The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1880-09-02

SGH0t6 WA6 UVHS@ Oh REPRESENTATIVES, &34ha4
the figures given BY witnesses brouRht
under che foufsesnth Amendment, and the
act of 1872. Rhode Island might rightfuliy
have been deprived of one REPRESENTATIVE
in the house of representatives OF the
|.Forty-fourth congress. and that her add
ltional vote in the electoral college decided
the question of the presidency in 1877, the
vote as returned by the electoral commits
sion being ls5 to ls4, and it might again
decideit.
The character of the registry laws of
Rhode Island, as adding to the disqualii-H
cations of those who own no real estate,
and throwing still further restrictions
around the right of suffrage. was the cab
|ject OF Testimony before your committee.
AL native voters who own no READ estate
must register personally in December and
pay their poll tax of 81 in January, or
they are disqualified from voting during
that year. This operates to disqualify
very many persons, and tends largely to
corruption among this class of voters. DR.,
Snow, the superintendent of the census,
and several other witnesses. testified that
the effect of this restricted suffrage, and
the registry law, is to bring about the
payment of money by the party leaders
and candidates as an inducement TOR the
voters TO vote, and to discourage them
from voting when those payments are not
made. The truth Is, that payment oil
taxes. a. prerequisite to exercise the
right of suffrage. is q most vicious rule.
wherever it exists. IL invariably tends to
corrupt practices. and to debase the voters.
/ Restricted suffrage, registry taxes upon
poor men alone. statutory closing of the
polls at sunset, instead of at eight o'clock,
as former by which the operatives in the
mills are prevented from voting, and the
compulsory payment OF the registry tax
ten months prior to the general election 10
Presidential year, cause great complaints
upon the part of the poor men and foreign
born citizens In Rhode Island. and to
these features OF her laws many intelli,
gent witnesses ascribe the small percen-
tage of voters among her people and the
large amount of corrupt practices in the
elections Of the State. A foreign-born
soldier, brevetted q major for: gallantry,
said, under oath; Il have never qualified
myself to vote. for the reason that con-
slider the principle wrong; that suffrage
ought to be based on manhood. and not on
real estate; and that no qualification was
required as to negroes. their color being
sufficient passport. provided they vote
action the Government of the United
States could take to remove the disquali-
flying features of the State constitution. he
said, that By the fourteenth and fifteenth
amendments of the Constitution OF the
United States, universal suffrage was
forced upon the South. and that the rule
ought to work Just as well on the North. "
Another foreign-born soldier, brevetted at
Missionary Ridge as lieutenant colonel.
testified that he had tried TO get many
foreigners to become naturRlized, telling
them that in time they would become
voters, but they would not do SO. as they
declared they would feel more degraded
in becoming citizens of the United States.
aud not having the privilege of voting. than
they felt that they were without Daturaii:
cation; he said that was bis own feeling.
and although he owned 40 real estate
now, bat did when he voted, he fesE that
one who had for so long been a soldier 10
the service of the country ought not TO
need any such qualification.
The effect of the registry tax is describ-
ed thus:
The difficulty here is this: There is particular
period In the year within which the men who
pay this one dollar registry-tax must he regis
tered. and II not registered wthn snse h me are
not register at any other time during the year,
ough hs sy sn Of IL Of
property clause upon which they would like to
is submitted to the people 1t any time during
within they can be registered they unable &c
qualify themselves for voting. Furthermore. q
very large part of our naturalzed population are
men who work in the mills, and nearly all tbs
mills OF the state controlled by Republican poll
clans. Those men take their men to the polls
their help have to vote, and they vote upon pro-
position TO amend the constitution as they DO 1ol
that hSnd d and thoasands Of men in this Stat.
from the nature of our laws and the nature OF tat
politicians here are compelled to vote in that way
Ex-Congressman Davis testified upon
the subject of the corrupt use of money in
elections. that it was the result of restric-
ted suffrage, and that wealth and power
were in absolute control of the State, DE
said. also:
Money is all-pewerfuI. It has been exercised
over and over again in s9ch quantities OF money
as to oyerwhem almost the public sentiment of the
State. Senators have been elected thus and Re
sentatives No State in the union has hed so large
outpouring of wealth upon 1t since 1885, and for
| . considerable period before that, had Rhode
possession OF It, There were Other Influences. te
| be sure; concentrated influences. When ~ g sa.
| "publicly used :" we do not meaa To saw that mel
| go the corners OF the streets and Bse il there
/ but its use has been organized I speak Of some
| elections where men weuld take ticket and re-
cefve certain sum of money for il, particularly
when an election for senator pending ;aDd tn 5
has been done upon large scale.
Another intelligent witness said:
suppose that that class in this state called our
registry voters, that IL to say, those who have no
visible property 10 be taxed, and consequently to
become qualified to vote must pay dollar tax.
constitute probably at least one fourth of the
quaffed Elm thefdiyision of parties this class has
been made up largely of those OF The Democratic
faith. Consequently the Democratic party to a
larger extent and the opposite party in a smaller
degree, have had TO raise a certain amount of
money as thesfrst step in a campaign In or TO pay
the registry taxes of these men. Both parties fell
into the practice iresulting from these men not
paying their taxes for them, and money has been
raised by both parties to pay these preliminary
taxes. With thes Democratic party In this state,
the condition was that they would have no party
organization scarcely, unless they could find some
pay largely in order TO qualify kmeu to vote
That, say, has had the effect to introduc e money
There Is no question about it, money has been the
great power In almost every contested election in
this state.
The ewner of real estate gets upon the
registry of voters by virtue of his real es-
tate. The Bative>born, owner of person
atty, pays his taxes of over one dollar, and
thus he gets upon the registry; but the
native who owns no taxable property must
personally register himself and pay his
taxes, or he caunot VOTE The foreign,
born citizen may own personally, but can
not vote unless he owns real estRte, and of
course he cannot get upon the registry. If
registry taxes for one year are not paid
the constitution forbids the vote until the
arrears for two years are paid up