Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-08-15

The Election In Kentucky -. Burr~
sides Declaration of Martial Law---
HOW the People were .rrotected I'm
their Sovereign flights"
BLOOMFIELD. KY, August 4.
To The Editor oftke Chicago Times:
Burnside's declaration Of martial l.w was fol-
lowed by one emenaiing from T. II Butler.
commander of the 5th Indiana cavalry. placing
Bardstown and Nelson county under martial
law. Bardstown is the residence Of Hon. c. A.
Wickhfe, Democratic candidate for Governor.
Col. Butler announces. with a ~profusion OF large
capitals IN handbills distributed on Sunday. THAI
the people are TO be protected i'm their sovereign
rights a. citizens. and not molested in any way y
Bloomfield il a mail town twelve miles from
Blrdstown. in the midst OF a fine country. where
Democrats abound. On Monday morning (eiec-
ton day) Capt Sea. formerly Of Chicago. now
an Indiana captain OF cavalry-an nboliiiouist
who voted for Lincoln, avowed himself in favor
Of the emancipation and negro arming policy OF
the President. and defines 'loyalty" To be a sup
port Of the Presidents measures with a squad
of twenty FIVE soldiers armed with carbines.
sabres. and revolvers. took possession of the
polls. He informed the judges that thew
were under martial law, and would
have TO conduct the election according to his di
rections. which he had received from his superi-
ors. He then declared Hon. c A. WickIife a
disloyal man, and that no vote should be cast for
him He furnished State: Congressional and
county tickets. which he declared to be %"loyal."
and said that loyal men might vote for them.
At a later period he stated that votes of loyal
men" might be cast for other candidates.. provided
the judges would indorse the loyalty Of the condi
dates. admoni-hing them. at the sal me time. that
they would be held responsible for the loyalty of
all men voted for; and that If anv of them should
hereafter no declared ssdiatOVuip nv tho military
authorities. the judges would be punished; but
what the punishment might be he was not au-
thOrized tO say. The Judges, overawed by the
military, being acquainted with ONLY a few of the
long list of candidates. and warned Of exposure
to an underlined military punishment if by chance
a disloyal man should be voted for, concluded to
receive votes only for the military ticket, OF which
Bramlette, for Governor, was The head A few
Democrats offered to vote for Mr.. Wicklife. but
were met with the assurance of the In0iana, abo-
lition. negro arming ca ptain, with his revolver
conspicuously displayed, that Mr. Wicklife j. n
disloyal man, and that in no case shall a vote be
cast for him
The Democrats then gave mp the contest and
resigned the polls to the military and the "lov-
atty" About nine tenths of this precinct is
Democratic. and it would have SO appeared on
the poll books if we had been allowed to vote;
but the military decreed otherwise, ard like our
beloved brethren, the Northern Democrats. when
they get in n tight place. 1--WE are a law and order
people" fBnt for our forbearance, blood would
have been she'd " "a our Northern brethren saw
when they allow the Aboliti0nists TO "spit upon
them and rub it in" That is to saw, we quietly
ubmitte 10 have our rights wrested from US,
and the soldiers had no occasion TO "shed the
blood" of so docile a people.
The whole number of votes cast was nineteen,
all for the Bramlette ticket. IT the Democrats
bad been allowed to vote, Mr.. Wicklife's ma
jority would have been 100 or more, The entire
bogus Union" strength was polled, except per-
hops two votes.
Old men who had been voting for forty and
fifty years, were yesterday refused the privilege
of voting. while mere youths just out of their
minority, freely voted. An aged minister of the
Gospel. who has been a legal voter. but not a
politician. for fifty seven years. was denied a
vote; whilst a young man without sufficient in
telligence to read his ticket, and known to he a
thief, voted for Bramlette & Co. Men of large
wealth and high character. who pay heavy taxes
to State and national governments, could not
vote. whilst 'squatters" and 'sponges" freely
voted. who will probably never pay . dime to
support the national government. and nothing
more than bead tax to the State Government.
Thus did ''the military officers aid the constitu
ted authorities in support of the laws and of the
purity Of suffrage" under Gen. Burnside's order
proclaiming martial law. Thus did the com
mander of Indiana troops. in Nelson county, full
fl; his promise made in flaming capitals that the
people shall mot be molested in any way. and
shall be protected in their sovereign rights"
At Bardstown and other parts of the county.
the same scene was enacted. The same was done
in several other counties heard from And vet
the Louisville Journal and other abolition papers
will claim a bri liant victory achieved
At Chaplain in this county, the judges support
ed by n few citizens "overawed" a diminutive
specimen Of n captain ana his squad Of men. and
voted for Wicklife-Bramlett securing only six
votes, and Wickliffe more than one hundred.
A KENTUcKIAS.