The Texas Observer MARCH 4, 1966 A Journal of Free Voices A Window to The South 25c The Other War Two reports from the front, p. 7 The Free Vote The way Connally got his way, p. 2 The Writer's Mind From the journal of Elroy Bode: 111, p. 15 A Climate of Certainty i The Free Vote: Halting 'Chaos' Austin hopes to add would bring the figure closer cleanly by the statehouse forces of Con- Getting the vote is now a matter of fill- to the 3,000,000 who were qualified to vote nally in the legislature's special session, ing in blanks on a simple form, in some in 1964, the presidential year. The regis- just over. "The county assessor can be co- cases a postage-due card, which then is trants labor seeks out are most likely to in- operative in having deputies, or not," Evans mailed to the county tax assessor-collector, clude many persons who never have voted said, adding that if each of the 254 assessor- or handed to him or his deputy. It is free, before, because, to them, the $1.50 or $1.75 collectors in the state chose to order voters and, although certain old barriers between was a matter of the family's meal, or to register on a form valid only in that the citizen and the vote have been retained having enough for a pair of shoes, or the assessor's county, a statewide registration in the election code (and, apparently, cer- car payment, or the rent, or some Saturday effort, such as labor's, would be an even tain subtle new ones added), this card night beer. For the poor, November is a tougher battle. could, in the next two weeks, multiplied by long way from January. In the special' session the fight supposed- 50,000 (as Gov. John Connally's Secretary "We've contacted most of our people and ly was to be between Connally's forces, of State predicts) or by 1,000,000 (as the told them to make appointments with the seeking a provisional act to prevent "chaos" Texas AFL-CIO is hoping), bring a new tax assessor-collector in their county," Roy and to match the existing registration pro- political force into being before the party Evans, state secretary-treasurer of the visions of the Texas Election Code as close- primaries are held in May. At this writing, AFL-CIO, said last week. "We set the goal ly as possible, and those few who stood up more or less 4,000,000 Texans are eligible at one quarter of the number not registered. for the system of permanent voter registra- to vote, but unregistered in this year's elec- One million is a lot of people, but four tion with automatic re-registration by tions because they did not pay the $1.50 or million is a whole lot more." voting—the system used in 44 of the 50 the $1.75 for the Texas poll tax which the Evans said that the 50,000 new voters states, including some in the deepest South, three-judge federal court declared uncon- Crawford Martin, the Secretary of State, and endorsed by such groups as the League stitutional last month. Approximately predicted would register could be found in of Women Voters and the AFL-CIO. But 2,000,000 paid the tax this year (and have Harris County alone, although Harris, as soon as the administration's true in- automatically been retained as eligible Bexar, and Nueces were three counties tentions became public, the moderate-liber- voters), and the 1,000,000 whom labor where labor's forces appeared to be en- al contingent saw that the argument was countering early problems in planning their not over permanent versus annual registra- THE COVER photograph was taken in registration drives. The problem in each of tion, but over an annual registration sys- El Paso by Bill Bridges of Texas, and now those instances is of the county assessor- tem as open as the old poll tax laws per- Los Angeles. collector, whose role in registration was in- mitted, or one (the administration's) which 2 The Texas Observer creased under the act sold so swiftly and sought to prevent the registration in blocs or singly of many whom the current ad- ministration and its predecessors never THE TEXAS OBSERVER have had to answer to—the poor, the © Texas Observer Co., Ltd. 1966 Negroes, the Latin-Americans. A Journal of Free Voices A Window to the South Here are the major provisions of the ad- 60th YEAR — ESTABLISHED 1906 ministration bill: 7cVlaP March 4, 1966 Vol. 58, No. 3 Free Registration Incorporating the State Observer and the voices. East Texas Democrat, which in turn incor- The Observer publishes articles, essays, and In accordance with the federal district ported the State Week and Austin Forum- creative work of the shorter forms having to Advocate. do in various ways with this