The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1879-09-11


is still Ia force, was enacted by the British Par.
| liament:
"ANNo OCTAVE GEoRGH II C. 3O 1875 CAP. xxx.
"An act regulating the quartering of soldiers dur.
the time of the elections of members TO serve In
Parliament.
Whereas, by the ancient common law of this
land all elections ought 10 be free, and whereas,
by an act passed In the third year of the TeiSn of
| King Edward the First, OF famous memory, II is
| commanded, upon great forfeiture, that no man
| by force of arms nor by malice, or menaOing,
shall disturb any to m ke free eeCtiOul a I'D for
asmuCh as the freedom of elections for mem iers
| TO serve In Parliament is of the utmost conse
quence to the preservation of the rights aud lib
| critics OF this kingoOm; and whereas 1t has been
the usage aud practice to cause any regiment,
| troop, or company or any number of soldiers
which hath bee quartered In any city, borough,
| town. or place where any election of members to
| serve In Parliament hath been appointed to be
made TO remove and continue out OF the same
during the time OF such election, except In such
particular cases as are hereinafter specified; 10
| the end therefore, that the said usage aud prac
tice may be settled and established for the future,
| be 1t enacted by the kings most excellent majps
| ty, by and with the advice and consent of the
| lords spiritual and temporal and commons in
| Parliament assembled, and by the authority OF
| the same, that when and as often as any cleo
| ton OF any peer or peers to represent the peeTk
| of Scotland in Parliament, or Of any member or
members 10 serve In Parliament, shall be Ap.
| pointed to be made, the secretary at war for the
| time being or In any case there shall be no sec
Teiary at war, then such person who shall Ot10i'
ate in the place Of the secretary Of war, shan,
| and Is hereby required, at some convenient TIME
before the day appointed for such election, TO is.
| sue aud send forth proper orders in writing for
| the removal Of every such regiment, troop, or
| company, or other number of soldiers as shall be
QuarleTed or bllleted In any such city, b0rOug \,
| town, or place where such election shall be ap-
| pointed 10 be made, out of lvery such city,
borough town, or place, one day at the least be-
fore the day appointed for such election, TO the
| distance of two or more miles from such city,
| borough, town, or place, and not TO make any
nearer approach to such city, borough, town, or
pla g, asaforesaid, until one day at the least af
ter the poll to be taken such election shall be
| ended and the poll books closed"
And in ninth Parliamentary History, 1926, we
| are told
"The military having been called in to quell
| an alleged riot at WestmIi lister election In l74l,
| 1t was resolved, December %, That the presence
of regular body of armed soldiers at an election
| of members to serve in Parliament Is high iu-
| fringement of the liberties of the subject, mani
| fest violation OF the freedom OF elections, and an
open defiance of the laws and constitution OF this
| kiug gdOm" The persons concerned IN this, haV.
| ing been ordered 10 attend the House, received
| on their knees q very severe reprmand from the
| speaker"
Now, my friends, the democracy, at the last Sc :,
| sion of Congress did all that was In their power
| tC repe the statutory provision authorizing the
| use of the army at the polls For that puTpO
| we passed bill after bill, but they were success
| sively vetoed by the President and thereby de-
| ieated The General Appropriation Bill for the
| support of the army was thus vetoed, the Presi
| dent, by defeating 1t, declaring In effect, that he
| would let the army go without support rather
| than lose the right to use II at the times and
| places of elections. Thus thwarted, by an un'
| parallel exercise of the One-man power. We had
| nothing left for US to do but to withhold ap'
| preparations from the army tOhen wed dt the polls.
| But this remedy is in It's nature, but temporary,
| and may be too easily evaded by hostile Exec
utve to be securely relied upon. Nothing short
Of repeal Of the obnoxious provision will suffice,
| and the question whether II shall be repealed Is
| one OF the great questions to be decded
| by the people. This issue is clearly made and
sharply defined. The Republicans In Congr- g.
