The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1879-04-10
THE REPEAL OF THE ELECTION
LAWS.

LAWS.
Seldom in the history of the country
has the public attention been more close
ly drawn to the proceedings in congress
than during the present special session..
The two parties entered the halls of con-
gress with fixed determination to make
no concession and until within the last few
days the situation has remained unchan-
ged. The expense attending an extra
session of congress viii properly become
a stumbling block to the success of the
party which viii eventually be held re-
sponslble for the conditions that made
an extra session necessary. The speeches
in the house of representatives are not to
be regarded as an effort to convince con-
gressmen of the justice OF that for which
either party contends They are address
ed to the people and are an arraignment
of the policy of one party and iustifca-
ton of that of the other. The people
are determined not to be hoodwinked by
passionate appeals to sectional bigotry
nor by the post bell,t17e bravery of poll
ticians. The shout of Confederate
Brigadier, has grown to be poor reply
to an argument on the constitution. The
people have grown tired of the tragic
attitudes and empty roarings Of politi-
clans of the Blaine type and demand
some more valid reasons for the adoption
Of policy which made an extra session
of congress necessary, than the persist
emily ridiculous illusions to the Confed-
eracy.
During the last session Of the 45th
congress, the democrats proposed ID to
repeal the laws which allowed troops to
be placed at the polls on election day;
90 to repeal the laws providing for Z.
S. marshals who had the power to make
arrests without process: 90 to repeal
the law providing for general super
| visors of elections who also had the power
of arrest without process. The republi
pealing these laws and in consequence
appropriation bills were not passed. An
extra session was called and these bills
| for the repeal above named were tackled
on the appropriation bills. The repub-
licans refuse to pass the bills with these
| riders, and here arises a dead lock. This
is the situation in brief.
History proves that more danger is to
| be apprehended from the use of the
| military in civil affairs than from any
other cause. SO apprehensive are the
people generally, that it is common to
find in state constitutions a declaration
that the military shall be in strict sub
ordination to the civil power" The
presence of troops at election polls is a
perpetual menace to tie freedom of
freedom in the exercise of the elective
franchise We're the people of our own
state. that law prohibits muster, as
. sembly, parade, or review of troops on
election day. The law reads as follows:
No muster or assembly for instruction,
review or parade shall be held or called
in any county on any day during which
| a general or special election shall be
held therein, nor within five days before
such election, except III case of riot, in
vasion, instruction or imminent danger
tneicUf, aud IL any officer shall order any
such muster or assembly, he shall forfeit
one hundred dollars.
Now, here is q law on our statute books
precisely similar to that for which the
democrats III congress are contending
Republican representatives from this
state are earnest in their efforts to main
tain law which authorizes the use of
troops at elections, while law imposing
a penalty on the officer who holds re-
view of troops, is in force in the state
which they represent Where is the
consistency of these men, and how are
they justified in forcing an extra session
OF congress rather than submit to a law
which is in the statute books of the
state under whose jurisdiction they live !?
The wholesale commitment OF voters
by the supervisors of elections, without
cause and simply for the purpose of
preventing them from casting o ballot
against the party in power, is a grievance
of which the people justly complain.
The democrats are anxious to prevent a
repetition of this summary means of in
terfering with free ballot. In our own
state so carefully is the electoral rights
of the citizen guarded that no civil pro
cess can be served on election day on
any person entitled to vote. But with
the same consistency which characterizes
them in the army bill, our republican
members labor to have the dangerous
power now vested in Supervisors, to
make arrests on election day without
process, continued, notwithstanding that
the laws of their own state prohibit the
serving Of a process on an elector on that
day.
The great cry was sent up by re-
publican members that the action of the
democrats in lacking on the repeal of
these bills to the appropriation bills, was
revolutionary. Garfield harped upon
this, and stalwart republicans throughout
the union joined in the doleful chorus.
But when it was shown by democratic
members that in this the democrats were
following republican precedent, and
when the record was brought IN to prove
that Garfield had on former occasion
argued in favor of the propriety of plac-
ing riders on appropriation bills, that
gentleman exercised his ingenuity to find
! sn10ta other reason for danlarirrr tba ,,of