area. The pay court ruling and unless and until it is over- We will serve no group or party but will hew depends; at present it is token. Unsolicited turned by the Supreme Court of the United hard to the truth as we find it and the right manuscripts must be accompanied by return States, the right to vote in Texas carries as we see it. We are dedicated to the whole postage. no fee or tax. The state will carry the cost truth, to human values above all interests, to The Observer is published by Texas Observer the rights of man as the foundation of democ- Co., Ltd., biweekly from Austin, Texas. En- of registering the voters by paying the racy; we will take orders from none but our tered as second-class matter April 26, 1937, at county 25c for each voter signed up. The own conscience, and never will we overlook or the Post Office at Austin, Texas, under the Act October-January registration period was misrepresent the truth to serve the interests of March 3, 1879. Second class postage paid at retained. of the powerful or cater to the ignoble in the Austin, Texas. Delivered postage prepaid $6.00 human spirit. a year; two years, $11.00; three years, $15.00. Editor and General Manager, Ronnie Dugger. Foreign rates on request. Single copies 25c; The Registrar Farther, Mrs. R. D. Randolph. prices for ten or more for students, or bulk Associate Editor, Larry Lee. orders, on request. This is the county tax assessor-collector Business Manager, Sarah Payne. Editorial and Business Offices: The Texas who always has done the job, but who now Contributing Editors, Elroy Bode, Bill Bram- Observer, 504 West 24th St., Austin 5, Texas mer, Larry Goodwyn, Harris Green, Franklin Telephone GR 7-0746. is designated "registrar" in a new, separate Jones, Lyman Jones, Larry L. King, Georgia Change of Address: Please give old and new section of the election code. The new law Earnest Klipple, Al Melinger, Robert L. Mont- address and allow three weeks. notes that he can act through a deputy or gomery, Willie Morris, James Presley, Charles Subscription Representatives: Austin, Mrs. deputies. Ramsdell, Roger Shattuck, Robert Sherrill, Helen C. Spear, 2615 Pecos, HO 5-1805; Dallas, Dan Strawn, Tom Sutherland, Charles Alan Mrs. Cordye Hall, 5835 Ellsworth, TA 1-1205; Wright. Denton, Fred Lusk, Box 8134 NTS; Fort Worth, The Deputies Staff Artist, Charles Erickson. Dolores Jacobsen, 3025 Greene Ave., WA 4-9655; Contributing Photographer, Russell Lee. Houston, Mrs. Shirley Jay, 10306 Clifford Dr., The assessor-collector may have as many The editor has exclusive control over the edi- PA 3-8682; Huntsville, Jessie L. Murphree, Box deputies as he "deems necessary" and must torial policies and contents of the Observer. 2284 SHS; Lubbock, Doris Blaisdell, 2515 24th None of the other people who are associated St.; Midland, Eva Dennis, 4306 Douglas, OX 4- designate "places customarily open to the with the enterprise shares this responsibility 2825; Odessa, Enid Turner, 1706 Glenwood, EM public" for them to work. In every city, with him. Writers are responsible for their own 6-2269; Rio Grande Valley, Mrs. Jack Butler, except a county seat, with 10,000 or more work, but not for anything they have not them- 601 Houston, McAllen, MU 6-5675; San Antonio, persons, the assessor-collector must name selves written, and in publishing them the edi- .Mrs. Mae B. Tuggle, 531 Elmhurst, TA. 6-3583; tor does not necessarily imply that he agrees Cambridge, Mass., Victor Emanuel, 33 Aberdeen at least one deputy to work in the month with them, because this is a journal of free Ave., Apt. 3A. of January, taking the applications at "a fixed place customarily open to the public." English and who find themselves unable four or five votes for the permanent- It is the assessor-collector who selects the to fill out those forms. In one of the tell- registration alternative. One-third of the places and the deputies' office hours, and tale nuances of the new act, the administra- legislature's members were lame ducks no minimum office hours are provided in tion has forbidden the wife, husband, when they returned to Austin last month, the new act (nor were they in the old father, mother, son, or daughter to extend many doomed by the reapportionment bills code). The old act required the assessor- that aid unless that relative is a resident written last year. Thus, this, the last rural- collector to publish for four weeks the loca- of the same county as the applicant and dominated legislature, became the chance tion of those deputies, but the new one re- already has a registration certificate.