The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-11-29
ELECTIONS In THE SOUTH.
How the Negroes Are Disfranchised and the
Jaws of the United States Defied.

The subjoined letter was not written for pub
Gus reasons, not revealed:
The election here was q farce and q most out
rageous fraud. Before the result could have
been possibly known they were telegraphine all
over the land "Florida, 13, 1000 majority for the
Democratic ticket" I'll tell you how it
was done in this precinct, and, l
the Stats-in this county at any rate-as I am
we'll informed. The County Commissioners in
this county, early this summer ordered . redis-
tricting Of the election precincts, cutting off Re-
publican neiehborhoods in all cases. Then they
decided that the persons cut off one precinct and
add cd to smother could not register in the new
precinct to which they had been added, but
must get a certificate Of trans
fer" from the precinct to which
they bad formerly belonged for which they
were directed by published notice to apply to
the county supervisor Of registration. A slice
of territory containing about 1l5 voters. OF
whom over a hundred were colored Republic
Democrats-was cut off the precinct east of US
and added to ours. have been personally cog
infant or tho fact that all this fall these colored
mon have been Drawing infection from yellow
fever by going to the county seat to get their
certificates of the proper officer, be-
guard here las long as We had
one) and was informed of their names and the
object of their trips, and directed to ehut them
out when they came to trade. 1t was generally
known here that they failed in getting any at
tention paid to their claims. Some of than told
me that the supervisor made appointment after
appointment with crowds of forty and fifty, and
never came to time, putting them off until the
books were closed, and In some cases refused
point blank, with oaths.
A few days before the election / received q
commission fro m the United States Circuit
Court for the Northern district OF Florida as
- A.N>o - g 49,. g.. ~. -.
cinct. l apprehended land so did others) that
there would be disturbances over these matters,
and so l went to some of the principal colored
men and advised them to use every effort TO keep
the peace Cd election day. representing to
them that any other course would only
hurt their cause; but for every one who believed
he had a right to vote to come to the polls and
make tender of his ballot, and, il refused, to 20
away peacably, and that would be there to
look after his rights. L verify believe that this
prevented bloodshed that day. When the polls
opened l presented my warrant and demanded
admission and the inspectors at first refused,
but, after taking advice, gave 10. l staid Ia the
poll-room until the last vote was counted and
the returns made out. The count was fair aud
honest as to the votes actually cast; but one
third of the lawful voters of the precinct were
disfranchised, and for all l can see the Demo
Gratis intend to keep them so. There were near
ly 200 votes cast, and nearly 100 voters turned
away! When the first case came up on this
cutoff and was refused because the man had
no certificate, 1 told them to hold on. l said to
the man. did you make formal application to
the supervisor for your certificate OF transferP
He said he had. then read from the United
States law furnished me in my instructions to
the inspectors and told them to refuse the vote
at their peril of the United States law.
They counseled together, one OF them went out
and got advice, and then said they were bound
by their State law, which they considered para
mount. And so it went on, case after case,
until it became monotonous. In this way nearly
one hundred were turned away; made a full
report, giving a full list of the names to the
chief supervisor. The white Democrats living
in this cutoff came up smiling with their certif-
Gates. How did they get theml Very few Of
them were known to have gone to the county
seat, but one Of the county commissioners was
around the country among them on the Sd
inst, and it is believed that he brought them out
to them. This is one Of the ways the South is
kept solid.
These men are not myths. but are all living
fiesh-snd blood realities, and can be produced at
any time that the defeated Republican candi-
date for member of Congress in this district
wants them, and / have So informed him.. He
ought to make q contest-for he has been de-
feated by fraud. These men are oil well known
TO me and to the inspectors who rejected them.
Quite a lot OF white Republicans have beea
served the same way-disfranchised. Some old
well-known colored citizens who have lived and
voted in this precinct for years, and whose
names were on the registry book when 10 left
here a month ago, did not appear on the tran
script poll-Iist and were turned away. Some col
ored men OF the same name. where there were
more than one only found one name for the
lot on the registry transcript poll-list
They had applied to the registration officer this
fall to see if their nance were on the books and
were told, 'Oh, yes. your name is here-Wm.
Williams, colored." And this when the men
were we'll known to him.
Now the falling off of the vote 10 the South is
not due, in my. opinion. TO the colored men of
tho South not caring for the right OF suffrage.
for as far as my observation in six years resi-
dence here goes they value IL IS highly as the
naturalized citizens of the North do, ana you
know they don't often neglect to vote, and there
is no more bare-faced lie than that they vots
the Democratic ticket. They rarely ever do.
OF the couple of hundred colored voters in this
precinct l only know OF two or three who do.
and they are acknowledged by the Democrats
to be the meaness colored men in the COM.
munity. No colorsd man Of any moral standing
hera is anything but a Republican. The
fact 10 the Democrats here want 10 make IL
q social crime for a white man to be anything
but . Democrat. They profess to fear the dom.
iuation OF tho colored race. Now the fact 10, IL
the people Of the North we're convinced that po-