Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1883-02-10
An Iniq uitOus Bill

dom of elections.
BE it enacted by the Senate an,
House of Representatives Of the Stat
Of Delaware, in General Assembl,
met:
SECTION l. That if any corporativ
body shall either directly or Indirect,
through any of its officers, or its agent
or any other person, control or attemp
to control, the suffrage right of an,
one in its employment, or under its au
fhOrity, by any promise of reward, o
favor, or gifts of money, or other thing
of value, or by any threats or expires
si0ns intended to be understood as sucl
or as signs of displeasure, such corpor-
alive body shall be liable to indictment
for such offence, and upon conviction
shall ipso-tactO, forfeit its charter and
the court shall SO declare in pronoun.
cling its judgment. Further in case OF
private corporations the acts Of its of.
ticers or agents with respect to the sub,
.iect Of this act shall be deemed and
taken rs its own act.
There is nothing in the above act
covered or hidden, but its purpOrt i,
sufficiently outlined that all may un,
derstand it, This is one of the reform
measures that Senator Cooper has intro,
duced into the Senate, and for which he
has received unstinted praise from the
Democratic press After calm rehec-
lion upon the act and its purposes it is
no wonder that even Democratic mem :
bers Of the Board Of Trade denounced
1t a. an infamous outrage upon the bus
mess men of Wilmington. 1t is direct
thrust at that enterprising spirit that
ismaking Wilmington one Of the great
est manufacturing citiesin the Union.
1t counteracts at one fell Swoop all the
advantages conferred upon corporate
bodies by acts Of incorporation. 1t is
80 carefully worded that it covers every
business place, every manufacturing
urn, every bank or other private cor
i'oration and places them in such jeop-
ardy that ~ the President Of the Board
laid last evening, no corporation could
hold together, without u violation Of
The law two days during an excited
election campaign.
The act MT only applies to the mem
"rs of c"rporHtcd firms, but to men in
'he employ Of such corporations. -
Through any Of its officers, or its
agents, or any other person, " is the way
II reads thus making the tirm RESPONSE
Die for the acts OF the common labUrer
employed. How could corporate firms
ike the Harlan & Hol.ing, worth Com.
lnny; the Pussy ~ Jones Company
he Lobdell Car Wheel Company the
hcCuli0ugh Iron Company the Dia
tn0nd State Iron Company the jackson
AZ Sharp Company the Bowers x Dur"
Company, and others that employ from
200 to 1000 hands control the motives
and actions of all their men ? If some
one of the hands were to become insO-
."nt ana abusive 10 boss who had the
power to discharge him, and did dis
charge him, the firm would be at tho
mercy of the discharged man. If the
:: TT took place during any heated politi-
al campaign, it would be no difficult
matter whatever, for the discharged
man TO say he lost his place because he
was not Republican or because he was
not Democrat. The act applies to ali
corporations, no mattcrabout the poll
lies Of the interpretations. 1t would
lave been little too cheeky in Mr.
',,,.r I,. I, ..t
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