Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1878-11-15
>,,,b caroII,, G,Il,t.Gox Stufliuy.


Letter iron the Republican Candidate :or Cor
srtss N the ChIr!eston District-l
CHARLESTON, 5. C., Nov. !, 1873.
My DEAR SIR As you anticipated, the
Democrats have counted me- out. That re-
ceived majority of at least 5000 there is no
doubt. vet o'Connor is given by the election
officers majority of 1000, and perhaps it
will be more. How it has been done | shall
tell you.
In this city the Democratic managers OF
elections arbitrarily refused to at least 1000
colored voters the right to vote. Unless a
A coored man was known to one OF the
managers of election, he was refused the
right TO vote, unless he could bring witnesses
TO prove where he resided. Many were
turned off under the pretext that they we're
not u years Of age, or rather that the mana
gers were doubtful of it.
At the last session of the Legislature, the
two voting precincts IN St Andrews parish
were abolished, and the 900 colored voters OF
that section Of the county left withouta poll
ing place. The parish is only separated from
the city BY the Ashley river, and used to be
connected with Charleston by bridge, which
YOU will probably recollect was burned at
the evacuation OF the city by the rebels. The
people crossed over to the city of Charleston
Tor the purpose OF voting, but the Democratic
managers would not receive their votes, though
the city OF Charleston was the only place
where they could vote. The Legislature
also abolished all the voting places on the
State road between Charleston and Summer
vile, AID yet when the people came to
Charleston 10 vote, the Democratic managers
denied them the privilege, telling them to 90
ami vote whore they lived, although they
knew fall well that there was no polling
place where they resided.
Notwithstanding all these outrages, the
Republicans carried this county by at least
1 .OO0 majority, bat to their utter surprise.
when the ballot-boxes were opened at the
various polls, the boxes were found to con-
tain in most cases several hundred more
ballots than there were names on the poll
list. Out Of the 50 polls in this county, at
20 Of them the ballots were largely in ex-
cess of the names on the poll list. Every
baIlot-box was stuffed with tickets of the
kind | irclosc. The ticket is of tissue
paper with the lanes printed upon 1t,
- For Governor, Wade Hampton, etc,
These tickets were not circulated during
the election, but had been printed by
the Democratic executive committee and dis
tributed amongst the mana gers only The
regular Democratic ticket, as well rs the
Republican ticket, was five times as large.
In most instances, especially where very few
Democratic votes were cast, the managers,
after counting the blllOts and ascertalning
the excess, returned them to the ballot-bo1,
but were careful to leave them unfolded, and
proceeded to draw out the number OF ballots
in excess. They were careful, however, to
draw out none Of these small tickets, but in
every instance the large Republican ballots
were drawn out and destroyed. At the Mt.
Pleasant poll 49, Republican ballots were
thus drawn Oh; and destroyed, and this poll
where the Republicans had voted five to one
against the Democrats, was made to give a
Democratic majority of 500.
The most outrageous cases of bailOt-box
stufiing occurred at the two polls in ward
three Of this city. At the poll known as
the Palmetto engine house, one 0. the
managers, W. L. Daggett, the foreman Of
the Nelrs and Courier job printing office,
stuffed $500 Of these little tickets in the
box after the poll was closed. The mana
gers, finding that there were 1863 ballots in
the boz. declined to throw out any, but count
ed them all, and returned the vote of that
poll as i6l for Mackey and 3, los for Con
nor. At the other poll in this ward the
same act was performed, and the managers
returned l2l for Maekey and 1866 for
O'Copnor, 80 that one ward out of the eight
in the city was made TO give majority of
1 500 votes for O'Connor. The utter i'm
possibility of voting 1859 persons at one
poll in the space OF Il hours need hardly be
argued. As the managers swore each voter
separately, and III many cases consumed
three or four minutes questioning some
voters, it is safe to sag that the average time
consumed in voting each man was one MIN
ute, which would allow 30 votes TO be
polled, provided there was continuous
stream of voters during the II hours the
polls were opened. Yet at this poll the
managers make return under oath that
1859 persons voted in the space of II hours.
By tins method Charleston city is made to
give O'Connor majority Of 6,527, or ma
i1rity larger than the entire Democratic vote
of the city.
Throughout tins county and the entire
district the boxes were stuffed IN the same
way. not only in Charleston, but in Olaren
don. Not satisfied with stuihng the ballot
boxes, the Democrats, finding 1t impossible
to stuff the bailo;-boE ut the Washington
enginc-house in ward six, because Of the
vigilance of the United States supervisor, put
out the lights and stole the box and destroy
ed it because had IA majority Of about 500
there. On Eiisto Island, where 1000 Re
publican voters reside, and where the Demo-
Gratis have only abou. 80 or % voters, the
Democratic commissioners failed to open the
polls, thus actually DISTINGUISHING these
voters
1t is useless writing any more of these
disgusting details. ! see no remedy for the
wrongs We are compelled to submit to. The
publication of them, | am afraid, will do
little good but still publish them lar and
wide, 10 the world may know to what crimes
the respectable Democrats Of South Carolina
will descend Yours truly,
f. W Il. MscKEr.