The Washington bee. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1884-1922, 1891-02-21

Hltll1 d SCCOuO lCtLi, q man II ii-s ~
lieve, in that region of Mississippi where
this predominance of black population is
as pressing perhaps as almost anywhere.
| He spoke to that convention in more
graphic terms and in more impressive
! tones than | can use, and TO hearers who
| knew whether he was expressing the
truth of the situation of things there.
| beg the attention of senators ON both
! sides of the chamber to this i'm pOTtant
statement.
! Judge Chrisman said:
/ What was the shadow that hung over US, that
| darkened our future and alarmed our people? Sir
it is secret that there has not been full vote and
fair count in Mississippi since 1875; that have
been preserving the sscendency of the white peo-
pie by revolutionary methods. In plain words we
have been stufing ballot boxes committing per
jury and here aad there in the state carrying the
elections by fraud and violence, until the whole
machinery for elections was about 10 rot down.
The public conscience reyOlted. That which had
| beginning in despair at the situation, and which
seemed TO justify any means for public preserva-
| ton, was becoming chronic ulcer upon the body
polite and threatened to disnegrale the morals of
the people,
Thoughtful men everywhere foresaw that there
was disaster somew here along the line of such a
policy certainly there is righteous Judgment
LOT udllpuS as well US Ileu Anu say UT. FTcSl-
dent, no man can be in favor of perpetus ting the
election methods which have prevailed il NiSsis-
sippi since 49, who is not a moral idiot and no
statesman believes that government can be Der
petuated by violence and fraud. The duest intel
lect must that it leads to political cJnyu >iong
of some sort dangerous 70 life, liberty and PROPERTY
Men of observation and men who read books
know that republican government rests mainly
on the virtue and intelligence Of the people: and
the ballot, pure and untrammeled ballot is its
main reliance. ShOrn of this instrumentaIi.y it
will surely begin to die. 1t requires no Soomonto
see that the ballot-bOxstufer cannot always be
relied on to elect the best men to office.
Mr.. President, If my analysis ofthe con-
ditiOn of things in the nOn-suffrage States
may have seemed harsh or severe. or II
any phrases | may have used carry more
pressure than they should, | appeal To
those who know the condition of things
in Mississippi, and, knowing that. know
what prevails in the surrounding States
| do not say they are all alike; but | saw
that within the statement of JUDGE
Chrisman there is prevalent subyersi0n
Of the law, and if it continues you cannot
confne the ravages of that disease till il
will, unchecked, work out complete ruin.
When the will of the people of the United
States, when the minds of senators and
representatives, when the great repUb-
lican party, when struggling Us i'm the
democratic party, are feeling the stress Of
this, who shall be blamed, who shall he
questioned, who shall receive anv
rerOach, when, by the regular and sober
method of law and the authority Of the
United States, so far as our elections are
concerned for our representatives in our
government, we try to relieve the present
oifr i.
wonder that it should be called revolution
airy to correct such disturbances and
redress such wrongs as are described by
-trrrgs Z : =
Mississippi.
Now let US see how this state, to which
hegemony of the south is awarded. has
dealt in its changes OfitS constitution and
law. 1t is not for me to say, nor do +
know that | could bear it out, tina -the#
legal propositions and provisions of the
constitution of Mississippi are not consti-
tutlOnal under the constitution of the
United States; but what do we see? The
progress of tyranny, the subtraction of a
great mass of share in the Suffrage from
the whole people of Mississippi BY the
provisions of the Mississippi constitution,
which, as itis suggested, Will be initiated
in other states within the same influences,
6lcCtlOIlS W DOJll LUuStS OI ID6 lcglSi attire
in that state are to take place oniv once
in four years. All the minor distributions
of authority that, by the habit of the
American people, all over it, south nd
north, belong to the local suffrage are
Withdrawn and repOsed in the executive
authority of the government, and thus
dlsuse of suffrage, the first insidiOus
encroachment upon its power is deliber-
ately accepted as the policy and the wis
dom OF Mississippi. How would it answer
for the democratic community of Indiana 4
to adopt such p policy? How would cleo
tons in that and other states be regarded
on such proposition? In what region OF IS Il
this country could footing be found for
the demand that the suffrage should be
Withdrawn from the people, and only
accorded with such lack of vital force as
not to keep the system alive?
Mr.. Morgan. Will the senator allow me
to ask him if the republican party in this
country have not withdrawn the suffrage
from both negroes and white people in
the District of Columbia in order to pre-
serve order and the value of their prop
erty, of which they own large sums in
this district?
Mr.. Evarts. When l am discussing anv
such subject l will consider 1t. | am dis
cussing the Mississippi constitution now.
Mr.. Morgan. That is parallel case.
MIR. Evarts. When / discuss a parallel
constitution | will talk about it in the
same way. l have not seen any parallel
TO this. This seems TO me destructive of
the suffrage. l have never heard Of Z
have never heard even meditated any
such bold ravages as that proposed in this
change of the habits of our people in the
exercise of the suffrage. What impels it?
Who make these laws so abhorrent to
our institutions and our Interests in
regard to the suffrage? Do the white
people of Mississippi make these laws?
Or do the black people by their presence
there compel the white people to abandon
all the guarantees of the suffrage accorded
to the whites? People must understand
that the governing power in ever COM
mnnltY- as in the natural hnlr l. nm