The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-01-16

anu conspicuous places III Charleston, -
c., half sheet poster headed: "Dcmo-
cratic Frauds, Ballot-Bo StulHng," &c.
The text of this poster, a copy of which
is herewith annexed rs Exhibit y, gets
forth that the Democratic executive com.
mittce of The State Of South Carolina had
procured thousands of the "kiss joke" or
tissue tickets, which were to be given to
certain Democrats Mt each poll, to be
stuffed into the ballot boxes The poster
also set forth the plan Of drawing out the
excess of ballots that would be found in
the boxes, and warned the Republicans
of what they might expect, but it was
then too late. The State had been food
ed with the tissue tickets, and the results
of the election on the following day dis
closed the fact that the plan had been
carried out, not in one or two localities
alone, but in all the precincts in the State
where it was thought they would be need
cd; aud further, that it had been carried
out in precisely the same way in locali-
ties 80 remote from each other IA t. show
there must have been Il common direction
given to The plan from some central rover
which was implicitly obcycd.
In further evidence Of prcconccrt Of
action in the use Of these tickets, the re-
marks of Mr.. If. NJ. Loltcn, Democratic
supervisor Of elections at licndcrson's
Store precinct, Charleston, $. c., to Mr..
j. j. German, may be cited. Mr.. Cor
man was the Republican supervisor at
the same polling precinct, aud states that
he had not, until the hour # 3 p. N. on
the day Of election, seen any Of the "ki,s
joke" tickets; but that 1T that hour Mr..
I.oitcn took one Of the "kies Jokes" from
his vest pocket, aud hnldine il To Mr.
German, said: "J.'.c, mere is the ticket
running through the county to-day" and
Immediately returned the ticket to his
pocket.
1t appears further from the sworn state
mcnts Of the Republican supervisors Of
elections that The kiss joke" or tissue
tickets were used exactly as it wa. nlrn.
dcd they should be, and that the Demo
cratic managers of elections at the poll.
ing precincts pursued uniform plan of
handling them in such a manner n. to
render them fully effective for the crime
they were designed to con~umnatc.
In some instances the polls were not
opened by Law e., before q o'cocl; on
tho morning of clcction-and the Re-
publican supervisors arriving at the polls
fifteen minutes before & Il. m, were told
that the poll, were then open, aud that
several persons had voted. When these
supervisors demanded the privilege and
right of examining the bnllot.b boxes,
claiming that the legal hour for opening
the polls Mad not arrived exhibiting
their watches AS evidence of the fact, and
referring to the clock Of St. Michncl's
(thc standard time in Charlcston,) which
had not then toled the hour of 6, they
were treated with contempt, and their
demands to examine the ball0t-boxcs
were not acccdcd to. The managers of
the election Democrats in every instance,
and so appointed in violation Of law cx-
hbitcd their own watches, the hands Of
which had been moved forw to suit
the occasion, and declared that it was
past six by their time, and that they
would be guided by no other
Action Of the kind just rccitcd was
taken III IL sufficient number of cases To
show the design to have been general
ant. prccOnccrtcd.
In other instances the Republican SUI
pcrvis0rs Of election were seized on their
way to the polls by mobs of men, who
prevented !h"": from Teac!iiig The polls
until long after the hour Of opening, and
alter from 100 to 200 men had voted ilc-
galy.
In still other instances, mobs of men
so surrounded the polls that citizens de-
string to vote the Republican ticket were
not permitted to exercise the right Of
suffrage.
In still other instances mobs of armed
men to the number of forty or fifty took
possession Of the polls, cnptur-
ing the ballot boxes and so adding to the
ballots therein rs to produce results ia
v0rable to the success of the Democratic
ticket, without reference to the member
or the character of the ballots legally
cast.
Pistols were Mt the same time brand
ishcd and exploded. Supervisors of
elections and authorities, and deputy
marshals of the United States, were
Knocked down and driven from the polls,
and colorcd citizens were compelled 10
flee in order to preserve their lives.
In some localities the commissions sent
by the chief supervisor Of elections, en-
powcring certain persons to act as super
visors, were not delivered because of the
terrorism produced by the county being
patrolicd in the interest of the Demo-
cratic managers by mounted and armed
men. In these same localities private
dwellings, occupied by white Republican
citizens, were fired into, and colorcd ct:-
zcns who would not wear the "rcd shirts"
were advised to remain ut home.
In still other localities many supcrvi-
sors OF elections refused to serve, after
their commissions had been received
threats of violence having deferred them
from so acting; and in those same local
tiles Republican voters were subjected to
such indignities in their cndeavcrs to vote
rs to deter them from attempting to de-
posit their ballots, and in this matter
many of the citizens made public pro
test
10 these and other acts OF violence re-
cited III Exhibit A must he added the
attempts of alleged perpetrators to rid
themselves t the responsibility of one
crime by the >.isummaton of another.
The cases of Samuel Lee, of Sumter, and
of Rev. +. NJ. Pinckncy, of kingstree,
South Carolina, are pertinent to this
point. Tho former was iorcibly taken
| from the custody Of the United States
aud locked up while l was in Charleston,
5. G. Tho latter was Kidnapped in the
| city of Charleston on the night of the
10Th instant, being called to his door
upon some specious pretext, and there
seized by armed men and spirited ava,
This also occurred while / was in the
city Of Charleston. Intelligence regard
| ing this transaction came to me on the
following morning, and instituted in
quirics which d,se'w5ed that Mr.. Pinck-
ney had been taken to the Central
Guardhouse Main Police S,ation) on
the night before; that certain papers,
pnrporting to be an order and warrant
for his arrest, had been exhibited, and
that he had been taken into the country