The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1880-09-23

say that he entered the service as a par
tisan, or for party purposes. In the Ian
guage of the eloquent Baker, we were |
all Democrats, we we're all Republicans,
in our efforts to save the Union, and no
man deserves the name of patriot who
entered his country's service merely for
Sc fish or party purposes. Let us near
no more of this false claim of Republi
cans that they crushed out the rebellion.
AS we'll might it be claimed that the
Democrats did it, for without their aid 1t
could not have been done.
Nor is it true that the Republicans
abolished slavery. That was the result
of circumstances, and was accomplished
by what is known as the Thirteenth
Amendment to the Constitution of the
United States, which l had the honor of
reporting to the nate of the United
States, by which it was passed April s.
1864, by the requisite two thirds vote.
But it failed at that session in the House
of Representatives. The vote by which
it was defeated was reconsidered at the
next session, and it was then passed,
sixteen Democrats voting in its favor
without thirteen of whose votes it could
not have passed. So you see that the
claim of the Republican party that it
abolished slavery, like many of its other
claims, is false.
FEDERAL INTERFERENCE IN ELECTIONS
VIOLATION OF THE CONSTITUTION.
Equally violative of the Republican
platform of 1850 is the enactment of
laws by which questions affecting the
rights of persons and property are taken
from the local tribunals of the States
where they properly belonged and trans
ferred to the Federal courts, and by
which the elections of the people are
interfered with, and the control by the
States of their domestic affairs is denied.
During the war the national Govern
ment necessarily exercised extraordina-
ry power for the suppression of the re-
bellion; powers which in peaceful times
properly belong to the States and thus
the party having control of the national
Government gradually accustomed itself
to assume more and more authority, till,
in 1868, in order to remove an obstacle
to its exercise of supreme control, it's
stalwart leaders undertook to impeaCh
and remove from office the President of
the United States for alleged political
offences, Fortunately, this unConstitu-
tional attempt, by maddened partisans,
to usurp the Executive authority of the
nation was defeated. Had it succeeded,
the next step would have been to i'm.
peach and move from Office such
Judges of the Supre me Court as stood in
the way of it's exercise of supreme au.
thority, and our Government would at
once hove been converted into central
despotism, controlled by the partisan
leaders of the party in power. Since
then the party has sought, by various
devices, to perpetuate its supremacy, and
has thus far succeeded, against the de-
clared will of the people. If this charge
is true, and can be made good, no man
of any party who believes in a govern
ment by the people can longer sustain it.
Why should freeman OF any party go
to the polls if effect is not to be given to
his vote? Is not an election mOCkery
when the party in power has adopted a
machinery for conducting it and count
ing the votes by which it can perpetuate
it's supremacy regardless of how the
votes are CastP
What has the Republican party done
unfairly to perpetuate its control? Until
1870 it was never attempted by any par
ty having control of the national Gov
ernment to interfere with the conduct Of
elections by the people of the respective
States 1t was then that the Republican
party, distrusting the capacity of the
ope to fairly conduct their elections,
undertook, by an act of Congress, TO pro.
vide for their supervision and control by
Federal officials This was done under
pretenCe Of regulating the mode of elect
ing Representatives to Congress, but as
they are elected at the same time as
elect. rs of President and Vice presi.
dent, and State officers in nearly all the
S ;ates, these Federal officials, in fact,
supervise ne rly all the State elections
So far as they interfere with the election
of electors OF President and Vice Presl.
dent their acts are clearly unConsttu
tional, for that instrument in terms pro
vides that electors of President and Vice
President shall be appointed in each
State in such manner as the Legislature
thereof may direct. Any interference
in the manner of their appointment, by
act ol Congress or Federal officials, must,
therefore, be without authority.
But 30 far as Congress can interfere all
will agree that such interference should
be fair and just, and not one.sided or
partisan. Tested by this rule, to which
every fair minded man will assent, what
is the law which the Republican Con
gress enactedP ? II provides that the
Judge of the United States Circuit Court
on being applied to prior to any election,
at which Representative in Congress is
to be elected, shall appoint two citizens
of different political parties for each
election precinct in the district, who are
to be present at the registration of vo
ters, to sUrutinizs the same, and to cause
such names to be registered as they may
deem proper. They are also required to
be present at the election to challenge
any voter whose legal qualifications they
may d, ubt, and personally to sCrutinize
and count each ballot cast in their re
spective precincts. This provision of
the statute, if the national Government
is to interfere at all, is apparently fair,
as the supervisors are TO be taken from
different political parties.
But what shall be said of the other
provisions of the act of Congress which
authorize the Uuited States Marshal, an
appointee of the President and usually
a violent partisan, to appoint as many
deputies as he pleases, all of his own
political faith, in every city in his dis
triCt of 10000 inhabitants or upward,
with power to preserve order at the