The Russellville Democrat., 1889-05-16

of drunken man and altogether un-
malicious or pre-meditated. He was
given two years in the pen and fined
heavily, Young Dansby, of Cleve-
land county was tried for interfering
with a colored election supervisor,
was convicted and fined $500. The
evidence disclosed the fact that the
difficulty was the result of an old
grudge and that he didn't know the
negro was supervisor. No one
was deprived of his right to vote by
reason of the difficulty and the re-
suit of the election was not changed
an iota one way or the other. Two
Woodruff county officers plead guilty
to purely technical violation of the
law and were fined $40. Three
Woodruff county judges were con-
victed because they post poned the
count of the vote Of their precinct
three days. No votes were changed,
no fraud was committed. Two 9th
e. Woodruff county officers were in
dicted, convicted and fined for sep
Grating before completing the returns
No votes were lost in this case and
no harm was done. One Of the
Plummervllle judges was tried, con.
vlcted and fined heavily for displac-
ing the regular judges. He believed
he was justified under the law in do
ing what be did and the evidence
proved that the action of Wahl, the
republican supervisor, was much
more deserving Of reproof than his
The oflicious and unwarranted action
of VAIL brought about the whole
trouble. The two negroes who were
displaced went to another building
and arranged to open another poll
ing place. Deputy Sherifis Reid,
Blakeny and Lucas advised them TO
desist and let the voting 90 on at the
regular voting place. Reid, law
yer, read the law governing elections
showing them that the votes cast at
their box would be illegal and could
not be returned. They succumbed
and all voted at the regular polling
place. AT the trial Blakeny was &C,
quilted, but Reid and Lucas were
convicted. The Judge lntimated
that their punishment would be Sc
we're and ordered them to the peni-
Tertiary for safe keeping over the
earnest protests of their attorneys
and pitiful pleading of anxious rela.
tives. They renamed In prison
thirteen days, when the Judge
quashed the indictment under which
they were convicted on the ground
that it did not specify in what par.
ticular the interference was made
They were released on bond to await
the action of the next federal grand
jury. These men were forced not
only to listen to the severest arraign
ment of the Judge on the bench, bu'
were sent by him to felon's cell be
cause of conviction on an illega
indictment, and for what? Because
they read the law and advocated Its
proper enforcement. Their actor
dld not prevent the polling of sin
gle vote. The defendants in al
these cases were democrats. Now
we will look at the other side. Tive
jefferson county judges of election
both colored, were indicted for al
lowing thirty-flve negroes to vott
who had not been IN the State Ions
enough to acquire the right to do so
This was permitted over the protes
of the white judge who acted will
them and in the face of the fact tina
he read the law to them showing tina
they were not entitled to vote. Ever
the Gazette was forced to admit tina
this "ls the most fragrant violation 0
the law presented to the court.
What was done in their cases? Thel
walked into the court, plead guilty
and were fined TEN DOLLARS each ant
released. The specious pleadings 0
the champions Of this tribunal fal
with a slckening thud in the face 0
such disclosures as these, and tn,
charges Of "partizan hate" and spoil
ihcal persecution" are conclusivell
proven. The developments repre-
sentthe''cloven foot of the enemy anC
demonstrate clearly that these pros
ecutions were made not so much t.
punish actual and malicious viola
tons of law but for the purpose o
manufacturing political capital upoI
which to do business later on. Ii
this unrighteous scheme the schem
ers have signally failed and they
must feel sorely chagrined over the
result.
MzxzmnHxxazsazszaH6zz
WASHINGTON LETTER.
lFrom our Regular Correspondent