 Cuming 15 Custer 17 Dakota .'. o Dawes 5 Dawson 12 Deuel 3 Dixon 9 Dodge Z0 Douglas ..100 Dundy 3 Fillmore 16 Franklin 10 Frontier . 7 Furnas 11 Gage 20 Garfield 3 Gosper (5 Grant 2 Greeley 8 Hall .. 15 Hamilton 14 Harlan 9 Hayes :) Hitchcock 5 Holt 1C Hooker 1 Howard il Jefferson 12 Johnson 10 Kearney 9 Keith 3 Keya Paha 4 Kimball 2 Knox 14 Lancaster 34 Lincoln 9 Logan . 2 Loup 2 McPherson 1 Madison .. 14 Merrick 9 Nance . . , , 7 Nemaha , 14 Nuckolls 12 Otoe .....13 Pawnee 9 Perkins ,, 3 Phelps 9 Pierce ... j Platte . 17 Polk u Red Willow ............ .. s Richardson .. r. ....... 20 Rock rj Saline ia Sarpy 0 Saunders . 21 Scotts Bluff s Seward It". Sheridan Sherman ....... 6 Sioux ............................. ' Stanton 7 Thayer ...... 1 J Thomas . , 2 Thurston q Valley S Washington r. 12 Wayne 3 Webster . 11 W heeler 2 York 17 Total 951 It is recommended that th various county conventions elect an equal . number of alternates to the state con vention and that steps be taken to se cure, if possible, a full delegation to the state convention. - . The state committee will have head quarters at the Koehler hotel. By order of the state central com mittee of the people's independent par ty of Nebraska. B. R. B. WEBFR J. R. FARRIS, Chairman, Secretary. Missouri Pacific Excursions San Francisco, Los Angeles and re turn, $50, on July 1-10. Detroit, Mich., and return, $22.40. on July 14-15. Atlanta, Ga., and return, $3160, on July 5-7. Baltimore, Md., and return, $33.G5, on July 17-18. San Francisco, Ca!., and return. $45, on August 1-14. - . These are a few of the very cheap excursions via the I.iissouri Pacific during the summer, and if you are con templating a vacation and are not suited by any of the above points, send us your name with the point you wish to reach and we will be glad to quote lowest round trip rates for you. The Missouri Pacific takes youTia St. Loni3 the Wrorld's Fair City where you will have an opportunity "to visit the World's Fair grounds and other points of interest. City Ticket'Office, S. W. Cor. 12th and 0 sts. F. D. CORNELL, P. & T A. Do you need groceries? Write for one of Branch & Miller Co.'s com bination orders advertised in this is sue. It's a money saver. The Inde pendent guarantees satisfaction. Hun dreds of our readers have found them so. '