The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1889-10-16
General Beatty Arraigns the For
aker Disciples i'm an Unan.
sWerable Manner.
And Gives the People an interest
Ing Article.

eve have appointed non-partisan
board of public affairs for the city of
Hamilton, and in addition to that we
have appointed one Republican board of
affairs for Cincinnati Foraker at
Xcnia.
THE boards that Governor Foraker
has appointed in the State have all done
excellent service; only one of them is
partisan board, that is our board of pub
lie affairs in Cincinnati. 1t has trans
formed our streets, spent millions OF
dollars, etc.'-Ialstead at Wilmington.
If non-partisan board of public af-
fairs is good thing for Hamilton, why
should it not be a good thing for Gin
cinnati?
If Republican board of public affairs
is a good thing for Cincinnati, why
should it not be a good thing for Hamil-
ton?
Why should the expenditure of mil
lions of dollars in Cincinnati be entrust-
ed to partisan board, while the ex-
penditure of few thousands in Ham1l-
ton is put in the hands of non-partisan
board?
Which kind of board is best? Why
not adopt the best? Why this discrimi-
nation between cities? Can the partisan
board be defended without condemning
the non-partisan? Is not every word
which Governor Foraker utters in justi-
fication of the one a condemnation OF
the other?
If partisan board of public affairs
is good thing for Cincinnati,
why should not partisan police and
election boards be good things
also? Is it not utter folly to attempt in
the same speech to defend two opposite
and antagonistic systems on the score OF
| honesty, consistency and principle.
Would any one but pretentious and
impudent ass who assumes that his
| hearers are deficient IN ordinary common
! sense undertake to reconcile and support
such hotch-potch legislature?
In his Amelia speech the Governor
saws in defense of his non-partisan
boards that, "He (CampbelD did not
seem to know it was impossible to ell
| ect twoDemocrats and two Republicans
at the same time. Oaughter.)
Does anybody know it to be i'm
/ nossible? No. Governor Foraker may
4 think it impossible, but he can not know
| it, for it is not only possible but the
simplest and easiest of things to do. If
| there be four members to elect let the
| General Assembly authorize each Elec-
tor to vote for the two men OF his choice,
coupled with the provision that the -four
4 persons receiving the largest vote shall
i constitute the board. You will thus OBJ
tain in every city of the State, not only
| non-partisan board but board com
posed of honest representatives of the
two great parties. There are other meth
4 DDS by which similar ends may be
reached, but l shall not stop to discuss
| them. The declaration that the only
wav to secure non-partisan boards is tt
put the power to appoint them in the
hands of an unscrupulous partisan,i is the
essence of foolishness.
| Election boards and boards of regis
tration in the hands of honest, compe
| tent men may be made to serve usefu
purpose; but under the control of the
ambitious partisan they are quite sure
soon or late, to be ppostituted to bat
4 ends. When certain of the Southern
States abandoned Ku-Klux methods the.
had immediate recourse to boards o
election and registration, and through
these accomplished by fraud what the,
had heretofore done by violence. Il
, South Carolina for instance:
THE registration officers are appoint
ed bv the Governor, who also appoint
va1he commissioners of elections for eac.
county, who in turn appoint the man
:; aoers of elections for each election pre-
cinct. Ihe Wnole hachlnery Z
registration and voting are, therefore, /
! the hands of that party, whose determ1I
. alton to perpetuate its power by an
means. however foul, is not only man
! fest. but openly avowed. The electlo
.of 1850 was carried by frauds OF ever
| imaginable kind, and was probably on
of the grossest outrages and farces ev'
perpetrated in the name of free al
fair election. General Green B. RauI
The Republicans of Ohio can not a
ford to copy substantially the elect1t
laws and endorse the election metho'
OF South Carolina, even to please Go
ernor Foraker and Senator Halstead.
The Democrats of Cincinnati al
| Hamilton are not all saints, but we C;
! not Justly disfranchise whole commuI
! ties because a few men of one or tV
precincts forged tally sheets. The Go
n ! ernor's skin cane is altogether too sic
der a support for great party II
proper thing for the people to do is pu
ish the guilty, not the innocent. and
J. sse to it that political dead beats, boo
lers and convention packers are driv
from the ranks of both parties. VIII
Foraker shakes off the disreputat
scamps who are now his chief adviser
o. his denunciation of Democratic gan
q sters will come from him with bett
grace. There ars some men so persl
emily i@pgaaat they fQzsa iasmsssl