Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-05-08

officeholders and used for the same purpose Is
not a crime. If this bill shall pass no man
holding public Office can be connected with the
public political press. He cannot contribute
to pay ordinary and perfectly legitimate ex.
penses of political meetings. This class OF
citizens cannot contribute money for printing
and distribution of political documents, can
not contribute money to form and support
political club or society for the dissemination
of the most wholesome political tenets con-
cerning the rights of man. The establishment
and support of reading room stock
ed with political works would
be crime, and must be treated
in the same way as the contribution of money
to corrupt voters and destroy the purity OF the
ballot. Why should this class of cltizens oe
deprived of the privilege conceded to all others
Is there more danger IN tho contributions OF
men in office than from those who are striving
to get in? This bill is indefensible on any
principle. 1t is abhorrent to all ideas of right,
is in violation of the rights of the people grant
ed them bY organic laws of the land
The purpose of the bill of the majority is
not to prevent the contribution OF money TO
enlighten the people on political questions,
but to secure monopoly of such instrument
tality to the men who are seeking once, anu
assail those who hold Office. 1t should be en-
titled va bill to compel political information
committee might have found that very many
citizens were murdered in cold blood because
they attempted to vote as their Judgment and
censciences directed. The committee had on lis
files uncontradicted testimony to show that
various subterfuges, manipulation OF ballots,
Justification of returns, farce, violence, Iraud,
forgery, perjury, ballot-box stuthng and muir
der were resorted to in many sectlons OF tne
country during that election to defeat and set
at naught the will of the people. Yet, to cor
rect these evils, directed not simply against
the purity of the ballot, but against the very
existence of the ballot, the community appear
to have no concern. Was it because the polit-
ioal party that has profted by these wrongs is
the party to which the majority of
the community belong and the same
party that so recently attempted to
repeal all laws that bad for their only ooJect
protection of the purity of the ballot and SAFE
ty of the voters. Such anxiety to save the
people from the evils of political assessments
by a party that has illegally refused to consent
to any legislation that will prevent lntlmlda'
ton of voters, the making OF false returns
and various frauds so securely practised to Sc
cure the triumph Of that party, SUBJECTS tne
committee to we'll grounded suspicion or
desire to make political capital, and to prevent
active and intelligent officials of the govern
ment from contributing to the success OF the
party that has honored them with offices, rather
than to correct evils now existing, or that there
is reason to fear any may exist in the future.
The minority report concludes by recon-
mending the passage OF bill, the provisions
of which are quite voluminous, prescribing
heavy penalties of fine and imprisonment, not
only for the levying of compulsory political
assessments by the government officers upon
their employees. but also for number ofspeci.:
fed offenses against the freedom and purity OF
elections, including bribery and intimidation
Of voters at national elections, and the bearing
of arms at any public meeting held for the dis
cussion of political questions with reference TO
the election of members of Congress or Presi-
Dental electors,