Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1885-01-08
MISSISSIPPI METHODS.

Government to the State of Mississippi.
Mr.. Chalmers recently introduced .
bill in the House to restore Republic.
an form of Government to the State OF
Mississippi, whereat from the Demo
cratic side of the House chorus of do
risive laughter split the air.
And yet if the people of the WHOLE
any, uAhib~ nIlnaEctats and RepuilIio-
ize the real condition of political
affairs in the State of Mississippi, thu
approval of the vast majority that be-
leves in maintaining n Republican
form of government, would be. with, Ny,
Chalmers, and not With the ghfi'aAinS
beintcratic Representatives, for in that
State it would be bitter mockery Of
truth to say that there is now existent q
Republican form of Government The
truth is that q determined minority of
men rule it by force, selects its officials
county, State and National-and in
ducts them into office without regard to
the will of the people they are selected
to represent. A free and fair election,
where all the voters could and did ex-
press their opinions at the ballot-box,
has not been held in the State since
1872.
Before Dixon was killed the Republic
ans usually polled close to 5000 votes
99r Kf9z 81 a GBSptf RG hRat the ssc0aS
two years ago the Republicans polleG
just four votes in the county, and for
President this year managed to raise
their total to six; and yet the men who
formerly voted the Republican ticket
there have not turned Democrats
With the exception of some who have
moved away to escape intolerable Dem
ocratic tyranny and. some who, like
Print Matthews, sleep in bloody graves,
they are still there. They simply do
not vote because they are not allowed
to do so. If, by some turn in the SEN
timent of their present rulers, freedom
of elections was restored, these men
would vote the Republican ticket, as
they used to, and the State would be
as surely Republican as Iowa or Kan
sas.
An incident of the late election mar.
rated by a correspondent Of d promi-
nent Western journal goes to show
how true the foregoing assertion is. In
CHI t ttfigc aff9R III pNtS ee cdnSp hakg a
Jackson is situated, he says:
A white Republican; who is popular with
his Democratic neighbors personally, ap-
pealed to them to let the Republicans have q
fair deal this time in their home precinct
They consented, and put honest men in us
judges. Word was sent out to the Repub
leans that they would not be molested fol
voting and that their votes would be count
ed. Mark the result: For eight years pre-
viously the Democrats had carried the pre-
cnct by four TO one; but this year, when
there was an honest election, Blaine swept the
precinct by four to one.
The good nature that led these Demo
Gratis to try the experiment of free
election in their precinct was truly
phenomenal, but it gives significant
evidence of what might be confidently
looked for if an epidemic of the same
sort of spirit should spread over the
whole State. But that is not likely
to occur. On the contrary, the thing
that gives force and point to Mr.
| Chalmers proposition is best exem
plified in the following extract from thu
same correspondents letter:
All that's needed now is for a score of Dem
ocrats to put on red shirts, mount horses, an
yell and fire of pistols. BY years of terrible
experience the negroes know wha; that means
, election. Republicans were warned that !
they organized there would be several grave
dug; and so the Republican Executive Com
mfttce of that county Cancelled all of Lynch
engagements, aud begged Lynch, Gin the in
, terest of public peace" not to show his fac
in the county; Mr., Lynch Is very intelllgen
T and respectable citizen. He was Temporal
Chairman of the National Republican Cor
veTition at Chicago.
Being a white man, MIR. Yellowly, the Re
: publican candidate for Congress in this dis
trict, thought that the chivalry of Copia
would allow him to mako a speech He di
: not get shot in the back as Print Matthew
did, but he was made q target for brickbnts
A bowling mob drove him out of the county
Northern Democrats say that the negroe
g down here have learned to vote the Demo
!, cratic ticket. That Is not so. Southern Den
= ocrats laugh at the suggestion. am speakin
I of National elections. Basing my assertio
: on admissions of Democrats, have no hes
\ fancy in saying that Cleveland did not get y
colored votes In the whole of Mississippi, an
: those he did get were purchased in some wa
q or another.-Wd Washington Republican.