The south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1879-1883, 1879-04-15

perjury, ana Forgery we're stronger
than the States, strong& than the
Constitution; that they ruled Con.
gress; that the Congressional Com
mission had no power to resist, but
that this Government was plaything
of knaves, the Presidency a football
for perjurers, and the ballot-box the
palladium Of thieves, forgcrs, perjur-
ers, Returning Board fellons, and
visilsng statesmen bargainers.
This is all lie, or all Jurisprudence
is lie. That fraud vitiates all it in
fects is an axiom as old as civilization
as fundamental as law, and as essen
tial to justice as blood is TO the heart,
Sovereignty is as inaliena Die as il is
indivisible. Its power is general for
all the powers for which it was crea-
ted. 1t is the general will of all the
States, not ofany State or two States,
Of one Returning Board or of two
Returning Boards; not of half doz-
ell visiting statesmen, but of all the
people. A Returning Board may be
bribed and corrupted, forgers may be
bought, perjurers may be hired,
thieves may be bargaincd with, and
lanentable as the fact is. visiting
statesman may conniye with forgers,
and pejurers, and thieves, but a
whole people cannot be corrupted !;
they may be deceived. A whole
people were represented by the Con-
gressional Commission, or no one
was represented by it. That Com.
mission had the power to examine,
or II did not have the power TO de.
eide. 1t was sovereign arbiter al the
right, or II was sovereign fraud. 1t
had great elements of sovereign dig
nifty, Of craftsmanship, of learning
and of manhood. But it had ma
jority, and that majority succumbed
10 fraud, bowed to it, yielded to it,,
crowned it and by this decision it be-
came the most gigantic of fraudss 1t
sat with robes of justice to do injus-
tice. 1t was a tribunal to sustain the
sovereignty of the ballot it sustained
the sovereignty of thieves and for
gers and perjurers. 1t had Bradley
as a Judge, aud Garfield as petit
fogger. A nations honor was in
one scale, Republican carpet bag
frauds in the other. Republicans
knew their men. They knew ii they
had to tear mantle from judicial
robes to hide the leprosy of their as
sassin like decision, that Bradley's
was in the market. Garfield and
Bradley said "Strike," and dead fell
the ballot. A nations honor was
struck down. Garfield ap0strophized
the sacrifice, and bradley consecrated
it. The ballot was killed that knaves
might rule. Caesar was assassinated
and so was Rome. Look, sir, at the
situation. You are in a post of hon
or, the steps to which the Constitu-
ton has clearly defined. You are
there, not by virtue of constitution
al right, but in defiance of it; not by
virtue of tile elective faancoise, Tor
that defeated you; but by virtue OF
en- infamous overthrow ofthe runda-
mental principle OH which Liberty
no,o. eS hnt r;,,a;n;os. "ot not on u ho,or ~"
,, So,eS' a;osonn Gus a' 1,,,; "ws u n pnnv,i
sra,as Eu = sms,a;nod Nv h;rad eoroans @ -
speculating thieves, and loyal per-
consoIine TO Know thai the lenrosv a' ,I
political infamy finds no moral sup.
port even with your own associates
Deserted by yonr own marty dos.
pissed by ali, The very attitude Of your
position intensifies the CONTEMPT OF
honest men the world over. CoIioula
found Il essential 10 murder his min
listers, his brother, his mother. and
his wife. and finally to murder him
self. so heartily did he come TO des-
Mise The outrn9es which he had com :
mitted TO satisfy his ambition You
sir. hay, not murdered your minis.
ters physically. but morally. but NOR.
ally. Your chief consumer is ms EFF.
fectually guilloti,ed as prototvpe
Foulon.. You have not slrnneled
your brother, or mother, or wife, but
YOU have put your sacrilegious hands
on the most sacred of principles and
murdered It. Your basis OF office is
defiant of Bunker HDl. and Saratoga.
and Yorktown, 1t is worse than in.
diyidual assassination: il is the as
sassinatiop of A great principle. which
reaches 10 the very foundations of
Civil Liberty.
Therefore, sir, 1 say. if YOU are
guiltless, if YOU had no part with the
periuries, The forgeries the thefts
which made up the returns
from Louisiana and Florida: il
YOU did not instigate the bar
gains, and have not confirmed the
contracts of the visiting statesmen,
you owe it to yourself to say SO TO
The American people. You owe it to
the nation to declare the seat vacant
you occupy. You owe the to public TO
declare that the elective franchise
shall not be sacrificed by williams.
Doing this,mankind will respect you.
Not doing it, thereiis no degree OF
contempt SO eternal as that to which
you consign Yourself.
Justice is eternal, because it IL JUS
tice. Wrong, when it reaches ali, is
cured BY all. History embalms it.
because it is a blow at public integ.
rity. A nations curse, as durable as
the nation, will write itself in living
annals to perpetuate the shame will
which fraud trampled on its suprem
est law. Forget it men cannot. A