The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1879-04-23

not the Offspring of that great instrument
ing strength and glory from the days OF our
revolutionary ancestors. They emanate rain
nression 'n and 1VEanny Which preceded tho
French revolution, and caused It's fires AZ last 10
break forth; which filled the prisons OF France
with victims arrested on secret, orders. ana
made every citizen tremble as one who Tears
blow in the dark They emanate from Inat
per of look of suspicion was more to be
dreaded than the blow of dagger, aud wnen
the silent and voiceless accusation doomed us
object TO walk the bridge of signs into the
caverns of a ruthless and lingering DEAN IN
English history there never eve, was rnares
the First lost his head, James the second ms
throne, and George the Third MS American
colonies in attempting far less encroachments
en- the lib .rtles OF English men than these laws
perpetrate on the liberties of Americans
a sword by a single hair over the heads of his
guests at a banquet, and enjoyed their terror
chamber has suspended over the heads of
the American people and put into
operation In their MICS. enae.ne ,hs inl
assailable safeguards of personal noerty lie
Itself is of no value. The senator nom Maine
mfr. Blanel has urged that opposition to
these enactments is a false issue on the part of
those who have not felt their cruel enforce
Federal election laws have not been called
into active execution in some porlons
OF the country ana Troops ors the moS neonle
have no reason for resentment. The tories OF
the revolution argued the same way lUO years
ago on the stamp act AMI the tax on tea. fney
insisted that the claim of right to bind the
colonies In all things put forth by the British
Parliament could do no harm, and ought to
be submitted to as long as no attempt was
made to enforce it. But il was that very claim
OF right which made the revolution. II was
manded, that caused the sword OF bunker hin
to be drawn. It was the naked assertion OF a
principle subversive OF local selfgovernment
which drove the colonists to armed resistance
and kept the army of the revolution In the
dependence was secured. Our fathers were
unwilling for claim of despotic power 10
hang over them as a threat liable at any time
to be put in execution. They revolted against
the idea that they were to hold their rights
subject only TO the foroearanee OF their rulers
They resented the menace of the British Gov.
eminent contained in Its declaration of power
as they would q peronal indignity, Burke, in
America, thus describes the colonists:
sIn other countries the people more simple
principle in government only by an actual
grievance; here they anticipate the evil, and
fudge of the pressure of the grievance by the
eminent at a distance and snuff the approach
of tyranny in every tainted breeze"
which inspired Jefferson and John Adams,
Patrick Henry and John Hancock: which
welded together the toil-worn and destitute
veterans OF Virginia and Massachusetts, in
MANY bitter and bloody charge. The sound
of the clankng chains of political bondage
They did not sit supinely and heedlessly until
the manacles were fastened on their limbs.
Are their descendants OF this day SO degener-
ate that they will wait until the hand OF power
clutches them by the throat and hurts them
into prison before they win turn and destroy
the laws which provide for such debasement?
Shall we salute with reverence the tokens of
tyranny, the emblems of our enslayement?
Austrian tyrant elevated. as sign Of
air women IN all the four quarters of the
globe have poured incense 70 the name OF
shillings OF ship money too dear price to pay
for security, ease, peace. and life itself, as long
as the, prerogative to levy such tax was
claimed by the king; and he yielded up his
peerless spirit on the plains of Chalgrave in
defying an unjust principle of government.
Notwithstanding the derision of the senator
from Maine, all history attests the danger of
leaving instruments of usurpaJion and oppres-
sion ready for the use OF those Entrusted with
at last The hour of his advent is inevitable.
The temptations of supreme and arbitrary
power have never yet failed to develop a Ce
sar, a Cromwell, Napoleon, whenever the
people have relaxed their vigilance and suf-
fered their laws to pave the way toward des-
potism.
But in the present instance we have vastly
more than the mere menace or threat of fu-
ture subjugation by virtue of the laws under
discussion. We are not left to conjecture
what will be done hereafter. Already these
laws have been executed over the PROSTATE
manner and to an extent which would arouse
any people in Europe to revolt, except, per-
laDS. the SerfS OF Russia. i SPEAK not now OF
the South, which has so long been considered
great, dominant and stalwart North. Look to
wealth and commerce of the Western hemi-
sphere. Scenes have been enacted there with
disarace ' to the RennbiIc whereyer thev are
known. John 1. Davenport is chief supervisor
of elections in the city of New York, appoint
ed by The circuit court of the United States.
He is also the CLERK of the United States cir
cult court and United States commissioner.
With all the powers of these manifold official
positions combined in his o wn person he has
indeed been the autOcrat of the ballot-box. In
the elections of 1876 he had under him ,075
supervisors, 800 deputy marshals, and an in
definite number of commissioners. at an ex-
pense for them and for himself of So, 5S7.
In 1873 he employed 1 ,225 supervisors, 1, $50
deputy marshals, and commissioners in pro-
portion, for all whose pay and expenses he
drew upon the money of the people in the
treasury. In June 1875, as clerk of the United
States circuit court, he issued warrants for the
before him as United States commissioner and
chief supervisor. for the purpose of making
them surrender their naturalization papers.
The Federal courts themselves afterward held
that the naturalization papers in question
were all legal and valid, but the desired result
by these arrests intimidated thousands from
going to the polls. 1t became well known
that there was no personal security in New
York in connection with the elections, and
the poor, the timid, and the humble staid
away. The same course was pursued in 1873.
During the summer of that year 9,400 citizens
were notified that they would be arrested un-
less they surrendered their naturalization
papers to the head -overseer, John I. Daven-
port. In the month of October, 1878, 3,iO0 per-
sons were actually arrested, and reign of
terror iuaugurated just in advance of the cleo
ton. The pretense that these persons held
fraudulent naturalization papers had already
been shown TO be false, but 1t was necessary TO
party success that an alarm should be raised
and panic created in the minds of foreign
born citizens and of the poor laboring classes
generally.
The movement was successful, and it has
been estimated that 10000 legal voters re-
manned away from the polls rather than risk
the jails and the prison pens OF the chief super
visor and his subo-dinates. But it was re-
served for the day of election itself TO give free
band of Federal Kuklux is invested. Those
who braved the dangers which environed the
ballot box, and approached 1T as If they were
still freemen. soon found their mistake. They
quickly ascertained that the previous threats
and warnings which they had heard we're
neither idle nor unmeanfng. As q specimen
of thousands OF similar occurrences on cleo
ton day, quote a statement recently made