The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1890-09-18
MORE DEMOCRATIC DEsPOTIsM AMI
MURDER

MORE DEMOCRATIC DEsPOTIsM AMI
MURDER.
A State election occurred in Arkansas
ON Tuesday of last week which was char.
acterized by Democratic barbarism and
crime. 1t was carnival of fraud and
violence in which white and black Re.
publicans were brutally beaten and all
the rights of the people overthrown,
Armed Democratic mObs drove the peO-
pie from the polls and the ballot boxes
were seized and stuffed. The election
outrages on Tuesday surpassed the black
and hideous record of two years ago
when John M. Clayton was foully mur-
dered. While Congressman Breckin.
ridge was defending his right to the seat
of Clayton and denying the guilt of his
personal friends, these same friends were
welding their clubs and shot-guns to
capture the State and win another bloody
Democratic victory. Read these details
of crime and savagery committed by
Democratic bosses and sactiUned and up.
held by the Democratic party.
In Lee county the ballot boxes were
stuffed and other frauds practiced.
In Lafayette township, Ouichita cOun-
ty, an armed mob killed Republican
and took forcible possession of the Union
labor ballots.
In Conway county, where John NJ.
Clayton was murdered, the usual devil
tries were practiced.
In Castland, Ashley Hill, Union and
other precincts in Pulaski county, the
tickets were forcibly taken from union
labor men and Republicans and de-
stroyed, and in other precincts the Dem
ocrats held separate elections and defied
the regular and legally appointed judges
of election and boldly declared that the
courts would sustain their villainy.
In the third ward of Little Rock city
The Democratic sheriff of the county
went to the polls with an armed posse of
deputies and forcibly elected the legally
appointed judges of election and installed
Judges of his own selection. This out
rage is described and admitted by an
evening Democratic sheet of the city.
In Camden, Ouichita county, the night
before the election an armed body of
Democrats visited the houses of colored
Republicans, broke in their doors, fired
into their houses and warned the inmates
not to visit the polls on pain of death.
On election morning an armed Demo
cratic mob patrolled the roads and
warned the colored voters to keep away
| 'iOih BOio blltl NOulu dHltt
to vote the Democratic ticket. This they
refused to do and the Democrats drove
them home.
George Small, white Republican and
| Union soldier, who had 1000 union labor
tickets for use in the election in Conway
county was brutally assaulted, beater
and robbed of his ballots at Morrillton
near the scene of John NJ. Clayton's as
sassipation. Several of the men who
were implicated in the murder of Claytor
were engaged in this outrage upon Small
The asSassins have been encouraged ant
stimulated to continue their infamies by
the sympathy and approval of the Stat
authorities. Not one of the wretchel
who shot down Col. Clayton and hii
friends has been arrested. Their crimes
bave been excused and justified as neces
sary to Democratic supremacy in til,
State and in the Nation. The assassin
know that they are safe from conviction
even If they were arrested, for no jury
could be drawn in Arkansas who would
convict Democrat for killing Republi
can, white or black. The we'lknowI
union Of Democratic Congressman, il
support of the claim of Breckenridge t.
his seat. won by murder, has contributed
to the repetition of the startling crimes
of Tuesday. The Northern Democrat!
joined i'll a public protest against th'
election bill as an invasion of State right!
and an alarming use of Federal bayOneti
at the polls, but they have never uttered
one word of condemnation of the mur
ders, the shOt-guns and Democratic mob
that have OverthrOwn popular govern
ment in Arkansas. They are shocked a
the proposal of Federal authority to pro
tect tile ballot from armed ruffians, bf
they are silent when these ruffians seiZ,
and stuff ballot boxes and drive away tn,
people with revolvers. And these sam,
| Northern Democrats are willing to allow
electoral votes obtained by these afro
ciOus methods TO elect Democratic
President. By these same methods the
Gulf States are ruled and Democratic
Cong essmen elected. Not a word O.
protest or denunciation has yet been ut
tered by single Northern Democrat O
prominence. They witness these bas,
and barbarOus crimes against the Repub
lie and against democracy; they see Law
and justice and civilization prostrateC
under the feet of mobs and bullies ant
assassins; yet they are silent and vote t.
seat the Congressman counted in by
these mobs, bullies and assassins! AnC
when law is suggested to prevent thes,
outraSes ard protect the people, they op
pose it with affected horror at Fedora
bOyonets! Verify the Northern dough
face has come again, and he is a NOR
contemplate and craven creature thai
his predecessor! But how fierce ant
bold these Northern Congressman can b.
WREN the Republicans voted to admi
Wyoming and Idaho. That was worth,
of rebuke and Indignation. These State
were Republican "rotten burroughs,
and their admission endangered the in
tegrity of the Republic, but no one coul,
claim that fair elections were deried il
these States; no one asserted that arme,
mobs and murderers stole the ballo
boxes and shot down the Democrats
nevertheless the Republicans were guilt
of a great wrong in admitting thos
States. That was Democratic indigna
tion and warning. But when the entir
line of Gulf States are captured by
small minority of Confederate general
and large majority of the people ar
cheated, robbed and dsfranchised, VIII
that is Democracy, and progress, and re
form!
And if some reckless editor of a RI
publican paper exposes the Democrat
imposture and villiany, than all th
flunkeys scream in chorus, "bloody
bloody shirt!"-Trdnscript