| as we'll as the President, are oppose 10 the re
1 d al, as their speeches and recorded votes amply
show. The Democrats and Nationals are to a
man In favor OF the repeal. What say you2 II
you are tired Of freedom and wish the ballot box
| to be lnterieTred with by the 0ayOnet, vote 70
| keep The law upon the Statue Book But II you
| shall cherish your liberties aud wish to cast a
| free and untrammeled vote, unawed by military
| force, vote to repeal 1t. AMI do not imagine my
| friendk, that because you have never seen the
| polls In Columbus surrounded by troops there
| fore there Is no danger to be apprehended, Io
say not ing of what has occurred III the suutherl
STATES, II is but few years since large bodies Oi
Federal troops were massed In New York city
upon an election day. for the avowed purpose o.
executing the law we seek TO repeal. And II tht
| people once become accustomed 10 such an EN-
pOyment of military force, and tamely acqui
esCe in 1t, II will not be long before the lnerfer
ence Ofthe military will become far more oIec
| and effective and far more extended, lhe mr.
steps OF despOtism are always stealthy, but ea0f
successive step becomes more and more auda
ci0us until at length liberty finds itself In deatt
Struggle for existence. The Only safe rule Is 4
resist despOtic power from the very outset Tn
title old maxim that Eternal vigilance is th
price of liberty" is q true maxim there neve
was truer one. Therefore 1t is, that appeal 4
you TO speak out now, before II 10 TOO late. lie
the voice that comes from your ballot boXe
while they are yet free, declare, in unmistakaD,
tones, that they always shall be free.
NATURALIZATION AND ELECTION LAWS,
now turn to some statutes to which your at
tention should be called. But before doing so 1
will be well to refer to the hostility so long man
ifested by our political opponents towards tn
people Of this country who are Of foreign birth
For 1t is In part owing to this hostility that thes
laws were enacted and are found upon you
Statute Book.
You have all heard of the lous Allen an
sedition Law enacted by > 'eral COngres
eighty one years ago, which gave to the Presi
dent of the United states the power to Danish q
its mere pleasure any alien whom he saw fl Il
Danish. The Democratic party Of that day Op
posed the enactment Of this law with all lis Wig
or, and subsequently, by mighty effort, sue
ceeded In repeating IT, And the triumph Of ID
Democracy in the election OF Mr. Jefferson seem
ed for time at least to have put an end to an,
attempt to renew such persecution. And as lonl
as the Democratic party retained power, no sucl
attempt was to be seriously apprehended. Blu
the spirit Of hostility to the foreign born had no
died out; and heuCe within the life of the presen
generation we saw the Know-nothing partl
spring into existence as 1t were In single nigh
and threaten to obtain possession OF all Ou
Governments, State and Federal. The DemOCra
cy, however, proved the mselves equal TO the oc
ca iOn and this new attempt to revive and pu
in practice the spirit OF the old Alien and Sc
dition law was signally ovelthrown, When
however, the Republican party after the frs
election Of President Grant had the most abso
Lutte control OF the government thal any party
ever DO sessed-the President being Republi
can nearly all the Judges of the Supreme anC
the other Federal Courts being Republicans
more than six sevenths OF the senators being Re
pubCans and over tWO-thirds OF the House o.
Representatives being Of the same paIty--thG
| Radical lea0ers conceived 1t possible to once
more assail the rights OF the naturali2ed citizen
This tim 0 the sltaCk was made under the guist
Of preserving the purity Of elections. The object
was to bring all cleo ions under the control Oi
Congressional law and Federal officers, and tC
use the whole power Of the Federal Government
and Its Treasury, too, to maintain the ascendan-
cy OF the Republican party. They began by the
Introduction OF bill professedy TO enforce the
provisions OF the fifteenth article Of amendment
10 the Constitution and that bill, originally In
Ioduced in the House, after being greatly
amended and enlarged, was passed by both
Houses and approved by the President on May
3l 1870 1t Is entitled IAN act tO enforce the right
of citizens Of the United states to vote In the sew
eral States Of this Union, and for other nurp0ses
and 1t contains not less than twenty three sec
tions have no time tonight to speak Of this
law In detail. l can only say In general way
that 1t assumes to control the action Of the elee
tion officers OF the States when performing theiI
duties under State laws and to punish them by
indictment In the Federal Courts and by numer'
Gus other penalties for any violation OF the act
Notwithstanding the existence Of State law, to
punish them for the same thing thus inhictnR
| upon them double punishment-one under
the laws Of the State and the other under this
| Congressional act. 1t creates host of Federal
| officers and employees TO be paid out Of the public
| aounPv for fntpFfarriuQ I'm the alpptinna the