Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1892-11-02
The Force Bill Does Its Own Talking.

he rOrce Dill DOeS 1tS VWH 1tlhIuS'
The Force bill is just now, says the
CIV. Va.) Waterman "doing its
own talking" A simple statement of
its provisions is enough to damn the
measure in the estimation of every
honest man who loves his country
The editor of this paper has in his pos
session an official copy of the bill, and
we print below a brief statement OF
some of it's provisions
The bill requires the appointment OF
a chief supervisor of election in every
judicial district in the United States,
and on the petition of 100 persons
claiming to be voters in any Congress
sional district, it is the duty of the
chief supervisor to take charge of,
manage, and practically control the
election. He is authorized to appoint
three supervisors for each voting
precinct in the district, who may be
employed six days at So per day each.
We call attention to the fact that
the petitioners upon whose application
the law is to be put in operation may
not necessarily be citizens of the Con-
gressional district, but it is sufficient
that they merely claim to be voters
therein. Citizens of Massachusetts,.
for instance, could have the Force bill
put into operation in West Virginia
by simply claiming to be citizens OF
this State. But apart from this, does
anybody suppose that of the 10000
voters in the Third Congressional
District, 100 could not be found with
partisan spleen sufficient to induce
them to petition for the application of
this law here Why there is scarcely
county in the district which could
not furnish 100 such men who would
rejoice in the opportunity to humiliate
the members of the Democratic party
by putting in operation this hateful
engine of oppression. Let no man
dream that the force bill will not be
fastened upon us if Harrison be cleo
ted.
1t is the duty of the U. S. Marshal,
under this bill, ON the application of
the chief supervisor, to appoint as
many deputy U. S. Marshals as the
chief supervisor may want, who may
be employed as much as eight days at
So per day.
The effect of this is to permit the
chief supervisor to appoint thousands
of armed Federal officers in each Con-
gressional district who are to be paid
OFT of the Federal treasury. There is
absolutely no limit to the number of
deputy marshals who may be APP
pointed. Five, ten, or twenty thou
sand could be appointed in this Con-
gressional district. The doors of the
Federal treasury are thus to be flung
wide open, and the public moneys con-
verified into a corruption fund to buy
votes for the Republican ticket at the
rate of $40 per head. An innumerable
horde of armed men is to be let loose to
terrorize the voters of the country. Is
it possible to conceive of more
Ubiquitous and rty-destroying
scheme
The bill then authorizes the Presi-
dent to use the Army and Navy to
preserve the peace at the polls or to
aid in the enforcement of the law
This is done by reference to certain
sections of the Revised Statutes under
the head of civil Rights" which are
expressly made part of the Force bill.
Under this provision the President
may, prior to any election, order troops
to any State in the Union for the pre-
tended purpose to aid in the enforce
ment of the law. and they may be
used, as they have been in the past, to
influence and control the elections.
The Judge of the Federal court is re-
quired, within ten days after notice by
the chief supervisor, and no matter
what business may be pending in his
court, to come to such point as may be
most convenient for the purpose and
open his court for the transaction of
such business as may be presented for
the enforcement of this law. The bill
debases the Federal judiciary to the
last degree, and makes the Federal
Judge the mere servitor of the chief
supervisor.
The Federal officials are to supervise
and scrutinize all registration of voters,
the casting of the votes, the counting
of the ballots, the making of the re-
turns, and the certification of the re-
suit. Their certificates are to override
those of the State officials and of the
Governor of the State himself. In all
conflict between the Federal and State
election officers, the ruling of the
former is to prevail. The Federal
supervisors can admit the ballots of
voters who have been challenged and
rejected by the local election officers
The enforcement of the law would
come in direct conflict with many of
the State laws governing elections. 1t
could not be carried into effect in our
own State of West Virginia without
multiplying in many respects our election
law. The authority of the State would
thus be ruthlessly trampled on, and
bitter and ceaseless controversies and
complications provoked.
This is the measure which so nearly
became a law in $780, This is the
which President Harrison,
after his party had been repudiated in
the election of 1890, urged the Republi-
cans in Congress to pass before the
Democrats came into power in the fol-
lowing March. This is the measure to
which the Republican platform and
the Rel ublican leaders in and out of
Congress pledge their party anew, and
to which has been added the endorse
ment of nearly every Republican Con-
vention in the country, even including
the Republican Convention of Monroe
county held at Salt Sulphur Springs.