National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1879-05-16
DAYoNET ELECTIONS AND FREE o BAL.
InTG

bic tin can attached to The caudal append |
age OF n swift-moying cur. GRANTS bay |
onets are often alluded to. OF course no
one with brains enough even TO edit a Demo-
cratic organ believes q word of this stun, |
but it is well occasionally to explode the
nonsense, as we shall do now.
As an example, we shall take the State of
Alabama, and show from official figures the
difference between "bayonet elections aud
free ballots In 1874 there were six Con-
gressional districts in Alabama and two
Congressman were elected from the State at
large. The vote of the State at large was
Republican, 10000; Democratic, 100000.
As Alabama in 1870 had 202,0iG male citi-
zcns over twenty-one years of age, this, al
lowing for only the usual increase of 8 per
cent, or 10000 in four years, might be con-
sidered n full, fair vote under GRANTS
"bayonets." In 1876 there were eight dis
tricts, and tho vote in each was as follows
First, 81 ass second, 20829; third, 1885;
fourth 25,566 fifth, 1888; sixth (only
one candidate), 1864; seventh (only one
candidate) 14,3l9 eighth, %, 3,439-a total
of 157, ,iS5, and less than the actual vote of
the State should have been by about 10000.
The first district, composed of the counties
of Choctaw, Clarke, Marengo, Monroe, Mo-
bile, and Washington, had not been changed,
and its vote can be compared.
For member Of the Forty-fourth Congress
it polled 36,5Oi votes, 1851 being given to
| the Republican candidate. In 1876 it cast
only 2l, ,485 votes, and of them only 2,l32
were for the Republican candidate, the
Others being divided between n regular and
Independent Democrat. The census of 1870
showed for these counties 27,22j voters, and,
as they include the city of Mobile and the
cotton growing region near it, there is every
reason to believe that q large colored emil
grafton had swelled the population to the
| figures given In 1874. There was falling of
here in two years of over $4,000 votes, and
they were all Republican votes. The Demo-
cratic vote was only slightly increased.
What became of the remainder?
But we set out to compare the election
in 1876, when GRANTS bayonets" ruled
the State, to that in 1873, when "a free
ballot" was had. We take our figures
from the Congressional Directory for the
Forty-sixth Congress: First district, 9,516;
second, 14,s60 third, 7,075; fourth, 1873;
fifth, 9,27l; sixth, 10,S23; seventh, 2,747.
eighth, 1S602-a total of S5,276-but little
more than one-half the vote pollcd at tho
previous election. The only district in the
State which polled anything like n full vote
was the eighth, in which LOWE was elected
as Greenbacker, and in only two districts
were there any Republican candidates.
The vote of Alabama for President in
1872 was only 1926; four Republican
Congressman by districts and two from the
State at large elected. OF these votes 10000
were Republican. In 1874 we find the
Democratic vote increased in an off year
by nearly 10000, the Democrats in the
meantime having secured the election ma
chinery. In 1876 another Presidential year
we find the vote falls off to $4,000, the
Democrats having about 100000 of that
and again, in 1878, to $4,000, with less thar
1000 Republican votes,
There can be but one explanation of this
these shriekers after "free ballot
We do not mean to say that the,
have murdered all the voters bu
they have murdered the vote, mur
dered as ruthlessly as CAIN di'
his brother ABEL, and the voic
of the free people of the North should b
heard as was that of the Lord by CAIN
demanding of these murdcrers, "Wherc i
, ".thy brother?' Let the free North spcal
and ii will strike rs much terror to th
, souls of these ballot murderers as did tina
+, of an angry God to the soul Of CAIN. Lik
. the first murderer these modern ones vii
, attempt lies and subtcrfugc; but as the voic
of free people will be to them as the voic
> of God was to CAIN, so will the eyes an
, minds OF the people be to see through thei
vain attempts to conceal their crimes. ]
:, stands forth to-day in its naked deiorm
\ ity blot upon civilization aud shame I
. our Republic.
J. How is it that WILLIAM HENRY FoRNEl
i, of the seventh Alabama district, can, wit
;. only 2,7i7 votes, sit as the peer of JANF
q PHELPS, of Connecticut, in whose distriC
{ were poled 1929 votes? How is it thf
}, the eight Representatives (?) from Alabam
4 whose average vote was 1905, are the peel
@ of the nineteen Representatives from
| linos, whose average vote was 23SS0, {
- the nine Republicans from Michigan, who's
"a average vote was 2S,5O0 or, to take the onl
, Northern State with the same number
"a Representatives, with those Of Wisconsi
,s where the average vote was 2570O? "
Ia ask the attention Of all lair.mindcd men
N the North TO these figures, and they are o
d fetal. Tho tale they tell needs no con
If ment. Other Southern States, where ballo
# stuling has not taken the place of bul
!. doing and rifle clubs show the same 7
? suits.
re Alabama is the first State named in Il
@ Congressional DirectOry aud therefore v
l. took it first; but from Mississippi com
Of the loudcst howl of the Confederate Brig
le ders for "a free ballot" See how it stand
m The census of 1870 shows 100000 male eli
re zens in population of $4,000, lit
al more than one voter TO each five person