The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1868-06-11

unlawful oaths, are deemed unlawful COM
binations. lst Russ on Crims 277-S, PSI.
/ The exercise of the elective franchise is
| allowed by law to all qualified electors, free
from threats, intimidation, compulsion, or
illegal combination. The intention of the
laws is, that every elector shall vote accord,
ing to the dictates of his own free will.
Under our form of government the cleo
| tive franchise is considered the most valua-
BILE of all public rights, and persons unlaw-
| fully interfering with the free and uRpreja-
1 diced exercise of the same, are held to be
| criminals of high character. The offer of
| gifts or retrdrds to influence the vote of an
| elector, is punished with disqualification for
any office of profit or trust exclusion from
suffrage and Imprisonment in the penitentiary
| not more than two years, or In the county
| Jail one year, or fined a thousand dollars, or
both, at the discretion of the court. Code
| 579, art. 81. That the managers of the 10y
| al Leagues have committed this crime, on a
| most gigantic scale, there can be little
| doubt The fact that they have sworI. all
| the feedmen in their lodges to secresy, and
| threatened them with criminal prosecutions
| IT they divulged the secrets of the order, is
evidence of criminal intent-that they were
| promised forty acres of land and a mule
and other rewards before the Convention
| election Is matter of confirmed notorietv
| Our statute provides as follows Art 80
! Whoever shall procure, or endeavUr to pro-
| OF any person over other electors, at any
| election, for himself or any candidate, by
| means of violence, or threats of violence or
| threat OF withdrawing custom or dealing in
| business or trade, or of enforcing the paw
| ment of a debt, or of bringing suit or crIm-
| inal prosecution, or by any other threat or
| injury to be inflicted by him, or by his
means, shall, upon conviction, be forever
| disqualified to hold any Office or place of
| trust, honor or profit, under the laws or con-
stitution of this State, excluded from suf-
frage, and be punished by imprisonment in
the penltentlary, for a term not exceeding
two years, or in a county Jail, not more than
one year, or by fine not exceeding one thou
sand dollars, or by both such fine and inn
prisonment."
BY our statute it is further provided ''that
IT any person shall offer or give a reward to
another for the purpose of inducing him to
persuade, or by any other means, not amount
ing to bribery, procure any person to rOte at
any election, for or against any person, the per-
son so giving or offering, and he who shall
receive"such reward, shall, upon conviction
thereof be imprisoned in the common iail
for not more than one year, or fined not more
than five hundred dollars, or both, at the
discretion of the court" Rev. Code page
579 art. 80. That this statute fully covers
the gigantic frauds of the Loyal Leagues in
the elective franchise, there can be no
reasonable doubt That they procured the
freedmen, by means of unlawful oaths ana
false promises of rewards of political and
pecuniary nature, to vote for the Radical
candidates and against the opponents at the
Convention election, and that they have
perfected this scheme and enlarged its Grim
inal proportions for the election the 22d
inst, is fact of which they pnbllcly boast,
and no reason is perceived why Gen. Gillem
should not break up the lodges and disperse
the conspiratOrs.
CONVENTION COMMITTEES OF SEVEN.
AT SEVENTY DOLLARS PER DAY.
In addition to the Loyal Leagues estab-
ished all over the State, tie late Convention
appointed a committee of five-increased
now to seven, as we are informed-witb pay
of SO per day. This committee are author
lied to appoint three commissioners for
each county, at the same wages of registrars
to attend the election in each county, and
report to the committee Inasmuch as Gen.
Gillem has sole charge of the election, with
his military force, and has made ample pro
vision for the same, this committee and
commissioners of the Convention have no
lawful duties to perform They are not au-
thorized by the acts of Congress, nor by
military orders 1t is fraud on the public
treasury of this State, and is manifestly
plan of the Convention to aid the LOYAL
League in casting the negro vote for the
Radical candidates. The only duty requir
election, "be present at the counting of the
votes, and forward the result of the same to
the chairman of said committee within
three days thereafter"
ONE HUNDRED AND ETGHTY-THREE
COMMISSIONERS OF ELECTION, AT
Sl.O9S PER DAY.
There are three Commissioners for each
county at S6 per day-with no time specified
when these offices shall end and no duties
to perform in which the public have any
interest whatever.
Tere are siXty-oue counties in the State
three Commissioners for each makes one
hundred and eightythree Commissioners at
So per day, amounting to (Sl09S) one thous-
and and Einety-eight dollars per day, for an
indefinite period of time.
GEN. GILLEM REQUESTED TO PROTECT
FREEDMEN.
The attention of Gea. Gillem the Presi-
dent and Congress, is called to this whole
subject with the hope that they will see the
propriety of protecting the freedmen from
the VOLTS embrace of the Loyal Leagues
tue State OF Mississippi and the United
States from the public disgrace of permitting
so abominable fraud on the elective fran
chise, and the people of Mississippi from the
seizure OF their government and revenues.
WOULD DEMOCRATS BE ALLOWED To
FORM SUCH A LEAGUE.
If such a vast and well organized conspir-
acy to corrupt, intimldate and control the
entire negro vote of the State, existed in
the Democratic party, would it not be regar-
ded as criminal offence-would it not be
considered as an unlawful attempt to pre-
vent some fifty or sixty thousand voters
from free exercise of the elective franchise
of what value is the elective franchise to
the negro if he can be Kidnapped by the
Loyal League and sworn to support their
party and vote only such tickets as are put
into his hands by the agents of that party.
Did Congress confer the right of suffrage
on the negroes in order that a few corrupt
and designing men might direct their votes
to accomplish any selfish and corrupt pur-
yose of their own
1t is known that the members of the late
Convention were elected in this manner by
the negro vote, and this alone should con-
denim their work
APPEAL TO THE PRESIDENT, TO con-
GRESS AND THE COUNTRY.
Will the Commanding General allow the
same wicked farce to be enacted at the com
al -,