Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1876-10-05

| InelT congressman OnlO, tHulhnd ant
several other States will elect theirs il
October. New Hampshire chose her
in March and Connecticut hers il
April. Does Attorney General Tai
really think that the federal government
has right to interfere with the No
vem5er election in those States wher
they are to choose Presidential electors
The choice OF electors stands on the
same footing as the choice ofstate Off
GERS and is subject to federal interior
ence in no other way. Why then
does Mr.. Taft, include them within the
scope of the statutei Such looseness ano
inaccuracy show with how little care OF
discrimination his circular was prepared
and jlstifes us in. inquiring whether
othei parts of it are not equally at vari'
ancewith law.
The Attorney General asserts that the
decisions of the Supreme Court last
March declaring the Enforcement Law
unconstitutional referred only to State
elections and not to federal elections
Now, it is true that the offence charged
in both of those cases was committed
in connection with State election, bu
the reasoning of the Court was equally
applicable to elections of every kind
Mr.. Taft instructs the rharshals in re.
lation to "the peace of the United
States, which you are to preserve, and
whose violations you are to SUPPRESS
But the Supreme Court said Ger.
tainly it will not be claimed that the
United States have the power or are re-
CURED to do mere police ddty in the
States. Ii State cannot project itself
from domestic violence the United States
may, upon the call Of its Legislature OF
Executive, lend their assistance for that
purpose" Mr.. Tait's instruction to
the marshals to preserve the peace and
prevent its9iolation without any call
from the State Executive orLegislature
is in open defiance of the decision Of
the Supreme Court, which said, in an
other part of its opinion, that 'the pow
ers OF internal police are not surrender
ed or restrained by the constitution Of
the United States" The Court recog-
nized no exception to this principle in
the case Of federal elections, bA applied
it alike TO all cases in which nolapplica-
ton has been made by the State author
tiles after their own power to preserve
or restore internal order had been exer-
,eI On IN the sabiecy g.s ,,.ss,..s0.
have decided that the coastitvionots!sss
United States has not conferred the
right OF suffrage upon any one and that
the United States have NJ voters Of
their own creation in Stats" 1.-THE
right of suffrage is not nee tsary attri-
butte of national citizenship, bat ex-
emption from discrimination h the exer-
else of that right, on the gro}id of race,
&c., is. From these principle the
Court deduced the conclusiol that fed
eral interference for any oth$ purpose
than the single one OF preventing dis
ordinations on account of rfe or col
or is plain violation of the Constitution.
But in the Attorney GENERALLY circular
the instructions are not confIcd to pro-
lection on that single point On the
contrary they cover everything relating
to elections in which membds of Con-
i gress and ,PresIdential electob are to be
chosen. He instructs the dhrshals to
"secure voters against what&er in gen.
eral prevents or binders thdh from a
free exercise of the elective Eanchise."
The circular thus strikes all the very
foundation of the Supreme Qurt decis-
ion. 1t is the very gist Of lift decision
that the United States cannG interfere
!, ''in general" but only for tie one spe-
cidc object of preventing piscrimina-
lion on the ground ofrace. 1.-THE face Of
the emphatic declaration oi the Court
that the United States have not confer
red and cannot confer the fight of suf-
frage on anybody Mr.. Ta1 insists on
their authority ito enforce fbe right Ia
vote which they have giveF"
But the most surprising hing Of all
is the list Of references to he Revised
Statutes which Mr.. TAFT (ave TO our
: correspondent to be COMMUNICATED u
us. In that list be refersldr authority
to sections which the Sutdme Couri
} have explicitly declared to 8e void II
whole and in every part PIE posi-.
ton maintained by the Sgp3,ne Corr egS,
is that the Enforcement law un.Iti.
stitutional because it mixes w PioVie'
ions giving protection togfs4Inn ~ ~ s sen,
II :. -, r. ss yssians geyf,s'' -. rS
Z 49,. -. =, :, !, - -,
: rate the constitutional from the uncon
t stitutional features of the law and tina
the whole'is made nuIland void by III,
D unconstitutional parts. And yet Mi
: Taft cites these utilities in defence Q
$ his circular If law i void in tot
t il is, OF course, void in its application t
federal as well as to State elections.--
e After deciding that Congress has n
: power to intertefe at all except for tn
Y one purpose of preventing discrimina
t tons founded on race or color the Covi
5 concludesby saying: eve must, there
: fore, decide that Congress has not, q
: yet, provided by appropriate legislatio
= for the punishment Of the ofenc
5 charged in the indictment" As ID
n only thing ithas right to punish
# connection with the suffrage is its d
It NAL on the ground of color it is clei
= that there is at present no constitution
> aLlaw on the subject. The princip
Is applies equally to all electiohs, whetl
= er members Of Congress are to be CHI
u sen or not.
y In conclusion we will su!join son
e pertinent excerpts from the Supren
o Court decision lit remains now
r, consider whether statute 20 gener