Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1880-09-22
The Alabama Fraud.

ne Alabama Fraud.
From the Evening Wisconsin, Milwaukee,
There was an entertaining instruc-
tive meeting at the room of the Garfield
and Arthur club of the Fourth ward last
evening, at which speeches were made
by Col. Goodwin, Phillip Joseph, col
ored, of Alabama, and others. Mr..
Joseph's speech was mainly devoted to
an exposition OF the election frauds in
Alabama, and was all the more interest
ing because he spoke of what he had
seen and known, having lived in the
state all his life. He recounted how in
1872, when there was something like
fair election in Alabama, the Republi-
cans carried the state by S,349 majority;
and how this majority, in IA, bv means Of
intimidation, whippings. shootines and
hanglngs, was wiped out, and the state
made to give Democratic majority of
1880. An incident of this election he
stated as follows:
In Mobile ID 1874 at O'Clock in the forenoon,
on the day OF election, the Republicans had
majority of $50. After that noun the Demo-
cratic bulldozers fired upon line Of 100 Re
publican negroes waiting to cast their ballot
and three or four were killed. These same
Democrats then rushed ont their artillery and
went from precinct to precinct terrifying Repub-
hcan voters, SO that in short time not Re
publican voter was to be seen on the streets.
He then proceeded to state how the
election laws of Alabama had been
changed SO as to hamper colored men in
voting, and to facilitate fraud in the
elections. For instance, he said that
the law requires that the ballots shall be
of uniform size and of clean white paper,
and the Democratic inspectors would re-
iect all Republican ballots which failed
in the least to comply with the require
ments He said that the negroes
almost to a man, if left free,
will vote the Republican ticket, yet
in the last election districts where the
negroes outnumbered the whites six to
eight times, gave large Democratic ma
jorities. He gave a number of instances
of this kind as coming under his own
observation, for he has been an active
politician among his own people. AS an
instance of the terrorism that reigns, he
said that colored preacher expressed
himself against the appearance of Dem
ocratic bulldozers in his district, and pa
hours afterwards the preacher was torn
from his family, shot to death and his
body thrown into the Mississippi river.
Others had fed from the district to es-
cape death.
His statements correspond with those
from other sources, and there is no rea-
sonable doubt of their entire truth. In
deed an Alabama Democratic paper, the
birmingham True Issue, has proven that
it's title is not altogether a misnomer by
frankly admitting that the election was a
fraud, and that the election laws of the
state are disgrace. It says:
E The Democratic papers realize the fact that
great damage has been done to Gen. Hancock in
his race for the presidency by the put-eep
jo,'ity Of $4,000. The cry of fraud has been
raised by cheated and wronged people, and is
repeated throughout the land, exaggerated
doubtless, and it is telling fearfully against him
in the North, and bighting with fear chances
that were bright up to the time the noGrelpudOrs
handled that ireiqatg hat disgraces the legislation
of the last sessO11-te 71e,o election l1,o. Habit
not been used as it was it would have failed,
perhaps, OF its pu. poses. 1t bears on its face
fraud, and, Of course, as at IS intended to de-
fraud, 1t acds used. 1t was too much, how
ever. and the $4,000 majority looks about us
ugly now as the eight to seven commission did
four years ago. Both these Democratic per-
formances are understood by the great mass of
the people, and they are not so much surprised
at either as the press seems to be now at the
$4,000 majority. There was, in
our opinion, no necessity for. so gigantic fraud
for any party purposes. Twenty thousand or
$4,000 majority would have been enough to
fully secure all the officers of the state and
tested the working capacity of the ''machine
a machine that can grind out ballots and add up
n1dorities that don't erist, that distranchises the
people and denies them the right of free ballot
and honest count, the most sacred ciU right
eUer arrested from the citizen. Alabama, carried
By the fraud of mean, vllLainous election Ian,
4boT
Of a president, and makes, perhaps, q Radical
congress. What may the people hope from a
party that SO outroges them and their r1g75ts9
Nothing bat auoe to them and the coonatyP'