Morning journal and courier., 1880-12-16

5ournal allo Courier.
Thursday Morning, Dec. 1e, 1880.
HOW THEY WE'RE .sELECTED..

HOW THEY WE'RE ssELECTED.o
 The notices of contest served upon some of the southern Democrats who claim seats in the House reveal how General Hancock's demand for a 'full vote, free ballot and a
 fair count" was answered by his supporters l in the South.
 Notice of contest Is served by MT. Strobach on Hilary Herbert, who claims to be elected
 from the Second Alabama district Mr.
 Strobach makes twenty-two charges, any one
 of which is sufficient to call for strict in-
 vestigation. A summary of the grayest
 charges shows that in one county the Demo-
 cratic election board illegally, and against the
 protest of the Republicans, appointed ignor- ant, incompetent, obscure and vicious per-
 sons as inspectors to represent the minority ; that in four counties 75O Republicans were prevented from voting by threats of discharge from employment, and of arrest or by acts of violence i; that deputy sheriffs kept watch and ward over the polls with clubs and guns, and refused Republican voters permission to approach them, while the Herbert men voted freely; that at four precincts in Montgomery county $50 voters for Strobach were impeded
 AA PASN~AAeOA HUH tAdb uuuuFOuS of illegal voters were allowed to vote for Herbert; that 353 votes for Strobach were lost in one precinct, because the inspectors returned an unsigned memorandum that fraudulent ballots were palmed off for the genuine; that the United States Supervisors and Marshals were driven from the polls in some places, specifed and that false returns yyara r1ada from roopv
 Robert Smalls contests the seat of G. D. Tillman. who has the certificate of election in the Fifth Congressional district of South Carolina Mir. Smalls sets forth the follow ing as some of the grounds for the contest :: At four voting precincts in Barnwell county, six in Aiken, five in Colleton and six in Hamp- ton the ballot boxes were filled with illegal Democratic votes for the purpose of creating an excess of ballots over the number of voters on the poll list, and then equalizing the same by casting out Republican ballots. At Edgeield Court House riotous band, armed with pis- tols and guns, and dressed in red shirts, took and held possession of the polls the night be- fore, and on the day of the election, and intimidated the Republican voters who would approach for the purpose of casting their bal lots. Others, mounted on horses, rode through the town discharging guns and pis- tols. At Aiken Court House loaded cannon was placed near to and covering the polls. At a precinct in Hampton county the Repubi- can tickets were taken away from the holder thereof, so that the Republicans had no tick cts wherewith to vote. At every precinct in Edgefeld county and at numerous others throughout the Congressional district United States Supervisors of election were driven from the polls, prevented from keeping poll lists, and denied admission to the poll ing-places to witness the count. In an other instance Republican supervisor was elected from the voting precinct and after ward compelled to sign as correct a return to the chief supervisor of which he had no knowl- edge. Polls were opened at unusual places and at improper hours, of which Republican voters had no knowledge. At several polling places, usually giving large Repubfican ma jorities, the Democratic managers refused to open the polls at all. At other Republican precincts, where the polls were open, they refused to count or make return of the same. In four counties the number of votes returned as boiled exceeds the number of le- gal voters as shown by the census of 1880, although thousands of Republican votes were prevented from being cast.
 There other contests on similar grounds. The only way, or at least the quickest way, to stop such work in Congress ional elections is to exclude from Congress every man who owes his certificate of elec- ton to fraud and intimidation. This would bring the solid South to terms and to politi- cal decency.