The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-06-13

from the people by Gordon of Federal
troops under the pretense of preserving
order, surround them with Federal bayo-
nets, and they cease to be responsible to
any one but the national administration
which protects them. There need then
be no limit to, as there is longer no check
upon, their abuses. To throw out the
votes of one side and keep in the votes
OF the other without cause, to invent
pretext for such wrongs, to accept after
contrived protests and manufactured ob.
jections as color for their action, to permit
figures to be altered, returns to be forged,
frauds to- be perfected, and generally
every means by which the will of the
people may be frustrated and the popular
voice stifed then becomes possible, and
there may be thus condition of things
absolutely destructive of free government.
We believe that it was by such proceed
ings We were cheated out of the election.
Unless the proceedings be exposed, the
outrage will be repeated.
If an administration can defraud its
opponents out of the results of an cleo
ton at which they had seventeen electo-
raj and 100000 popular majority, and no
effort is made even to inquire into the
wrong, there is nothing the next time to
prevent the same administration cheating
their opponents, even though the latter
have forty electoral votes and million
popular majority. And this will go on
time after time until the outrage becomes
intolerable. Let MS rather, as Mr.. Jefer-
son said, "have g jealous care of the right
of election by the people, and seek q safe
and mild corrective for abuses which,
where no peaceable remedy is provided,
are Topped by the sword of revolution"
It has been said that there was nothing
more cowardly than sl,0O0,O00, except
S2,000,000. This is natural. But it is
the mistake of capital to magnify the
dangers on the surface and overlook those
that lie below. Just now your capitalists
are troubling themselves about the COM
mune, and oppose the reduction of the
army, which they would have kept up as
q national police. And yet in no great
country of the world is there so little
danger of communism as. is this, for
nowhere is property 80 generally distrlb-
uted. But capitalists stood by supinely
when the army was used to protect re-
turning boards in sitting the votes of
States and frustrating the will of their
people, and under the pretense of main
tanning order to subvert the very princi-
pie of free government. Believe me in
this there was real danger. Governments
are based upon principle. The theory Of
this government is that the people of the
States shall choose electors for them
selves, aud that by the aggregate voice Of
such electors the national executive shall
be selected. To let the party in power
interfere by force of arms to protect
local board in falsifying the will of the
localities is to subvert the theory of this
government and lead surely to its de-
struction. Whatever may result from
the proposed investigation, you may be
sure that nothing can result that will dis
turb either your focks or your balances.
The trouble to capital, property and free
dom will come, not perhaps in your time
or mine, but come at last from refusing
to inquire into frauds. To confront the
evil, If you may not right it, is to prevent
its repetition. To shut your eyes to it
supinely is to leopard and not to preserve
the future peace, safety and prosperity of
the country.
Faithfully yours,
CLARKsoN n. POTTER.