Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1888-04-26
CONSOLIDATED.
n. Tl..u. Bale, or ,.. South.

FROM thf union tloWul
Ex-Governor and Mrs. Stearns, OF
Florida, contemplated making their
residence in Iowa, at Atlantic, OF q
bank Mt which place the governor is
president. He was the last republican
executive Of Florida II Is a notable
coincidence that the last republican
governor OF Louisiana, Stephen b.
Packard, Is also /. resident OF this
state, living on farm near Marshall
town. 80 aN ~
II Is a deeply interesting story which
Governor and Mrs, Stearns can tell OF
political life in tie south. As per-
sonal witnesses, they hilly corroborate
the reports OF fraud and intimidation
practiced at all the elections to secure
the success OF the democratic can
didates. Governor Stearns explained
to the Herald, at Des Moincs this
week, the process OF stuiiing the boxes
with tissue ballots. All the election
officers are democrats. As IL the case
generally with election officers every
where, they know the politics OF each
voter coming to the polls and what
ticket he is likely to vote. When n
republican presents u ballot the Judge
receiving it gives the corner IL sly twist
and drops it into the box. The
average democrat places u dozen or so
of tissue ballots inside his ticket, fold.
ing the latter once. The Judge who
takes the multum in parvo ballot is
careful to hold it tightly and drop it
into the box with the open end down
ward. Thus, on going into the box,
the ballot flies open Ike a hinge, and
the tissue limitations fly out
and scatter about. The Florida
election law requires that the
name OF every person voting shall
be recorded. and that the tickets in
the ballot boxes must correspond in
number with the number OF persons
voting. In case OF an excess OF ballots
tho inspector must he blindfolded and
draw from the ballot box tickets to
the number OF the excess. That is
evidently good law, but like some
other good laws it's good intent is per
verted to the use OF fraud and outrage
The Florida inspector is always a
democrat, and in the plot to cheat
the republican out OF his vote. The
use OF the tissue ballot, it is manifest,
always makes an excess. Sometimes
the excess is many times more than
the number OF voters registered, or OF
the entire voting population OF the
precinct. The inspector is duly blind
folded and proceeds to take the sur
plus ballots from the box 1t is need
less to say that his sense OF touch tells
him when a ballot is made OF tissue
paper, and that such kind he carefully
avoids. 1t is further needless to say
that twisted corner is also sensible
to the touch, and that ballots afflicted
with such q popularity are doomed to
come forth as a member OF the unlaw
full excess. And so it not infre1uently
happens at southern elections that
the vote is unanimous for the demo
cratic candidates, though hundreds o.
perhaps thousands OF republicans ar,
prepared to swear that they votec
republican tickets and saw then
placed in the ballot boxes.
OF all the various methods used t
suppress the republican vote in tn
south the tissue ballot Is the mos
popular, because, so far as the cleo
lion officers are concerned, by its us,
the desired vote suppression is accom-
pIished easily and comfortably within
Il!o forms OF law. But the essential