The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1869-10-18
Nicholas County Affairs.

Whl!e mere ne gave detailed account
of political matters in his county, the
main points of which we regard oi
sufficient Importance to warrant publi-
cation. They will serve to fairly illus
trate the workings of the registration
system in the interior. Mr.. MCCUTCH-
EN-, it may be well to state, has been a
consistent, Union man from the start.
AT great personal risk he came to Wheel
ing in the early days of the war to rep
resent the Union sentiment of his Sec
tion, in the Convention which re-organ-
lied the oldState Government. Subse'
quently he represented the District OF
which Nicholas county was part, in
the Senate, under that recognized
Government. He was an active support
er of the new State, personally aided in
taking the votes at the elections held
with reference to its formation and was
very active in having its jurisdiction
established and its authority recognized
in his region OF coustry, then the seat
of war. Last fall he supported GRANT
for the Presidency and would be Re-
publican to-day, were it not for the
proscriptive policy which that party is
now carrying to extremes. He furnishes
the facts which we now present.
For two or three years, political mat
ters in Nicholas county have been under
the control of few men from the North
who have gone into that county claim
ing to be the only "loyal" people
there. and of some influential ex
rebel who became Radicals when the
Confederacy proved failure. OF these
two classes, one Captain PUTNAM from
New York, and JOHN G. MALCOLM, for
merly in the rebel service but now
"loyal" sheriff of the county, may be
taken as fair representatives. PUTNAM
obtained a seat in the Legislature last
fall, by having the returns from four of
the six townships in Nicholas rejected.
He was recognized by the Governor as
his adviser in that region, and upon his
recommendation Board of registration
of utterly worthless character was ap-
pointed. PUTNAM being a candidate for
election, with fair prospect of being
defeated by liberal Republican named
RAIDER, MALCOLM and his deputies an
nounced that no man who did not sup
port the extreme Radical ticket should
remain upon the registration lists, and
that all non-voters who would do so
should be registered.
In fulfilment of the first part of this
programme, about one hundred voters,
including about every original out
spoken Union man in the county,
were summoned to appear at
Summersville, on the first Monday in
October, to prove their loyalty
Among those notified were number of
honorably discharged Federal soldiers,
and several who had been in the State
Guard service. As there were scarcely
two hundred registered voters in the
county, this action of the Board created
great excitement aNoug the people.
The lists had been very thoroughly cut
down at three previous sessions. 1t
was known that there were few rebel
voters on the lists, aud that those, hav-
| inT been registered because of their
Willingness to support the extreme Rad
ical ticket, were not notified TO appear.
At the appointed time al examina-
tion heforo the Board commenced.
Every man whose case was inquired in
to presented the most satisfactory cvI
dence of loyalty" and good character.
SO far from any charges being sustained,
none were made. After the trials had
progressed for some time, the Board
gave out that the evidence would be
written down and the decisions an
nounccd at some future time. This of
course was protested against by the
voters, all of whom objected to being
kept in suspense. One voter said sit
looked like pretext to get rid OF the
crowd aud strike them of when their
backs were turned" This was resented
by one of the MALCOLM family,a a quar-
rel ensucd, the Board retired, refused to
re.assemble, and tie voters were COM
PEELED to return to their homes without
any certain knowledge of their fate, but
with the decided impression that they
were all to be prescribed upon bare sus-
picion of opposition to PUTNAM.
Mr.. MCCUTCHEN says that this is the
latest of a long series of outrages per
petrated by the interlopers and scala
wags who now hold sway in his county
They prevent the holding of elections
by withholding registration books;
they reject returns and set aside the
results of elections; they disfranchise,
harass and vex the people, until the
popular patience is tried to the utmost.
AS a desperate resort application has
been made to the Governor for redress,
but of course it was useless to seek, in
that quarter, remedy for villainy.
This application was desied, as might
have been expected.
A state of affairs similar to that pre-
yailing in Nicholas obtains in many of
the neighboring counties. In Fayette,
after all the prescription heretofore done
there, another hundred voters have
been summoned for disfranchisement.
A similar course has been pursued in
Clay, Webster and Pocahontas. In
stead of matters getting better, as time
rolls on, they are getting worse. Those
who hold the reins find in. continued
disfranchisement their only guarantee
of power. Having prescribed nearly
l.