The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1892-09-24

vonr attention r. this fact The Force biiI
/ passsd the rifty-frst Congress- hepuDi~
\ can C0ugrass-egery Republican III .ne
House OF representatives but three voting
for 1t. and every Democrat, as my iriepoS
here know. voting against it-a soiia pns'
ianx every Democrat voting against It,
from the North, South. East and West.
Why? Because the Democratic party
feels az universal as our nature: ths Demo-
cratic party knows no North. no south; no
East no West, but what is Democratic doc
trne in Illinois. in Massachusetts,. 10 DSmo-
cratic doctrine IN the Old Dominion.
The Force bill having passed the House
! Of Representatives against the earnest pro-
test Of these gentlemen. went to the senate;
! and there it was confronted with SOHO
| Democratic phalanx of senators. your OWE
distinguished senators from Virginia stand
ing in the very van.
| Three Republican senators voted with the
Democrats. and for the time they accom-.
plished the defeat or that bill. One OF
| those Republican senators who voted against
IL declared that the Force bill was the most
! Infamous piece OF legislation tina. ever
crossed the threshold of the Senate.
WHAT REID SAYS.
Isit a living issue? Let me read o word
from Mr.. Thomas b. Reed. You remember
him. don't you? No man living. more than
! Thomas b. Read speaks for the law-making
noyer of the Republican party. That great
leader. the Speaker of the Flfty-hrst Con-
eress and have heard il said that he never
had any trouble about getting maJorlties
there. Here is what he SAID:
'Speakinc for myself it seems 10 mo that
the only wise course is to take into Federal
hands the Federal elections. Let US cut
loose from State elections. do our own regis
tration, our own counting and our own GER
tifcation." They would have no trouble
then in securing majorities. These were
the words of Mr.. Speaker Reed
That is it. Cut loose from the State
laws. do our own registrations and our Own
counting What does that mean! federal
agents. Federal United States msrshals.
DO their own registration. Do their own
counting of the ballots and their own certi-
hcatiops
Aud it would not make any difference
who was elected to Congress from the kicn-
mond district. He would be the repre-
sentative of their own counting. He would
be the representative of their own registra-
ton. Now. my fellow-citizens, what does
al this mean; $3.50 So,
10 secure fair elections [ believe. Brother
Wise, 1t is about as much OF a msnomer
as the word protection is when it Is applied
TO the tariff laws of this country. II ~ 3
GOOD word used for q very bad purpose.
The Force bill. mark you-the bill which
passed the Republican House with but
three dissenting votes-that bill provides
that Supervisors of elections shall be APP
pointed by the Federal courts. The SUPER
visors have the power under that bill 10 APP
point deputy United States marshals WITH
ont limit The supervisors are appointed
for lie From their decision there Is abso-
lutely no appeal. They have the power un-
der that law TO set aside your state gov
ernments so lar as elections are concerned.
The men heretofore selected under your
State laws for tho purpose of conducting
your electOns-your neighbors. your own
fellow citizens-ths men intrusted under
your State laws with the conduct or your
elections can be set aside, and the elections
conducted by aides OF the Federal admins
tration-men thatyou don't know, strangers
sent amongst YOU.
They receive the ballot they administer
the oath: they count the ballot they certify
the result and certify IA TO who shall pre-
tend TO represent you in Congressman
that have the power under that law to strike
names from the registry list just as they
NAV deem proper.
They have the power under that law 10
! invade the sanctuary of private homes
They can examine all naturaiiZed cltlLenS
and all naturalization papers and IL IN tnelr
judgment they have been Improperly issued
although ordered by your courts, they nave
the power to cancel them and deprive the
citizens of their votes.
in the United States having a population or
twenty thousand or more. 10 may DO put
in force in every district in the United
States. II may be put in force upon the
petition OF one hundred men who claim 10
be voters of that district. SO that upon "A
petition of less than one per cent. ot the
legal voters only in u congressional district
this vast machinery can be put IN force ana
every polling place from Maine TO Cali
tornia, from the Columbia to the 81. John,
and this too, without the least inslnuatlon,
the least intimatlon the least charge that
fraud. that wrong or that injustice ID III
= tended to be perpetrated upon the people
, of that district.
= This law ii put in general operation, as II
may be under its provisions II put IN gen.
eral operation III every district IN the l nited
! States, would call into being an army OF
! ofiice-holders aggregatlng more than three
; | hundred thousand, surrounding every poll
ing-place 10 every precinct IN every con-
gressional district in the United States, and
this. too. at q cost TO the people OF tens OF
millions Of dollars at every general election
, held for the election Of representatives II
, Congress. What does 1t mean!
/ UNDER THIS BILL.
= don't know but what you may get a
, little tired listening TO this discussion but
let me say you will not get half as tired al
, Won will under this Force bill If it goes into
!
l pissed the Senate it would have been ap-
proved Ly the Pres dent. it would have bur-
, dened your statute books. and this meeting
tonight would be entirely Unnecessary.
3 As to who should be the next President OF
, the United States would have been deter
) mined at the Minneapolis Convention, and
it would be unnecessary 70 go through the
> farce Of an election.
= What does il mean? My fellOw-citiZens,
) it means the destruction OF the right of self
. government ID means the destruction OF
the right Of the people to elect their OWL
1 representatives IL Congress that you have
q the power under your State laws 20 elect
9 In other words lt means 10 virginia. u
z means 70 North Carolina. II means 20 SOUTH
8 Carolina aud Alabama and Mississippi and
, Louisiana IL means TO you the return OF
) the glorious days OF reconstruction.
r | will not detain you by recalling TO the
people of tho south what you have passed
through. ] will not recall 1t to you. because
4 the recollection OF it burns IN your memo
. ries. the days If humiliation. tho days. o.
Q outrage the days OF wrong through whlct
: you passed from 1868. and | speak now OIL /
a period long after the close OK the war.
. speak of the period under carpet-bag domi
~ nation, OF Republican misrule; the perlot
c when men were cent to rule over you whG
Y had 10 interest in common with you, an
Il whose sole interest, from the mountains Z
2 the sea. was 10 plunder the people whom
@ they pretended 10 govern. Don't you know
: that there hos been left 70 the people OF the
Z Southern States as q heritage OF Republican
d migrule and carpet-bag domination BURDEN