The Portland daily press., 1884-10-21
The Argus and the Ohio Election

The Argus and the Ohio Election.
The Argus, on yesterday, INDUCED in
lot of common Democratic cant about Re-
publican outrages in connection with the
OHIO election. 1t is very much concerned
about the loss If Ohio and indulges in un-
seemly whining. We do not discover that
1t has anything to say about the admission
made by the Charleston, S. c., News and
Courier, quoted by us lately, shat ga large
majority of the people OF South Carolina are
Republicans" although this majority.is reg
ularly and Systematically prevented from
exercising its rights, or when not prevented
from voting is defrauded in the count, at
every election. Except for more heinous
crimes and more monstrous frauds than
were ever known in Northern State,-bar-
ring the outrages of Democratic border ruff
fans in Kansas, and, The scandaous cleo
ton swDdling contriyed by Tweed when
Seymour was-t Democratic candidate
the electoral vote of South Carolina would
moi have been given to Hancock and would
not be given to Cleveland. And the same
is true of other Southern States as the Ar
gus knows very well.
We are not defending any wrongs in Gin
cinnati. If any were committed by Repub
licans let them be proved and The offenders
punished, but it is sheer shamelessness on
the part of any organ of the Democratic
party to profess to be virtuous concerning
the conduct of elections when the whole
hope of that party is staked on the car
rying OF several Southern States, which
weuld be Republican in any fair vote, by de-
liberate, tyrannical suppression Of the will
of the majority. But if the Cincinnati cleo
tion is to be investigated. as we trust it will.
we insist that the operations of the thou
sands of fresh Democratic sheriffs and DO
lie men as well as of the Republican deputy
maTshals shall be examined And as an
Indication of The way in which the rnfian
Cincinnati allies of the red-shirted intimi-
dators OF Sonth Carolina, worked for their
party last Tuesday, we reprint the follow
ing interesting story from the Cincinnati
Commercial-Gazetteo of Wednesday morning:
1t was only after 6 o'clock last evening that al,
the facts about the big haul of coored men in
Hammond street station bouse cellar cama 70 ,;ah+
1t uas known that a large number were takan +b.ro
by he patrol wagons and detacbments ~ no,;oa
but the enormity of the act remained unkno ~
until they were turned out after the polls closed
last evening.
Robert Venable was the principal victim of the
outrage. He keeps a celored clearinghouse at No.
10 Gilmore's Landing. and his place is respectable.
Hestates that after he and his wife etired Monday
night, he was aroused about midnight by sonad Of
police and patrol wagon Lieutenant Burke of
Hammond Street Station-house. led the SQUAD and
said they "wanted him and all the niggers in hi.
house" They hardly gave him time to dress. but
hustled him into the wagon, with all the coored
men 1t would hold, and drove up to the st.tion-
house, where they were all put down in the cellar.
The names were not put on the slate and no CHARGE
preferred against them There were fifty in all
taken from Venable's house. including bimsalf
When daylight dawned Venable saws he looked
around and found IL colored men in there. They
we're kept in the cellar all day. His wife went there
several times with ffty-fge dollars In money to hail
him out, but none OF the officers would nav ,pv
attention to her. During the day Lewis White
Jim Porter and Samuel John vent in among the
prisoners and bought their promise to vote the
Democratic ticket for sixty cents apiece. All who
promised wers let out, during the day, but Venable
says that out of the one hundred thirteen there
were only nine real Democrats. After O'Clock he
and tweptyseven other colored men remained, and
they were turned out as uncsremoniously as they
were hauled in. Venable says that he served
through the war, and saw good deal but he never
heard rougher language, or saw more brutal treat
meut Of men than The police gave them all through.
Information of the outrage was filed in the U. S.
Attorneys Office last night and the case will un-
dsrgo formal process to-day. preparatory to
thorough investigation by the U. S. authorities.