Evening journal., 1892-08-17
FORCE AND FRAUD.
Soldiers Present at the Polls to
Keep the Peace.
HOUSE TO HOUSE SEARCHES.

May AounA anu AoAhAh Nhom Ahcg
Please to Make Laws.
J. K Herbert, q man who may be well. |
meaning but who is either quite innocent |
or disingenuous The cannot be ignorant) |
writes to the New York Sun asking lot |
of questions designed to show that the |
Force bill is harmless measure equally !
applicable to the North and to the South. |
and that il does not contain any sugges.
ton OF force or frand. The questions
NAV be supplied from the categorical re-
plies by the Sun as follows:
81. We reply that no section or clause
of the Force bill that passed the Repub
lican house of the Fifty-frst congress
and failed in the senate provides in
terms for force or fraud in the conduct of
elections. Oppressive partisan, and
wicked laws are not labeled that way.
s'2 No section or provision applies to
any Southern state which might not
apply with equal force and equal danger
to New York or any other Democratic
Northera state but from the conditions
of the case the hand of Federal interior
ence would fall heaviest upon the SOUTH
80. Every section or provision OF the
complicated machine 1interferes with the
rights of the citizens and affects the
value of his honest vote in just 50 far as
that provision or section contributes TO
the general result aimed at by the par
tiaans who framed the measures and
what the general result is we shall pres
emily show
II. If elections were conducted under
the proposed Republican law, such cleo
tions would not necessarily be fair, hon
est and truthfully recorded expressions
of the popular will and we shall be kind
enough to state why and wherefore
20. Such tricks or devices Of force or
fraud as depend for success upon the
partisanship Of Republicans holding for
life judicial Office; such devices as
cheated the Democracy out of its right
fully elected president in 1876, are not
only not made impossible by the pro-
posed law, but they are promoted and
rendered feasible for the perpetuation
Of a Republican congress. For the whole
system devised by Davenport, adopted by
the Republican party, and warmly ap-
proved by the present Republican candi-
date for president. turns upon the ap-
pointment Of election officers and can
vassing boards by Republican judges,
holding Federal life Offices and therefore
not responsible to the people of the
state. To specify: The proposed
Law requires that the clerk of the
house shall place upon the rolls the
names Of persons certified as elected by
the canvassing boards appointed by
Judges, who, except in two instances,
are Republicans, and owe their own life
Offices to the Republican party. II a
partisan canvassing board thus APP
pointed shall falsely certify to the cleo
ton of Republican to congress, and II
the canvassing boards false certificate
shall be sustained by the partisan court
that created the partisan canvassing
board that falsely certified Republican
will participate in the organization OF
the house Under the constitution the
house is the Judge of the election of its
own members It would still possess
theoretically, the power to investi
cate the election and throw out
the person falsely certified to the
clerk The theoretical power would
not be worth a straw. If partisan Re
publican canvassing boards, appointed b,
partisan and irresponsible federal life
office holding judges, had falsely certified
to sufficient number of defeated Repub
lican candidates to give the Republican,
majority for the purpose Of organiza
ton. the party that invited the force bill
could perpetuate itself in the house Of
representatives. For the wrong Their
would be no remedy; for the fraud IL
punishment.
6. To our correspondents last question
we reply that It makes no diiferenc
whether the sldllfully drawn force bill o
Davenport, Reed and Harrison contain
any particular word or phrase calculated
TO te lily or intimidate any man from at
tempting to exercise his right of suffrage
The question is whether the bill is calcu
lated to enable partisans and rascals I
reverse the honest result of an election
and to defraud Democratic districts Q
their lawful rights Of representation.
does that in various ways.
1T takes the ultimate control of tn
registration and the election from th
states, and makes it over to the FEEDERS
Circuit courts, now constituted in ever
case but two by Republican judges. Doe
any Democrat ask whether there is th
possibility, in close and critical elections
of danger from partisanship on I'll
Federal bench2 Let him read anew I'll
story Of 1876 and 1877. Let him revie
the long record of outrages perpetrate
upon the people OF Louisiana, Sout
Carolina, Florida, or Mississippi in th
name of law and justice and fro
the bench of the courts of the Unite
States
at provides for an army of hireling
spies and hangers-on, to be appointed
election officers, designated in their tuI
by Republican courts. Il permits the a
pointment of special deputy marshals
50 a day, to number limited only by q
audacity of tho partisan marshal and IL
partisan chief supervisor in the distri
in question. There may be thousaI
or ten thousand Of these special deputi
in each district If the audacity or Il
desperation Of Republican partisansh
goes so far.
1T provides from the treasury by pc
manent appropriation, beyond the rea
Of congress to refuse or withhold va
campaign fund for the employment
election officers, and regular and spec
supernumeraries, in the interest Of {
party in power.
ut establishes a permanent federal
QUESTION. in the shape of a house-i
house canvass, nominally to ascerta
the legality Of the registered vote
This odious federal invasion "
specified with brutal drectness
the bill originally drawn by Dave