The Washington bee., 1891-02-21

equal representation Dy statehood and not
by manhood suffrage population how
shall it be so as to the other branch? The
house was to be popular body filled by
the votes of the people of the United
States. The distribution was to be numer-
ical, wholly numerical. We do not need to
be captious about there being an arrange,
ment at the outset that each state should
have one representative. The basis was
numerical, and the circumscriptions of
constituency were of citizens of the United
States living in the state, and nothing else
Then we look to the question of suffrage
What shall we say about that? They
looked at the actual suffrage as prevailing
In the different states with such disparities
as might have manifested themselves,
always leaving out of view the non-civc
| population of the slave states. They were
to be represented and counted for repre-
sentation, but not to vote. That we under
stand. That settles that There were
| property qualifications here and there
| there was this or that arrangement in
different states. The people very wisely
said in that great constituent assembly
that framed the constitution, What is
suffrage for the popular branch of the
state, is suffrage enough for the popular
| branch of congress-" and it was SO pro-
vided. But that has nothing to do with
the state prescribing suffrage; the United
States adopted their suffrage and was salts
| fed with that regulation.
Then the question came up, how about
elections of representatives? How shall
they be conducted? 1t was said that the
states may carry them on with the rest of
their elective affairs. They were not rich
states, any of them. They had not vast
populations. They had not any discord-
ant elements, because the non-civic situa-
! ton of the blacks removed that from the
arena There was nothing in the matter
for the nonce, making it inadvisable, and
so the states were allowed to regulate the
conduct of the elections. We, the United
States. by this simply prescribed what was
our suffrage, tO-wit, the same that the
states had prescribed for theirs.
Whatever authority is given to the
state in regard to the conduct of elections
is given in the words of section 4, article
|, of the constitution The times, places
and manner of holding elections for sem
ators and representatives shall be pre-
scribed in each state by the legislature
thereof; but the congress may at any
time by law make or after such regula
tions, except as to the places of choosing
senator's" The state may fix the times,
places and manner of holding elections
for representatives" That is all we have
given TO the states. What the words
times, places and manner" mean as regu-
lations in the first clause OF inc pTrGGTlslGn,
they mean also in the next member OF
the same sentence, as such regulations"
But We say now, leaving out the word
alter" for the moment, that the congress
Al N
places and manner of holding such cleo
lions. Whatever then was conferred in
the first member of the sentence was
words "such regulations" in the second
member of the sentence.
How, then, can the words times, places
and manner &heE exercised by d state
mesH-eas thing, and when-1he UIjted
r~states exercises -fftt'-EH{9def the defnitive
phrase, 'such regulations" that is, times,
places and manner of holding elections"
be held to mean something else? Is,
then, this positive, unrestricted right of
making regulations as to the times, places
and manner of holding elections for rep
resentatives taken from the congress OF
| the United States because we have also
said the United States may be satisfied
with what it pleases in the system of the
state elections, so long as it is satisfactory?
Without question, as l suppose, We have
exercised the power of alteration by pro-
districts, and that they shall be by ballot.
Is not that what we have provided?
Mr.. Gray. Yes, sir.
Mr.. Evarts. Very well. Now we come
to this point We do not alter your
methods of elections at all. We simply
watch to see how your agents execute our
laws; your laws made ours by our accept
ing them as our laws for the time being.
| We do not alter your regulations; but
having seen this decay of the suffrage,
having only half the people vote, having
these violences and these frauds openly
avowed, unpublished and unreproved,
when any community of our voters, our
United States voters, living in any neigh
borhood, think that they would like to
have some observation and some record
of what occurs at these elections, we do
say, VERY well, you shall have them.
Then we carry through this efiicacious
law. 1t is not meant to be nugatory nor
ending in generalities. 1t touches every
man who is open to the objection of not
having a right to vote, rejecting his vote
and keeping record of it. That, 1t is
claimed, we have no right TO DO. 80 We
carry it through the familiar processes by
which q regulation of an election is to
proceed, and step by step be brought up
to certifcation. Yes, Mr.. President, we
are told that these methods of watching
elections are revolutionary and are con
trary to the first principles of freedom
and the national instincts of liberty.
AS displaying that the views l have
expressed are those heretofore entertained
and acted upon without question, even
by those who, it might have been sup
posed, would reach different conclusion
| here present in parallel columns thu
, pertinent sections of the constitution o
the United States and the constitution o
the so-called confederate states:
CONSTITUTION OF THE CONSTITUTION OF TIL
, UNITED sTATEsoF CONFEDERATE STATE
! AMERICA OF AMERICA.