"limited to those who the elites of the day thought would/could exercise is wisely."   See the word 'thought'?  

Women weren't even allowed to own property in many places in the 'civilized' world at the time, including the US.

If you don't want to be registered in Oregon under motor voter, you have to opt out.

"The law dictates that once residents interact with the state DMV – whether to get a license or ID for the first time, or renew an existing one – they’ll become registered to vote if they aren’t already. The registration will be provisional for 21 days, during which time applicants will be notified of their new status and be given a chance to become affiliated with a political party or to opt-out of the voting process altogether. In essence, Oregon will now be the first state to approach voting with an “opt-out” mindset, as opposed to “opt-in.”