The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1890-05-22
SPEAKER REED AND PURE ELEC.
TIONS.


Reeds Pittsburg speech is that he
doesn't want pure elections. He
said in that speech that the Repub-
lican party wanted authority to
register, count and certify its own
vote. With that authority it could
keep itself in power. The bills pro-
vidiDg for federal election law vir-
tually give it that authority, because
it any one of them should become
law the election officers would be
republicans. 1t is we'll understood,
of course, that the republicans do
not expect that the election law they
propose to pass would be enforced
in the north. They intend that it
should operate in the south. That
is the reason that each of the bills
that has been introduced provides
that the law can become operative
only on the petition of a certain
number of voters Of county or con-
gressional district. The republicans
know that there will be no such pc
titions in the north, but they pro-
pose to have ignorant black voters
get up such petitions in the south,
thus placing congressional and ma
tional elections in the southern
states in the hands of agents of their
party.
Nobody hears Of any effort being
made in Maine in behalf of purer
elections. There is no sentiment
in that state in favor of the Aus
tralian ballot system. Why is this?
Are not voters in that state corrupt
ed by the tens of thousands?
A correspondent of the New York
Times. writing from Lewiston, Me-,
says that at every important cleo
ton from 20 to Is per cent. of the
voters are purchased. In Speaker
Reeds district, particularly, the
purchase of voters is open and
shameless. The names of the pur-
chasable voters are placed upon a
! list, together with the amount that
must be paid each voter. These
purchasable voters are then divided
into squads and placed under the
supervision of local political leaders.
The amount of money required to
secure their votes is made known to
those who have charge of the cam
paign funds, and it is furnished on
election day.
1t is asserted by the correspond
ent of the Times that Mr.. Reed
could not be elected without money,
and it is fair to presume that Mr..
Reed knows that he owes his cleo
ton to the corrupt use of money.
The fact that he does not demand
pure elections in any of his public
utterances is pretty good evidence
that he does not dare to make any
such demand. He confines himself
to demanding that the black vote
IN the south shall be counted for
the Republican party. Perhaps if
the Republican party were to use
the means for getting the black vo.
tiers in the south to vote the repub-
lican ticket that are used to get a
majority tor Mr.. Reed in his dis
trict, a much larger republican vote
would be poDed in the south.
1t has been stated frequently, and
the statement is true, that the black
vote in the south is small because
the blacks do not care to vote unless
it is made worth their while to do so.
1t is noticeable that in local political
contests, where there is money paid
for votes, the black vote is a larger
one. The black voters, and white
ones also, are very susceptible to
such influences as are used in Speak
er Reeds district to secure repub-
lican majority. Why doesn't Speak
er Reed advise the use in the south
of the means employed in his dis
trict to win republican victories, in
stead of insisting upon a federal
election law? Does he hope for
better results from partisan return
ing boards than from the corrupt
use of money Say. News.
C. E, HENDERSON.
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