River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1875-11-18
How Mississippi wa. fnrr,.,,

! N'+N sup.
how mississippi Was Carried.
II. Y. r" the correspondent Of the
Cincinnati Commercial, writing Of tbe
hisslsslppi election, gives the following
incidents OF the way colored votes were
secured for the Democratic ticket:
witnessed many strange scenes at the
polls' and around about among the crowd
inns sort OF thing was repeated often bv
men who were supplied with money for
the purpose. A man would select his
dagky and operate on him in this wise:
"Gncle. have you yotcdl"
"No, sab.
"Going to votel''
''Yes, SAN.
Howl
"The Publican ticket, sah.''
Cant | persuade you to vote the
Democratic ticket 2"
"No, sah."
you are afraid to vote it, are you!'
mo. sab; not Bit
'I'll bet two dollars you are afraid to
step up there and vote the Democratic
ticket"
"Me 'fraid No, sab; dis niger amt
fraid; he amt the skeery sort, he
amt"
"Well, III bet two dollars you arc
afraid to do it,
Put up your money. I'll take dat
bet, sab I'm no skeery niger"
The money is handed to a third party.
The negro is given Democratic ticket,
and accompan ed to the polls by a white
man, who sees that it is voted. Then the
negro returns and is paid the wager" he
has won.
A neat way that to buy votes, and at
the same time escape the penalty of the
law. \ hundred dollars thus expended
goes some distance in adding to Demo.
Grace gains
saw negro and white man 90 to
the polls side by side and each vote the
Democratic ticket. Then the white man
took the negro to coy nook, gave him
two drinks of whisky and a handful Of
cigars. could not say that he bought
the vote; he only took the occasion to
treat his coored friend.
An old negro man, apparently too old
to work, and looking to be really needy,
stood near the polls with Republican
ticl.. A white boy, not over thirteen,
said TO him: ''Uncle, why don't yoa vote
the Democratic ticket These carpet bag.
gers don't care anything for you. They d
let you Starve to death"
81 dunno but they would" replied the
old man, ''for I'm hungry right now. II
you'll get me little money to get some
bread to take home, I'll vote the Demo.
cratic ticket"
The boys face frightened up. He
went to the bottom of his pockets, turned
them inside out, but he could find nothing
but five cent nickel. Giving that and a
Democratic ticket to the old man, he went
after more, and have no doubt gained q
vote for the Democracy.
There was some trickery, and few
votes were gained lin the ways that are
dark"
To protect negroes who could not read,
the Republicans printed their tickets on
yellow paper. The Democrats straight.
way printed some on the same sort of pa
per, hoping to gain something by the mis-.
takes which men who do not know let
ter in the book would naturally make.
After all argument had been exhausted
upon certain negro. and by no possbili-
ty could he be got to agree to vote the
Democratic ticket, he was, in few in.
starces, brought into it in this wise: As
they approached the polls, in line, white
man would say, swell, uncle, you are
going TO vote the straight Republican
ticket are you!"
"Yes, san"
THAT'S right. Let every man vote
with his color. I'm white man and vote
the Democratic ticket" tunfolding it,
why goodness alive! I've made a mis-
take and got Republican ticket Now
| don't want to lose my place on the line
to get another. Let me see yours p"
The darkey unconsciously hands over
his. "Why, old man, you've made mis-
take, too Yours is Democratic ticket !
Somebody has played off on you; it's
id mean to take that advantage of a
man who can't read. But we can just
swap tickets, can't we That makes it
all right. Now we are both fixed"
He adroitly gives the darky a Demo-
cratic ticket Of the same color, which he,
not being able 20 read, puts into the box,
and goes home thinking that he has dis.
charged his duty tie thdRepublican party
there were few instances of imposi.
tions Of the sort-not many.