River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1888-01-19
THE CHANDLER BILL.
How IL Proposes to Regulate Congfes-
sionai Elections Ia tbs South.

How IL Proposes to Regulate Congfes-
sionai Elections Ia tbs South.
The bill which has been introduced
in the Senate by Mr.. Chandler, of
New Hampshire. for regulating the
election Of Congressman in the States
OF South Carolina Florida. Louisiana
and Mississippi is an eminently Fair
and judiciOus measure. The bill pro-
viies to- the appointment by the
President, with the consent Of the
Senate. of four supervisors OF cleo
ton for each Congressional district in
the above States. who are required to
subdivide the districts into a sufficient
number Of voting precincts In each
Of these precincts. the Circuit Court
of the United States is to appoint
four inspectors and two poll clerks.
whose duty il viii be to make regis
tration of the voters and conduct the
Congressional elections. The super
yisors will act as a canvassing board,
receive the returns. and ascertain and
announce the result, and all the cleo
ton officers named will be divided
equally between the two parties.
1t may be said for the bill. in the
first place, that il is constitutional.
since, while the constitution provides
that the State Legislatures shall pre-
scribe the time. place and manner of
holding elections for Representatives
to Congress. it also provides that Con-
gress may by law make or alter such
regulations The reason the bill does
not cover Presidential Electors is that
the constitution gives no authority to
do it In the second place. Senator
Chandler is warranted in combining the
operation of his bill to these four
States because the Democratic leaders
there have more than once openly
declared that colored people shall not
vote the Republican ticket. thus null
hfying their constitutional rights as
citizens. In the third place. the bill
is eminently fair. Unfortunately, 1t
is not within the power of Congress
to establish the right of suffrage in
elections of State officers. but so far as
Congressional elections are concerned
it would make them honest, Just and
legal, which they are not now. 1t
would break up all the schemes of dis
franchisement, such as ballot-box stuff
ing, tissue-paper voting. refusal to re-
ceive votes or to count them il re-
ceiyed, false returns. and all the
other fraudulent devices by which
the Southern BourbOns have re-
tanned control of the elections and
made those Republican States solid
for the Democracy. This point is too
clear to need arguing. The negroes
of the South. under the Constitution,
have the same right to the suffrage as
the whites, whatever their political
views may be. but they do not have
the suffrage. or if they go through the
form of voting their votes are not
counted Thus the law is openly and
defiantly violated, thousands of vot-
ers are disfranchised, and so far as
Congressional elections are concerned
the white Bourbons cast the votes of
the colored Republicans. and the ma
jority of the people of these States are
unrepresented in the House.
The bill which has been formulated
by Senator Chandler will undoubtedly
pass the Republican Senate. 1t is not
to be expected that it will get through
the Democratic House, for the reason
that it is a measure in the interests of
honest elections and free vote and
fair count in the South. which would
represent the will of a majority of the
people. No amount of special plead
ing, or clamor of sectionalism, or way-
ing the bloody shirt can overcome the
fact that the right of suffrage in the
South is not universally held inviolate.
So long as this condition exists it is the
duty of Republicans to protest against
it, and this will be the effect of Sena-
tor Chandler's bill. whether it goes
through the House or Chicago
Tribune.