The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1888-03-17
A DEMOCRATS PROTEST.
j. Alfred Pcarce on the Election Laws
The Legislature Not Doing Its Duty.
CHEsTERTowN. Mp, Feb. 81. 1885

CHEsTERTowN, MD, Feb. 81, 1885.
To tie Editor Of tie CicH Sercice Re
former: | understand your paper to be
upon general issues neither distinctively
Democratic nor Republican, but that it's
primary purpose is to promote the cause
Of Civil Service Reform, with which am
not at present concerned. | further I'M
derstand, subject to correction If need be,
that you claim to represent Reform De-
mocracy rather than Reform Republican.
ism, and | therefore do not hesitate to
accept your columns as a legitimate
medium of communication with the pub.
lie by one who claims, and believes him
self entitled to claim, to be a Democrat
in good party standing.
You, as public jourualists-if | may
apply to you your own recent language
i'll reference to a contemporary-"ha
with persistent energy demanded that
the Democratic party and its leaders
should redeem their pledges to purify the
suffrage" and in doing SO you have dis
charged plain duty. 10 my mind re
ciprocal duty rests upon private citizens,
and especially upon sincere and devoted
mem berS of the Democratic party. To sus-
tain by precept and example all efforts to
keep the party true to its promises. In
such time ''pri"aLe people are justified
in stepping little out of their ordinary
| sphere" and iu exercising "a privilege
of somewhat more dignity and effect than
that OF idle lamentation." Nor should
| they be deferred from this course by tue
| apprehension that eff they should be
| obliged to censure those in power, they
VIII DE looked on as instruments of tao
| tiou," for ''in all exertiuns of duty some-
| thing is to be hazarded."
The report submitted oa the 25th inst,
| by the Senate Committee Oh I lection has
realized for very large part of the Dem
ocratic party of the State the grievous
disappointment which, Notwithstanding
the deservedly high character Of the CON-
mittee. has been predicted and fe lred
This report is not hasty or inconsidered
| utterauce, but the deliberate outcome of
| fifty days Observation-Disclosures than half
the life of the legislative assembl y-2ud
| there seems TO be small reason - Ii pe
| that either house will prove wiser o.
| stronger than the Senate committee has
shown itself to De, though the House of
Delegates has the opportunity, in its ac-
ton upon Mr.. Robertsuu's resolution,
that no bill be passed which does not
embrace the provisions of the Tilden act
and provide for annual registration in
| large cities.
| This is not matter of taste or prefer
ence. It is not even matter of party
policy for untrammeled discussion. 1t is
a naked question OF performance of con
| tract between competent parties, based
upon solemn and high consideration. The
Republican State Convention met in
Baltimore August a. and after enumer-
/ in nj , IL,
tials for fair popular elections, specifically
pledged the Republican party and its
nominees ito use its and their best ell
forts to have the next General Assembly,
] before it considers any other legislative
business, enact the Reform League law"
| How far this promise would have been
performed it is idle to speculate, since
the Repu 5lican party was not entrusted
with the power it sought; but it sufficed
to draw to the support OF that party in
that campaign large element OF the
Democratic party in the city of Balti-
more, and TO excite the strongest appre
| tensions in the Democratic party through
out the state nf the success of the
| Republicans. Under the stimulus of
| this appre he lsion, and 1 believe also III
! large part in thorough good faith, the
| Democratic State Convention which as
sem bled on the Goth of September in
language equally specific for its purpose,
| pledged that it would earnestly en-.
| deavOr at the coming session of the Gen
| eral Assem- bly, to have placed upon the
statute books an election law which will
embrace not only all the beneficial pro-
| visions of the Iliden act, but will en-
body also all those additional safeguards
| to guarantee the purity of elections
which experience has taught should be
Incorporated intoit, "and it appointed Eve
| Democrats to prepare and su omit such an
act 80 the legislature for its action.
It further specifically engaged, in a
revision of the Constitution, to use its
best efforts to have Incorporated a system
| of annual registration of voters in cities
whose inhabitants number ten Thousand
and upward"
| Upon these assurances tue two parties
vent before the people, and the Demo-
cratic speakers everywhere repeated and
emphasized the pledges made by the
convention, without which, the most
sanguiue Democrat must acknowledge,
the result would have been doubtful.
| The people Of the state, Democratic at
heart to the core. accepted these pledges
| of the Democracy, renewed their political
power by decided vote, aud now de-
mand the tulfifment of the contract.
Neither argument nor amplitication is
necessary i'll the discussion of the situa-
ton, and ''the previous question" alone
is in order. Whatever the three bills as
reported from the committee NAV con-
tain, and from VIVA ever sources their
provisions are drawn, they do not con
tain, il correctly summarized 10 the daily
press, provision for annual registration
in large cities, nor for any new registra
tiJu in the counties, both Of which are
corner Stones in the fIlden act
Baltimore city is to have biennial reg
iStratrn: bu: CumbeTla land, Hagerstown,
Frederick CIty-all OF which, | believe,
and, possibly, Annapolis, have upwards
of ten thousand iuhabitalts-are CLASH
fed with the counties, and, instead of
having annual, or even biennial registra
ton, are to have annual revision only, as
heretofore.
Under "a biennial and ward system OF
registration i'll city SO large rs Balti.
more, it is not possible to exclude pro.
tessional repeaters, the great source OF
pollution to the ballot box at the present
day; and even If they should be measur
ably diminished in Baltimore, the sys.
invites the transfer of their occupation to
the counties, especially contiguous to
Baltimore. The coupling of biennial
registration for Baltimore with revision
only in the counties. comedies the fail,
ure of the constitutional objeetiong, Tor
want OF uniformity, which were so
promptly disposed OF by the Attorney
General, when requested to give his
opinion thereon; and Mr.. Packard, in a
recent communication, has effectuaily
disposed OF the objection of expense in
the counties, under 4uadrannial regIstra-
ton, even if the cost of performance of
contract could be decenty pleaded in
bar. 1t is difficult to conceive what
plausible excuse can be alleged for the
failure to redeem the party pledges; and
when such veteran Democrats and high
officials as Attorney General Whyte and
Hon. Stevenson Archer, chairman of the
State Central Committee, unite in re-
monstrating with members of the legis-
lature against their repudiation, the
CAVITY of the situation cannot be misun
derstood or ignored. Unfortunately,
there can be no tribunal for the specific
performance of this contract The issue
raised by its breach can only be tried at
the ballot box, under the guidance of
public opinion, where the damages
awarded upon adverse judgment will be
the loss of the state to the Democratic
party and it's surrender to Che rule of
principle which |, with thousands of
others, believe to be radically false and
vicious.
In considering the folly which makes
possible such a result, one can but recall