Huntsville gazette., 1884-08-09
GAla-

present no candidates to be voted for for
State Officers at the ensuing August elec-
ton.
1t is due you and the public, in view of
the well known fact that the Republicans
have an undoubted majority OF twenty
thousand in the State, that we present, in
a short and concise form, the reasons that
impelled the Committee to adopt said
course. These reasons are, in brief,
First. An indisposition to subject the
Republican voters Of the State to the dis
comforts and perils Of a canvass in favor Of
Republican candidates, when the history Of
past elections demonstrates that such CAM
vass would be productive of no results be-
cause of the fraud and perjury at the ballot
box practiced by our adversaries. and
Second, The profound conviction that as
self-respecting, law-abic;ng and liberty
loving citizens we will be false to our du-
ties to Republican Government, if we long
er permit ourselves to be made even passive
instruments of our opponents in their
scheme to nnllify by fraud and perjury, the
f%ill of the people Of our State.
THE history of Democratic encroachment
upon the rights of the people of Alabama,
is we'll known and easily told. In the eiec-
ton of 1874, rot having control of the ma
chinery of government and being powerless
to pervert the will Of the people after it had
been legally expressed, the Democratic par.
| ty at large entered into a conspiracy to
prevent, by means of forco aad violence, g
| free expression of that wll We need not
now recount the sickeaing details that fol-
lowed as the result of this conspiracy.
They constitute part Of the bloody histo-
ry which marked the ruthless and onward
march of the Southern Democracy to re-
instatement in power after the party. had
recovered from the stupor. of its unsuccess-
full attack upon the life of the nation.
Having succeeded in usurping the gov
iernment in Alabama, in all. its branches,
the next step Of the Democratic party in
the State was to intrench itself in its Ill
gotten power by means of election machin.
cry which would ever after render it i'm
possible for the Republican majority to be
honestly counted and recorded, substitu-
ting as the factor in elections, the peacea-
BILE and lawful instrumentality of fraud pre-
vided by ingeniously devised statutes, fol
the dangerous and Iawless forms of force
and violence which it had SO successfully
used to acquire power.
The character of these statutes and the
manner in which they have been applied
to stife Republican majorities, is well
known to Alabama Republicans and has
been fully exposed to the country hereto
fore by your Committee. 1t is unnecessary
to further detail them here and now. 1t il
sufficient to say that they were designed te
make fraud in elections easy and safe, ant
that they have been successfully used l.
the Democratic party to steal under the
very eyes of Republicans, and with full
consciousness Of the theft on the part Ct
both thief and victim, the votes which Re-
publican voters were smilingly and obse
quiously inyited to deposit in the balio
boxes By this means Republican major
tiles have been transformed into Democrat
ic majorities, and the will OF election man
ayers substituted for that Of the people.
1--we feel that further participation II
elections, under such circumstances, is t,
make ourselves parties to the frauds prac
ticed on us, and to that extent TO assist il
debauching our Government and the NOR
ais of our people, and We deem that til
. safest and wisest course to pursue, the mos
self respecting, the one which will consti
tute the most startling and effectual protes
against the present Cligarchy of ballot bo
suffers. is for Republicans to entirely ab
] stain from voting for State officers at IT,.
' Coming election.
The Democratic party has been hurrie'
onward in its lawless and domineerin
course by the most vicious element O
which it is composed. The majority Q
! that party has followed slowly and reluc
/. tantly, but ssbmissively The evil effects o
\ that course are now becoming SO obviou
that submission is giving way to mutiny
and we believe that at no distant day.
!; large element Of that party will be foun
0 ready to cooperate with Republicans t
e restore free government to our land.
4 We feel therefore that we are not now oh
dicating our rights as citizens, but ar
!, adopting a temporary course of actio
: which, by calling attention to the presen
I tyrannical dictatorship in our State, vii
more certainly secure to ourselves and t
those who come after US in the future. tn
linestimable BILE ssings Of free Republics
Government, and the full and unrestraine
exercise of all our rights as citizens there
dnder.
ri By order of the Committee.
o. Montgomery, Ala, July 30th, 1884.