Telegram-herald., 1889-12-16
HOW TO REGULATE?
A Pigs IN the Clover" Puzzle fcr
Congress 20 Work
The REMEDY 100 LONG DELAYED
Al Able Diseussion OF the ouestious Pre-
seated bs thr Race Problem tu tie
Soath-Nha Howard chandler
aud OthsEs Thought.
To the Eat,or ot,he nl,as.sHw4lo.


President Harr,ou', message calls at
tent-on 10 the suppression and ron-
counting ot coiored votes u the south.
Bat. 81, the Democratic journals sneer-
ms.y observe, he does uog propose any
remedy lie SIMPLY directs the atten-
ton ot Congress % the e,ll, and leaves
CongIc,, % hui a remedy & .t can.
other Pies dents before h.m have done
tie same. Congress ha, not found ii
remedy Nobody las found a remedy
except the hope that the Southern
Democrats Viii, some time 10 the M
q finite future. voluntarily quit acting
So badly. That is merely hope that
thl- most shameful crime wlli die out
ot itself before the slow advance OF a
better civilization Look carefully
through the National Constitutional,
and you VIII despair OF any other cure.
Congress noS urged 10 attempt the
regulation Of National elections 10y
National laws. That would be the
precise remedy needed, if Congress
possessed any such power. But no
such power is granted IN the Con>t.tu-
ton and, if any such power sasserted,
it must bc based upon implication only,
and that Of such thin Ice that the SUI
preme Court wlil bc very likely 20 break
il all up M the first trial As the South
msOleutly asks What are YOU gong
20 do about IL Nothing. You may
growl, and threaten but You can do
nothing: or If something can be done,
1t VIII be impossible 10 get an agree
mont sufficiently general to accomplish
lt, so long as the Constitution remains
unchanged.
Let me relate political rcminiScence
touching tins matter. The evil Of the
suppression of the colored vote N the
South rs not a new thing. II was the
very first and greatest trouble that
accompanied and finally broke down
reconstruction. Ii began right after
the war. Ii was a hundred times
worse I'm lS66-' o. -'GS- 90. and all through
the seventies, than It Is now. For, as
YOU Will remember, in lS66-'7-'S-'9 the
colored vote was suppressed, not 10y the
comparatively humane cheat of not
counting {, but by the Ku Klux and
the shotgun. You remember the mas
sacres at New Orleans and elsewhere,
that caused Gen. sheridan 10 be sent 10
Louisiana, and the butchcries i'm South
Carolina, Arkansas, Mississippi and
other states Then, as now, Presidents
called the attention of Congress 10 the
matter, and everybody sought for a
remedy consistent with the consGl'-
ton, and failed To- find one.
But there was and Is remcdv-a
sure and safe remedy-thc same that
is now talked ot-to have Congress
make laws putting the entire conduct
of the National elections for President,
c-PrCSdent and members of Con
gress, under the control Of National
officers, taking all such elections
wholly away from State authority.
Why has not this remedy been applied?
Because there is no authority for 50
dong IN the constitution. But In those
days the Republican party had power
to change the constitution, and did
pass the amendments.
When the fifteenth amendment was
beng paescd-whCh amendment de-
clareS That uO State -h8l. deny % any
citizen of the United States the right 10
vOtc-thcrc were many who saw and
sld that tins would be inadequate.
senator Jacob ". Howard. one of the
abic~t constitutional lawyer, that ever
sat in Congress. said in my hearing that
the only thorough cure for the evils n
tho south. and tIc evils of repeating.
false returns. etc.. .n The North wo1li
Boz constitutions amendment. placing
q ..t .f