CLASS DAY ELECTIONS.

The accompanying exposition of a plan for the reform of the machinery for the election of Class Day officers was prepared about two weeks ago by a graduate who had no personal interest in the results of '98's election, and orally submitted to President Perkins and the '98 election committee. It has since been formally presented to the committee, and will be brought up by them in special class meeting. It therefore seems desirable to the prime movers in the reform and to the committee to give a public and explicit account of its promoters, its essential features, and such alliterative detail as has been suggested.

The promoters of the plan, as was shown by the list of 130 names subscribed in a single afternoon, are representative men of all departments of undergraduate activity. There has simply been a spontaneous movement on the part of individual members of all the societies, as well as on the part of non-society men, to provide '98 with election machinery that will be satisfactory to a large class. Following is the plan submitted to the '98 election committee:

I. That all nominations for any office shall be made on nomination papers, signed by not less than 20 nor more than 25 eligible electors, and sent at least six days before the date of election to the election officials to be appointed by the class president.

II. That the names of nominees shall be published in the issue of the CRIMSON next following the close of nominations; with notice that all withdrawals must be made witching two days after publication, after which the revised and final list of candidates must be published.

III. No name shall appear on the official ballot for more than one office. Any candidate nominated for more than one place must withdraw his candidacy for all but one.

IV. That a uniform official ballot be used, to be printed at the expense of the class; that the names of the candidates for each office shall be arranged alphabetically, after the plan of the Australian ballot.

V. That the voting be secret, at a booth located conveniently to the College Yard, according to the method now used in alumni elections.

VI. That the polling place be kept open for a reasonable number of hours on election day-say from 9 a. m. to 4 p. m.

VII. That a plurality of the votes cast shall be sufficient to elect.

The essential features which are supported by all the signers are defined to be. (1) Publicity of nomination. (2) Voting by ballot at a convenient polling place to be kept open from 9 until 4 on election day. An alternative for section 3 is suggested, that the officers be divided into two groups to be voted for on different days.

Nominations for secretary, for the marshals, and for the five so called literary offices, including choristers, to be voted for on the first day. Then nominations for the nine committee places may be made on the day following the announcement of the results of the first election, so that a prominent candidate who had failed to get a marshalship might still be put up for a committee place to take his chances in a second election. The aims of this plan are simply to put the election on a more democratic and up to date footing, to obliterate society lines, and thereby to minimize the evils which are always incident to election contests.