The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-07-18
TIE FORCE BILL.
Explanation of the Ubiquitous Measure
Proposed by the Republicans.

|
| Proposed by the Republicans.
| From the st. Louis Republic.
The Lodge force bill passed by the Re-
| publican House of Representatives In the
Reed congress, two years ago, and prac-
tically Endorsed by the Republican party in
its national convention at Minneapolis, is a
long and in places tedious document 1t
| was carefully drawn with the purpose of
| mu1dling the unprofessional reader, and Of
| beclouding in a sea of cuttlefish obscurity
some of its most dangerous and revolution
| airy provisions.
sidious attempt to subvert the constitution
| of the United States and to substitute gov
| eminent by federal returning boards for
| free representative government of and by
| the people, Even IL its other provisions
were honest-which they are motifs
| openly avowed purpose of taking control Of
congressional elections out OF the hands of
officers chosen by the people Of the several
states, and vesting it in judges appointed
| by the President, would suffice to damn its
| authors to everlasting infamy as traitors to
the American system of government.
| The measure is not the outcome OF igno-
rance or false theories of government, but
of deliberate and rascally conspiracy to SUBJ
| stitute force and fraud for free elections, to
| abolish real representative government and
to make narrow and greedy oligarchy of
| office holders supreme arbiters Of the nations
destiny. If the bill had been allowed to
| pass in the senate, Benjamin Harrison could
easily re-elect himself President for life, and
the usurpers in Washington could never be
| gotten rid OF except by armed revolution.
The bill provides that upon the petition
of only 500 voters out Of the thirty odd
thousand voters In any congressional dis
| trict the federal district court for that dis
|. hal ans a Inf nf
| congressional election therein, to whom the
| people have been accustomed to iutrust
that duty. 1t is made the duty of the
federal Judge TO appoint two registrars, two
inspectors and two deputy inspectors at
each polling place, and for the faithful per-
Torrance of their duties they are responsible
only TO the court.
Irrespective of local laws or state regis
tration, every citizen in the precinct must
get himself entered upon the registration
lists OF the courts registrars before he can
vote in the congressional election. The
trouble and loss Of time 10 volved would re-
suit in the disfranchisement OF thousands of
voters in the rural districts, even il the
registrars were invariably honest and Inn
partial in the performance Of their duties.
The door 70 Wholesale fraud in the registra-
ton Of illegal or colonized voters ia left wide
which says: I'm case Of dispute as to the
eligibility of a voter the vote Of one reg
istrar shall be sufficient to place the name
on the list, but no name shall be stricken Off
the list except with the assent Of both reg.
istTars."
The chicanery of this innocent-looking
sentence would do credit to 3-card monte
sharp The two registrars are to be of op-
posite political parties, and each may be
expected to look out for the interests of his
own side. Let US suppose that at certain
polling places in Georgia or Mississippi,o or in
a congressional district Of Southern Illinois.
Indiana OF Ohio, hordes Of strange negroes
present themselves for registration. The
democratic registrar in each precinct denies
their right to be registered or to vote at
that box. The republican registrar takes
the opposite view, and his vote admits the
whole gang OF vagabonds TO registration;
and his vote keeps them on, for when the
lists are revised the votes of both registrars
are necessary TO strike off a name. This
single provision makes the whole elaborate
scheme of registration a sham and q fraud.
Lodge evidently had the able assistance Of
Dudley and Davenport 10 framing it.
The voting is to be conducted on the Aus
tralian plan, with a proviso that illiterate
voters may receive assistance from the in
speotors in making up their ballots.
After the polls are closed it becomes the
duty Of the registrars and inspectors at each
polling place to count the ballots and certify
the result, not to any state officer chosen by
the clerk Of the same federal DISTRICT court
by which said registrars and inspectors
were appointed. And the clerk of said
court complies the returns from all the pre-
cincts OF the district and certifles the result
Co the clerk of the House of Representatives
in Washington. The clerk of the House Is
required to enter upon the roll OF members
the name of the candidate in whose favor
the clerk OF the court has issued the certifi-
cate.
II this were all it would be bad enough,
for it would place the whole machinery of
congressional elections in the hands of fed
eral judges appointed by the President and
of the clerks of the federal courts who act
by authority of the judges. However hon.
est and impartial these officers may be, the
partisan votes Of the five supreme court
judges In the eight by seven electoral COM
mission, which counted Tilden out and
Hayes in, proves that they are not superior
to the political prejudices Of other men, and
that they should be kept nloof from poll
tics as the trainers Of our government in>
tended they should be.
But this is not ALL The bill provides for
surrounding the polls with as many ruffians
and thugs IN the disguise of deputy mar
shals as partisan exigencies may require
The marshal of said court 10 required to ap-
point one or more deputies for each polling
place. Upon the request of the election
| officers or of twenty-five voters in any pre-
I
increased indefinitely. The exact wording
of the bill is that upon such request the
marshal of the court shall furnish addi-
tional deputies in such numbers as he, in his
discretion, may deem necessary to preserve
order at and about the polls"
The country is familiar with the work Of
the armed partisan mercenaries in intimi-
dating and obstructing democratic voters at
congressional elections in Cincinnati and
other cities of the north. From experience
enough is known of their methods TO make
it plain that they are provided for In this
bill for no other reason than to drive away
democratic voters and protect fraudulent
republican voting
There is not line nor a word in the bill
that would confine 1t to the SOUTH nor to
indicate that it was framed with a view to
be used only Sin the south. 1t is admirably
adapted to help the republicans in the Dor
der districts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Mis-
souri, and other states in which the resident
vote is against the Republican party, and
in which the colonization of negro voters
and other frauds on the ballot have been
practiced and protected under the color of
law. There is not close or doubtful dis
trict in the United States that might not
be carried by the party in power under the
provisions of the bill