The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1880-08-25
The Solid South.
HOW THE VOTING AND COUNTING ARE
DONE IN ALABAMA THIS YEAR.


Among the letters received on
Saturday at the headquarters of the
Republican National Committee was
the following from = wcll-known res
ident of Alabama
ErTAw. GREENE COUNTY. ALA.
August :, 1850.
.ST:-I claim descent from one
and connection with another, Of the
most honorable Union-Whig fami-
lies of this State, all of whom were
opposed to and voted against seces-
sion. Yet at the breaking out of the
war / promptly joined the army Of
I General Lee. and served till the close
Of the rebellion. receiving number
of wounds in til, service and, point
ing to mv civil and military record,
challenge the respect Of all South
ern men. In 1873, after Alabama
by fraud and the whitc-line-race IS
sue. was seized by the Democratic
party. my sense Of honor and JUS
tee revolted, and ! openly espoused
the cause of the Republi-
can party. For this crime (?) am
to-day a stranger and an alien among
the friends of my youth and my
companions in arms.
| have the honor TO be a member
of the state Republican Executive
Committee. Chairman of the Repub-
lican Executive Committee of the
Sixth Congressional District and
Chairman of our County Republican
Committee. / had the honor to
represent my countyin the late State
Republican Convention and my dis
trict as delegate to the late Nation
al Republican Convention at Chi
cago
On the 10th day of July ] went to
the town of Pleasant Ridge, in this
county, ,tomake a Republican speech.
Soon after ! began a crowd of white
Democrats, several with opened
knives and large sticks in their
hands. came up and Immediately
began to interrupt me, SO that /
could scarcely utter two sentences
consccutivclv. | demonstrated, as
suring them that they were iWuring
their own cause by such 4 course
and distinctly announcing to then
1 that ] did not desire to array one
race against the other, but simply tC
/ break down the white-line-race issuC
raised by the Democratic party; ane
vet, while reading a letter published
on August II, 1879, in the Eutav
Wing Democratic paper was
stopped, forbidden by them to reaC
the letter, and cursed and abused re
pcatedlv in the vilest terms: ant
one of their number declared tha
they were all Democrats, and that
should not abuse the Democrat,
party. The accuracy OF this state
.ment is admitted by the Eutav
.liror, another Democratic pape
published here. on July 20, 1880.
But this Is not all. They curse,
my little seven-ycar-oId boy, VIII,
stood dumb with fright before them
Moreover, | was obliged to dcsist il
my effort to speak, and was assure,
by Mr. VIM Horton, an aged gen
ticman. that | was in great persona
danger: and. but for his protection
| am fully satisfied that shoulo
have sustained serious, if not fatal
injury. The newspaper, the Mirror
in commenting ON the affair, says
That which seems to have giveI
most offence was a statement whicl
Mr.. Bird is said to have made to tn,
effect that the Democrats lay in tn,
shade all the year, and then cheate,
the negroes out of all they made.
Thereupon the editor inditcs lon:
leader, calculated to inflamc tn,
passions of men. The charge agains
me is miserable untruth. | simpl,
read from the Eutaw Wing the fol
lowing sentence: The effort seems
to have been, with every recent LEG
islatme. to perfect the laws touchin:
agriculture that the monied mar
could shut his eyes and sleep tn,
year out, and then gobble up all tn,
laborers made. This explanation
ives made to the editor, who engage,
to do me justice in his columns, bu
has so far failed to do so.
On the ID inst, we had here wha
Republicans foolishly expected
would be an election. but whicl
proved to bea hollow count. Thi,
county. in which the Republican,
are better organized than they have
been for years. and which gave
Hayes and Wheeler 1.G31 majority
was turned over to the Democrats
At one box, where we had three re-
spectacle gentlemen (two of whom
were Democrats) to inspect the tick
cts and see them delivered into the
hands of the managers, our 61S Re
publican ballots on the final count
turned out to be only 243. the bal
ance going to swell the Democratic
vote: so that this box. that gave
Hayes and Wheeler j25 majority,
is now counted Democratic by -
majority. At another box. where
five competent witnesses inspected
every ticket carefully. and where cv-
cry voter marched singly to the box
with his ticket in full yicwand plac-
ed it in the hands of the manager,
our $50 votes 'panned ont" only 20.
OF these tickets 100 were rejected, as
we are informed, because they were
not folded, when the truth is that
folded every one with my own hands,
except 135. These are samples of
this miserable travesty upon fair
elections. This is the terrible mode
in which the South has been made
solid.
Sir, We are to-day existing under
a despotism more dreadful than the
Russian autocracy. Here, in our
native land. the man who is devoted
to the Wing principles Of his fathers,
darcs not give utterances to his views,
for fear of studied persecution and
ridiculous prescription. No good
Samaritan goes TO him to bind up
his wounds, pouring in oil and wine.
He is pilloried in the public press.
He who dares rebel against this cru
cl oligarchy, writes, in burning char
acters over his door. that terrible in