Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1868-03-27
The Democratic Rioting at Colum-
bus.

I Inc Dem0CraC1C hI0Glug at JOIum-
bus.
The act of the Democratic majority
in the Ohio Senate, IN dispossessiug
Senator Homer G. Jones from the seat
to which he was elected by a majority
of the legal votes, and placing in 1t
Henry NJ. Onderdonk, who was not
elected to it by a legal or any other
majority, was simply a brazen violation
of law and of public decency IN order
to increase their majority in the Sen
ate They made no pretense that On
derdonk had a majority of the legal
votes cast, but they 05urped the pow
er to oVerrule the constitutional Tegu-
luton of the franchise, as 1t had been
settled for a generation by the jUdg-
ment Of the Supreme Court, and to
disfranchise those who are enfranchis-
ed according to the Constitution, in
order to throw out Republican votes,
and declared Onderd0uk elected
The five Democrats constituting the
majority of the Committee on PTivi-
leges and Elections, announced their
independence of the Constitution and
Of judicial decision in acting upon this
matter, by the brazen declaration that
the question is one which the Senate
should decide without regard to the
decision Of any other department of
the Government on the same subject"
and that inasmuch as the Senate Is
made the judge of the election returns
and qualification Of its members, hence
no decision or opinion of Court, or
of any other department Of the Gov
ernment, has any authority over the
Senate In It's decision
This means that because the Senate
is the judge Of the elections Of its mem
bers, therefore it is not bound BY the
constitutional regulation of the suf-
frage, but may change It 50 as to throw
out members according to its partisan
needs. It means that when the Dem
Ocrats have the maiority in the legis-
latlVe body, the question whether any
other members shall be admitted shall
depend on their sovereign pleasure. /
1t assums that the power of each
Houses to Judge the election returns
of Its members Is the power to alter
the constitutional rule Of the fran
chise
The declaration that the majority /
would pay no regard to judicial inter- /
probation of the constitutional rule of I
franchise, is so open confession of
the illegality Of this act, that it is har-
d y. necessary to argue the case. The /
Constitution extends the suffrage to
white male citizens. The Supreme
Court, when the bench was filled by
Democratic judges, decided that the
prep0nderance of blood governed the
legal classification of race. so that per-
sons with a preponderance of the blood
Of the white race were white persons
10 the meaning of the law. There is
40 other common sense way of deci-
ling this matter, FOR what a concession
1E inferioTity in the white race it would
be, to say that the remotest fraction of
Africa blood IN white man made him
1 negro.
This was the Democratic coustitu-
lonal provision as to suffrage, expoun-
led by Democratic Supreme Court, j
md SO it stood for a generation, al
hOugh the last Democratic Legisla- G
uTe before this attempted to break
he Constitution by a legislative act
lut failed. The Democratic majority
n the Ohio Legislature not only dis
egarded the decision of the Supreme
jourt, by throwing out 42 legal votes
N pretense Of a mixture Of negro 8
Hood, but as this vas not enough to
cave a majority for Onderdonk, they
h1rew out enough legal votes, against a
'nloh there was no pretense Of p
mixed blood, TO carry out their illegal c
Thus the Democratic majority pla-
ed itself in rebellion against the Con-
htution and The decisions of the
'ourts, 10 order 10 perpetrate this out
age, And this is of character with .
il their proceedings during the ses- q
0n Their conduct is more like VI
aid than Legislature. They resem- Ihl
le gang Of John Morgan's men, in