Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1888-01-12
Brit,tn1tt Gltrn,ticlr.
THE SUPPRESSED VOTE.
Cincinnati Commercial Gazette.

Cincinnati Commercial Gazette.
The southern papers and the Demo-
cratic papers are constantly asserting that
the Constitution is respected and obsery-
ed in the southern states, when the fact
is it is Systematically and manifestly null
lifted, and the Democrats are indebted to
this high crime for the Presidency of the
fraudulent Cleveland, and to the posses
sion of the House of Representatives
This is the great of political frauds
1t is placing the party of the rebellion in
possession of the government, and pro-
hibiting opposition by the cry that all
who antagOnize the Confederates and
their recruits and associates, are section
al agitators and blOody-shirt flyers.
In twenty-eight southern Congress
Districts the colored people are in the
majority and the districts are represent
ed by Democrats, and in nineteen of them
the Republicans did not make any nom
nations. This is simply the suppression
OF the colored vote, not by a state law,
but by violence, by intimidation, bloody
murders and reign of terror.
There is not so much bloodshed now
as a few years ago, because there is less
resistance. The Republicans have given
up-ceased to sacrifice themselves and
when they do not even nominate candi-
didates for Congress they are allowed to
Live and occasionally to vote On temper
ance questions.
There are million colOred citizens in
the solid South-nine hundred and nine
ty-nine thousand of them Republicans
poor and black and ignorant, if you
please, though they have been rapidly
educating themselves, and they had
sense enough when slaves to be the
friends of the United States!
They are disfranchised in this, that
they are not allowed to vote so as to af-
feet single Electoral vote for the Pres
idency, and in nineteen districts where
they are in the majority they do not even
presume to nominate candidates for Con-
gress.
If this is not the notification of the
plain terms of the Constitution, it would
be impossible by any continuance to null
Ify them. The solid southern form of
denial is that there are no state laws pro-
viding for the nullifcation-that so far
as there are restrictions they are the re-
suit of individual enterprise.
But these people have not paid much
attention to the terms of the Constitu-
tion. The trainers of the amendments
understood the situation-and the word
ing leaves no room for squirming out of
responsibility through the inactiOn of the
states.
TheFourteenth Amendment says when
the right to vote is IN Gny 1cay abridged
-"except for participation in rebellion
or other crime which is not what is
the matter" the basis Of representation
therein shall be reduced in the proportion
10hich the number Of such male citizens
shall bear to the aCltoIe number Of male
citizens to0enty-one gears Of age in S1Ech
state
There ought not to be any doubt as to
the construction of this language. tap
plies as perfectly to the state of facts as
if written to-day to meet it, and the enor-
nous falsehood that disputes the dis
franchisement or doubts the full mean
ing of the Constitution and the aptness
of the remedy presented, is one of which
no people can long afford to be guilty.