Show THE australian BALLOT THE australian ballot is spoken of as mom something om ething new discovered or invented by the present generation the fact is the system is very goldso old so old that it runs back to primitive times of course where absolute monarchies prevailed there was no need of a ballot among aloag the th ancient jews who in a measure were a self governed people it at least before the king period a system of casting lots was observed in the sai lection of persons for office or authority tho rity it is true that hat even in this scheme it was believed that god would send the right lot to the right man anyhow it to is to this primitive source that historians trace the first idea of a secret ballot A ballot system prevailed among the ancient greeks originally a pebble or small stone was used A whole one meant an affirmative and a perforated pebble a negative later on the pebble gave way to an official form wade made of bronze and stamped there were different methods observed for the election of the various officers for some it was merely a show of hands for others by lot and still for others white and black beaus beans were used this latter system led to the habit of calling hungry office seekers bean eaters what was known as ostracism among the greeks was carried out by a strictly private ballot when a leader made himself so obnoxious that neither party could tolerate him a vote of exile was ordered each person wrote the name on a piece of shell and put it secretly into a box if a majority of the votes thus cast called an official to leave the country he must do so and remain away ton ten years it bajan easy method of getting rid of demagogues but u unfortunately philosophers were thus sent away by the tricks of politicians aristides the just was thus banished and he oven even wrote bais his own name on at a shell for an illiterate person because the politicians clans raised tile he cry of exile for him it was such oases oam of injustice as this which finally led to the abolition of the custom what to is known as aa the he australian ballot among us was introduced into rome borne two centuries before christ fach each voter received a wooden shingle covered with wax on this were written the names of all the candidates the voter then made a hole in the wax in front of the name he wished elected to office then placed his tablet in the ballot box but with the fall of the republic passed away the necessity for a ballot system during the middle ages the ballot was used in many of the italian lic sand in other governing bodies in various countries it was in hose days that the system of electing the pope was adopted this embraces a very perfect ballot as far as secrecy is con corned but it to is entirely too complicated and technical for popular bodies in electing a doge of venice perhaps the most elaborate system of voting ever adopted was in the politician made himself so potent in venice that all sorts of schemes were tried to baffle his trickery the plan adopted at last was so complicated and so full of nonsensical detail that thac it probably hastened the he fall of the littlon republic the hungarians Hung arians a century ago voted with sticks six feet long each bach voter ws wis given a stick which he placed in a compartment that bore the name of his favorite candidate the largeness of the stick was adhered to because small ones could be and thus the stuffing business be carried out paper ballots are now used there in nearly every country a system peculiar to itself prevails in greece at present little lead balls are used as a ballots in italy stamped official offic tal tul papers are given to voters in france the ballot system is in something the same as the older forms in the united states england uses the australian system about twenty eight or thirty of the states now use some form of it but it is far from being a modern invention ven tion andin anden and in the past it was not found equal to the crookedness of politicians |