THE NEWEST ST. GEORGE

Like the poor, the prophets and holy men of Dorchester are always with us. That crusader against the red menace. that protector of the young, Mr. Dorgan, gladly offered himself up on the altar of publicity for his cause last spring. Another doughty warrior of Dorchester now appears upon the scene waving a banner emblazoned with the glorious words: "It is perfectly obvious to anyone that the registration and voting in this city has been crooked for years."

Such an epoch-making statement should not be passed over lightly. Surely this disgraceful situation cannot be known on Beacon Hill; surely if the sacred kingfish of the State House were to find out that irregularities had attended his rise to the seat of power he could not go on as the hit-and-run servant of the people. And even should he feel that he could, this new voice of the people from Dorchester would not permit it, for he has a plan--and in all fairness, it is not a bad plan.

Mr. Wilston, of the Boston City Council and Dorchester, thinks that "if the benefits of a democratic form of government are to be preserved," the way to do it is to make sure that every voter who comes to the polls should be known to election commissioners beforehand. To this end, the incorruptible men in blue, Boston's "finest," will obtain the signature of every prospective voter on a neat card, and the cards will then be salted away to be referred to, perhaps, on election day. This is a step in the right direction but destined to be a fruitless one; for it not only boldly assumes that Boston voters can all write and Boston election commissioners can all read, but it falsely assumes that everyone will vote who can. Figures have shown that in years past the percentage of registered voters who have gone to the polls has been ridiculously small. Nevertheless, it is most encouraging to the weary and discouraged of this naughty world to know that Mr. Wilson and his Dorchester crowd are still gamely fighting for idealism.