, 1873-11-08
|TnE 'NEW. PENNSYLVANIA CONSTITUTION.

I'LL NGN' fEnNNiuiANl GVNNlEIUllVM.
T:':u Convention Takes Matters into
Etl Own 1RAnsis, nnil Astonislaps Inc
1e'a@s--An ERoaacat EAcctton to 1so
IA Il til philntle2plalaa, il such n
Tf.anu 1so Possible.
Philadelphia tSoD. & y &esyrespondenee Of the !se,o
The Philndelphla nIng-loadors rocaiyea a
crushing blow III tho Constitutional Convention
last night. Il isas been tho confident aud iuHo-
lont boast Of the managers Aore that they would
defeat tho amended Constitution By ID, 200, aud aud
moro # necessary. They Toro, tLoruforo, con-
tont witt general donunoiaton Of tllo Coi,yon-
t-on. aud nyston,atio rdicuio of all efforts for re-
form: Toy gaye !. 4 ont without protense Of
dolphla, aud tint her verdict would be nnanipu-
lated to overcome. any rosaiblo majority tic
country could givo for the now fundamental law.
-; But the Convention quietly bidod its ti,uo.
ordinance was reported providing for tho special
election to onAblo tho pooplo to vote on the Con-
sisution:: After making tho uocelnary provig-
ions. for elections in the counties go,1oralty,n =
phia. II nh1nod ! Edwin II. Filler, Edward
Browning, aud John r. Yerroo, Ropublicang,
and Henry s. Hagert and John G. James, Domo-
Gratis as Commissioners of Election, to rovise
tho registry, appoint the election onicolp, anl
receive, compute, and certify tho returns Of tic tic
vote Of this city on tho Constitution. It WAS .
revolutionary assnult upon false registration,
repeating, ballot-stutflng, and forged RETURNS
and aimed ns DE- doashbiow At tnS Political control
cry OF popular government. The men namel
were ali unexceptionable. The Republicans arc
thoroughly iu favor Of reform, and tho Domo-
Gratis arc etninontly competent and faithful. Mr.
,MoCluro-a Gray Senatorial contested election, and
was the mastor-apirit of that achievement.
Senator White 1t once rushed to tile front and
sounded the long-roll Of tho Ring. He appealed
f1Hht 3rtt4t a& 1A..
reject this seal Of infaniy proposed to bo paced
upon: the Republican control Of PHILADELPHIA.
Mr. Knight, . lighly-sub1imated Union Loaguer,
who pays bis money to tho Ring.loadcrs ann1,-
manufacturing majorities to order declared that
Philadelphia, elections have boon houost and
that tho ordinance WAS IN insult to the city ho
represented. Al he nayor Raw repeater to tho
stufrer or a return forged, and as tho Ring
managers who habitually plnndor him both au
taxpayer and az political contributor, hayo
told him that Philadelphia olootiona are honest.
all thoy, said, and nearly aplintered Lis
desk by the vlolonco Of his gestures aB le gave
q general certificate Of good character to
tho most thoroughly, organized body Of men
has over produced. MoN1iohael sat close by tie
unsophisiicatod Knight, aid voted with him, but
he was wise enough tn DO silont Gov. Curtin
replied In one Of his happiest efforts, and ror eat
Gully DrouEhG uoWn tho 1AouHe. His Barc1Btna,
often pointed with the keonest rllioule,' in do.
ecribing modern philadelplia elections, and his
withering inyeottv0 ns he portrayed the tolern-
tion of notorious election frauds by the respect.
able mon Of the city, mado tho Philadelphia Ro-
publicans, who dared not volo for the special Or
dnanoe, git in silence, andtlieir responses wero;
onfeebled by shame. at last tho yoto waY callod .
and and it stood y9 for tho ordinance aud .l5
against T. Mcssra Littloton: Simpson, Newlin,,
with the majority. ArcsIichaei, eyor aubsorvient.
voted with the pltiful minority for what ne could
not dofend, when the political management Of
bis oFn party was about to bo stamped with in
fanny.
The vote was taken late in tho evening. and
not until this morning did the Riny-managors
know Of thoir terric discontinue by Republic "
can Convention composed OF minority of men
elected By tho regular Republican oreanization,
and mon, too, who command the confidence OF
all parties. The strcets about tia usual hauutsi
OF tic Republican leaders were unusually lively
to-day;as the managers hurried to and fro with
e, anxious faces. tn19irng how they could defeat
nance ia enforced, Philadelphia will vote for the
Constitution, the negiatry Inv will bo wiped out.
aud elections viii be made to second the will OF
TIE Il! people. = Ill, Before midday they had caught
nounced that Gov uartranft would he succoBs-
fully appealed to. aud ho would issuo', = proola-
nation declaring the Election laws OF tho State
i'll force, in philadelphia md elsewhere, at the
1FSS'A1 AAA sAAa SftuA1E ~ 10 GUuuuGbk-
" asserted that tho city eleotion officers chosen
by tho Ring will take their PlacoB on election
day, and that the special officers appointed by
authority Of the Convention will BIO onioined by
the courts from interfering with, their vocation
Of running tho election BY contract, regardless
Of the number Of votes cast, OF the kind Of
tickets voted. '''.."
The action OF the Convention by such a; do
clsive vote has made profound impression in
tho city, and has aroused tho long hopeless de-
sire Of the pooplo for relief from tho reign OF
corruption and fraud. Gov. 1Iartranft,, will be-
appealed to, but the fact .tlat Bnch an appeal is
ba, made will ou1y quiekon and intonBliy tho |
mass OF the people. aud make 1t 10 fraught with
peril TINT lie will probably not venture to intor-
poao. The effort to set asdo the ordinance OF I
the Convention fH a confession that an lonost'
election dare not DO conceded to tile people; and
1t viii, think, provoke tic buainosa men Of tho
city to such, determined action that evon tho |
Registry Law with ita thousand sinews OF fraud, I
could not prevail against them. Tho appeal to
the courts would bo equally futile in serving tho
purposes Of ttH authors. Our Judges will not |
seok to restrain tho sovereign authority Of tho |
State, aud every step tho herooa OF fraudulent
elections take will only mako thoir overthrow
the more overwhelming. ''' 80
Tho Constitution IL to .bo submitted as a
whole, md thorough organization will be
made BY the friends Of reform for ita adoption.
An honest election now seems to be nasured, and
tue SUCCESS OF tho amendments Is scarcely
doubtful. But, to guard against all contingent
usnt 4