The daily gazette., 1879-04-08
The Federal Election Laws.
EXTRACT FROM
Mr.. Blac X burns Speech.

Why. sir, among the most favored, the
most cherished and precious priDcip pies
ingrafted on our system of governm, mt
from our old prototype, the English
people, rs that provision which would
not tolerate not ouly the ipterfer- nee
but the presence Of the military at the
pels.
Over one hundred years ago an English
statute declared the will Of ,he English
men upon this vital question.
read the statute.
BE d enacted by He ktRg's most eucellent
Majesty, by and 1iu, the ddrise and consent
Of the L0, us, spiritual and TEMPORAL aud
Commons M Parliament assembled, and bp
tie authority Of tie same, hat when and
80 often as any election Ct any peer or
peers to represent ;he peers of Scotland
IN Parliament, or any member or mem
bers to serve in Parliament, shall be
aproint 10 be made, the secretary at
war for the time being, or in case there
shall be no secretary at wal, ,th en- such per-
son who shall ofhciate in tae place of the
secretary AT war, shall and is hereby re-
quired At some convenient time befureths
| day appointed for such election, to issue
| and send forth proper Orders,in writing
| for the removal of every such regiment
| troop, or company, or other number O,
| soldiers a, shall bs quartered or billetet
| where such election shall be appoint 81
| to be iuade ,out of every such city borough
town, Oh place, one day at the least be
| fore the day appointed for snch election
to the distance of two or more mile iron
such city, borough, town, or place, 4,
aforesaid, until one day at the least af'i el
1 the poll to be taken at such election shal
be ended and the poll-books closed.-
Statute G.0rge II
| From thar fit,a till potu I do d.nt,
that IL Is not within the power OF any
man to find single scion of the Saxon
| race that has not held n utter abhOrreuet
| the efforts Of him or them who sought
t. control The freedom of the ballot by
the employment of the military power
Applause.
The very Army of this country pro.
tests against such prostitution of it
| service.
! see before me the justly distinguish
| ed General in Chief of our Army, aud
do not believe that | overstate the fact
when l say that from HIM down te
the private in the ranks II is difficult I,
| md one who has not recoiled from thi.
service which they have been called
upon to render. lApplausel
1t is this question, and it ls none other
that insist shall be kept before thi.
House. We are declaring that the ballot
shall be free. We are denying that II il
either constitutional, legal, Just, fair, OF
decent, to object the sovereign to the
surveillance of the soldier.
| Now, upon that issue the gentleman
| from Ohio aud his associates tell us that
| they stand committed. / answer so dc
we. We are willing to discuss it, aud
for my part shall oppose any limitauor
being put upon this debate. If we cannot
stand upon an Issue SO broad, so consti
tntional, SO catholic, so fair, 50 free n
| this, then tell me in Heavens name
where are there battlements stronl
enough for US to get behind? Let it 90 u
the country that one party asserts tba
| the manacles shall fall from the limbs O
the oltizen, and that the Army shall no
hold its mailed hand at the throat of til,
sovereign, and that the other party re
fuses to release the throttling grasp, ant
declare that it will block the wheels O
The government and bring it to starva-
| ton.
am willing, and those with whom
stand are willing, to accept this issue
ana we 90 further, We tender IL. w 8 ar,
the ones to make the issue and we ar,
ready Tor you to accept il. Planting our
selves upon this broad ground, we wei
come controversy. We seek no quarre
with you, but for the first time in elgh
teen years past the democracy are bach
III power in both branches of this Legis
lature, and she proposes to signalize he
return to power; sho proposes to cele
brate her recovery of her long-lost her
itage by tearing off these degradinI
badges of servltude and destroying tn
machinery of corrupt and partisan leg
islation.
We do not intend to stop until w,
have stricken the last vestige OF you
war measures from the statute book
which like these were born OF the pas
sions incident to civil strife, and looKe,
to the ahridgement OF the liberty Of tb
citizen.
We demand an untrammeled election
no supervising of the ballot by the Al
my. Free, absolutely free right to tn
citizen in the deposit of his ballot as
condltion-precedent to the passage O
your hi lis