Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1879-03-15

dcient number of Democratic voters
and holding them In custody till
the election was over. This was the
game played so successfully by Dav-
the chief Federal Supervisor
Of Elections in New York. On his
own motion he undertook to say
that the registrations of naturalized
voters in that city since 1865 had
not been made in due form, and he
interdicted persons so naturalized
from voting under penalty Of inn
prisonment. He did actually cause
to be arrested and imprisoned two
thousand voters who had declared
their intention of voting ON such
registration, and deferred at least
three thousand more from voting |
for fear of arrest; and, to show the |
more clearly the intent of these ar
rests, all so imprisoned were turned |
loose without trial at 6 o'clock on
the evening of the election, as soon
as it was too late for them to
vote. Why they were not brought
to trial is easily seen from the result.
When the question of the validity
of the disputed registration was
brought before the Supreme Court
of the State, it was decided that the
statutes in the case prescribed no
particular form of registration, that
the form adopted was discretional
with the local courts and was per-
| fectly valid.
| The truth is that there was no
disguise observed of the fact that
the apprenticeship was a partisan
arrangement throughout. The Of
fee of the principal Supervisor was
established in a room of the Fifth
Avenue Hotel adjoining that in
which the Republican Executive
| Committee met, and the two worked
together in perfect accord, and
when Davenport's powers were not
found sufficient to effect his pur-
poses, photographed to Washington
for what he wanted and additional
clauses were added to the already
despOtic supervision bill. In plain
terms the law in question is pro-
vision for enabling executive inter
ference in elections to an unlimited
extent for the purpose of perpetual
ing the power of the party now
holding the executive sway, and on
that principle Acknowledgement
Devens is now running it in Louisi
ana. The ir In-clad oath is an aux
iliary by excluding white men from
the juries, and it is hoped that the
restored power of using the army as
a Returning Board may complete
the thing.
Now here is our emergency: A
machinery has been established by
which the representative and elect
i've feature in our government can
be set aside and the will of the ex-
ecutive to perpetuate its tenure Of
Office be substituted in its place; by
which, in short, the whole principle
of our governmentc can be subverted,
and the way it has been put in ope-
ration manifests the intention of the
existing Executive to use it unscru-
pulOusly for that purpose. The ma
jority in the Senate (now happily at
an end) stands by the President in
this his treasOnous purpose, and
the peoples House has only one
resort, the money power. 1t can
prevent the peoples money being
used for the enslavement of the
people, and it is its imperative duty
to do so. Say that the action is
revolutionary, which is not true, for
it is a strictly constitutional power;
but grant for argument that it is.
The uSurpation which it aims to
break down is certainly revolution
as nuch as that which established
the thirty tyrants on the ruins of
the Athenian republic, and, at the
worst, the people have their choice
between two revolutions, one which
enthrones the Executive unchecked
by popular franchise in perpetuity
of power, the other which aims TO
PROSTATE this despotic usurpatiOn
and re-establish the supremacy of
popular suffrage in its place.
There can be little doubt, if the
alternative be presented of taking
one or the other of two such revolu-
tions which this people will choose;
only let the peoples representatives
stand inexorably to their position
that money shall not be granted to
sustain usurpatiOn.