THE C U 



A REVIEW 



19 



VOTING MACHINES IN CUBA 



[^From Secretary Hugh S. Gibson, American Legation, Habana] 



A bill has been introduced in the Cuban 

 House for the adoption of voting machines 

 for use throughout the island. The bill 

 contemplates the appointment composed of 

 the secretar\' of Gobernacion. who will be 

 chairman, and two inembers of the House 

 of Representatives, chosen by that body — 

 one from each of the two political parties. 

 This committee is to invite manufacturers 

 of automatic voting machines to submit 

 specimen machines during a period of 30 

 days. Upon the expiration of that period 

 the committee is to examine the several 

 machines submitted. The committee may 

 employ mechanical engineers in making the 

 tests. A longer time than three days may 

 not be employed in testing any machine, 

 and the compensation of the engineer, if 

 employed, is to be paid by the owner of 

 the machine at the rate, of $5 per day. 

 Within 10 days after completing the 

 examination, the comrnittee must report to 

 the president of the republic, recommend- 

 ing the adoption of the machine which in 

 its judgment best fulfills the requirements, 

 offers greatest security, and is most accept- 

 able as to price and terms for sale. 



The following requirements are neces- 

 sary: 



Absolute secrecy of vote ; sufficient 

 capacity to permit voting for as many 

 parties as may be organized — there are 

 usually from three to five tickets — and on 

 as many questions as may be submitted 

 ad referendum ; names of candidates to be 

 placed in parallel horizontal lines, and the 

 designation of offices in columns perpen- 

 dicular to the names of candidates ; an ar- 

 rangement to permit the elector to vote for 

 any person for any office for which he has 

 a right to vote, and no more, and to vote 

 a "straight" or "split" ticket : an arrange- 



ment enabling the elector to vote for any 

 person whose name is not on the ticket, 

 and to vote for as many persons for a given 

 office as he is entitled to vote for, and pre- 

 venting his voting for a greater number; 

 an arrangement preventing the voter from 

 voting for more candidates than he has 

 a right to vote for; enabling the voter to 

 vote for or against as many questions 

 ad referendum as he has a right to vote 

 on ; an arrangement to note and register all 

 votes cast for each and all candidates and 

 in favor or against each and every ques- 

 tion submitted ad referendum; one or 

 more keys which will prevent operation 

 (if the mechanism of the poll register when 

 the polls close ; a protecting register or 

 counter that will prevent and register every 

 attempt at alteration or fraud made upon 

 the machine during, before, or after an 

 election : a counter or register showing 

 the exact number of voters who use the 

 machine : each machine to be accompanied 

 by reduced model or facsimile for instruct- 

 ing electors in its proper use. 



The president is to be authorized to enter 

 into a contract with the company recom- 

 mended by the committee. Computation 

 of the number required will be based upon 

 the ratio of one machine for every 500 

 electors, with a spare machine for each 

 municipality. This would mean about 1,100 

 machines. 



]\Iachines are to be paid for in install- 

 ments, as follows : 35 per cent of the price 

 upon receipt by the government of the first 

 lot of machines and the remainder in five 

 equal annual installments, for which 

 proper amounts will be included in the 

 national budgets as preferential obligations. 



The contractor will be required to give 

 bond in sum, not exceeding $250,000. 



UNITED FRUIT CO. EARNINGS 



Unless the raw sugar market slumps 

 precipitately, the United Fruit Co. and its 

 subsidiary, the Xipe Bay Co., will earn 

 in 1912 the largest balance of net money 

 in their history from sugar operations. 

 That should mean a sugar net from the 

 two mills of slightly rising $4,000,000, of 

 which somewhat more than half would 

 show up directly as earning of the United 

 Fruit Co. itself, while the balance would 

 be represented in the parent company in- 

 come account by whatever dividends it 

 received from the Nipe Bay Co. 



To date the United Fruit Co. has sold 9 

 cargoes of sugar aggregating about 225,000 

 bags. The average price received has been 



about 3^/1 cents, which is a full cent per 

 pound higher than was obtained a year 

 ago up to this time. 



"United Fruit expects to make this grind- 

 ing season a total of 36 cargoes of sugar, 

 so that approximately 25 still remain to be 

 sold. Before grinding cominenced the 

 company has sold two cargoes at 3% cents 

 per pound. Then came a drop in raw 

 sugar to 3 cents' per pound, at which level 

 two more cargoes were sold. The price 

 has since recovered to a recent hight of 

 3 7-16. The average for the nine cargoes 

 makes a very satisfactory level. 



Net profits on sugar operations of the 

 two mills to date are understood to have 

 exceeded $1,000,000.00 by a substantial 

 amount. — Boston Nezvs Bureau, March 7th. 



