National Republican., 1880-12-25
Fair Elections,

Ours is supposed to be republican
government. The idea that lies at the
foundation of such form of government
idea alone the superstructure of our Gov
crnment is built. The foundation ofastruc-
ture entirely removed, the edifice ofncces-
sity falls; determination weakened in any
part to greater or less extent, the struc-
ture resting thereon is likewise weakened.
Laws are enacted to advance, not to re-
tard and embarrass justice. An election
is simply means of reaching the wishes
of the body of the electors. All laws
upon the subject of elections have, or
should have, for their object the ascer-
tanning of the views of the people. While
certain formalities are to be observed in
| the conduct of elections, none should be
devised or insisted upon that substan-
TALLY defeat the very object they
were created to accomplish. The
intent of an eleCtOr, reasonably as
certained, should be carried out. The
technicality that robs an clcctor of the
full effect ofhis vote is q stab at freedom
and deadly blow at Republican institu-
tons. We define fair election to be
one of which all the electors have had
due notice as to time and place ofholding;
where each party is fairly represented mt
the ballot-box, and has an equal privilege
of challenging the voters; where every
man has an opportunity to vote for the
man he desires, subjected to no undue i'm
portunity, much less to personal violence,
and where each vote shall be counted just
Us it was cast. An election of this kind
will be perfectly satisfactory to the de-
feated as well as to the successful party.
An election other than the one we have
attempted TO describe, if acquiesced in at
all by the defeated, will receive but sui
lent assent, and bring to the victor sue
cess that cmbodics in itself the seeds Of Il
sure and speedy destruction.
While men, for various reasons, are
fond of their party organizations, take II
pride in their victories and grieve over
their defeats the vast majority of voters
in this country, Of all parties, hold the
welfare of the Nation paramount to the
success of party; are quick to take alarm
at mcasurcs-evcn though they point to
party succcss-which imperil the funda-
mental ideas of liberty, and are resolute
to put down, at the first opportunity, the
demagogues who conceived them and the
reckless partisanS, who, carrying them to
their conclusions, made II minority sue
cessGul in defiance of right and justice.
The point we make against the Demo-
cratic party is that now, ~ heretofore for
the last forty years, ii has been the open
advocate and defender, North and South,
of violence and fraud at the ballot-boX,
us well as the strength and support of
those who have ridden rough-shod over
men seeking to intcrpose the shield of
the law and Constitution between their
reasonable designs and the Government
they sought to subvert We assert that
in vast section Of this Republic peace
ful elections are not possible that wher-
ever in the South the Democratic party
has gone into power the purity of the
ballot has been dctiled, the birthright of
American citizens wrested from them,
the laws of Congress violated and the
Constitution of the land detied and spit
upon. There is not to-day in any State
Of the South an active, energetic, we'll
or'an2cd, and wcll-disciplin Repub-
lican party, And why? Simply because
Southern bull-dozers, aided and abetted
by Northern Democratic sympathy, have
stamped the Republican party out in
blood and death. In the North we have
absolute freedom of speech and ballot
neither shot-guns, revolvers, rifles the
knife Of the assassin, or the torch of the
incendiary enter into our politics. We
east the full vote towhich we are entitled,
Contrast any election in Maine for the
last six years with elections occurring in
J Mississippi during the same time.