New Iberia enterprise. (New Iberia, La.) 1885-1902, 1894-05-19
NUMBER II
backed by u popular majority of
100000 in the nation, has ever
been proposed or even contemplated
in any previous American Congress.
SIN.
Electoral Qualifications.

Electoral Qualifications.
One of the most important and
decided changes proposed by the
constitutional commission is the
electoral qualifications. The sixth
and last requisite proposed is, "he
shall be able to read tho Constitu-
tiOn of the State i'm his mother
tongue, or shall DO the bona fide
owner of property, real or personal,
located in this State and assessed
to him tor the year next preceding
tho election at cash valuation of
not less than $500.
| Concerning this the Times.Dem.
ocrat has the following to say edi-
tOrially: ''The last limitation of tho
franchise prOvided-the ability to
read aud write-is, we are con-
vinced, q good one. 1t has been
much discussed and some Opposi-
tiOn has been shown to it, but pub
lie sentiment in Louisiana supports
it. The threat of a loss of repre-.
sentation in Congress and the Elec.
toral College has not had and
should not have the slightest
weight. Its reduction cannot be
accomplished save by u revelation;
and the State cannot afford to leave
its government at the mercy of H.
literacy and ignorance on the slcn.
der chance of revolution. When
the educational qualification was
first proposed it was without condi.
tions, and The Times Democrat
pointed out at the time that this
would be an act of injustice to q
large mass of white voters, who
were illiterate largely because the
State had not made sufficient ap-
preparations to enable them to Sc.
cure an education.
The Mississippi Constitutional
Convention found itself confronted
with the same difficulty, there be-
ing IL, 900 illiterate but intelligent
voters in that State whom it was
not desired to disfranchise. The
-(s.;;.aiculty was overcome by the fa.
nous .tiaderstanding clause" AS
this was not Il tkaroughly honest
provision 1t has not B5ea Rroposed
to adopt it IN .cnisiana, bHft~T0
suggested that the State s!..cnll ex
cept from the educational provision
those paying taxes on q certain
amount OF property, on the ground
that such property owner is q citi.
zen who can be trusted with the
franchise. We suggested, therefore,
the franchise should bc limited to
those citizens who can read and
write, except that such rs pay
taxes on $500 Of property, but arc
illiterate, should enjoy the fran.
chise, say until 1904, they being
given ten years In which to master
reading and writing.
The constitutional commission
adopts our suggestion about the
property qualification, but without
the time limitation. 1t would grant
illiterates the right to vote II they
are the bona fide owners OF prop.
erty, personal or real, assessed for
not less than 900. We think there
ought to be q time limit, such AZ
has. II Louisiana
grants the franchise perpetually to
property owning illiterates it will
have a bad effect on education, and :
It will in time grow to great abuse,
such as We saw here some fifty
years ago, when a property qualif-
cation existed. Let us fix q time
when all voters must read and
write. Give them ten, or even
twenty, years If necessary to learn.
The man who will not take the
.rouble to acquire these rudiments
g not deserving Of the franchise.
When the State of Mississippi
lecided in favor OF an educational
qualification it provided in its Con.
Ititution that every child in the
State should have o chance to at
end school, and that no one should
yrow mp illiterate and thus be dis
except through his own
ault. II then we adopt this pr0vi-
ion we must pursue the same Just
'ourse as Mississippi, and give
more literally toward education, 30
hat every child will have o chance
o attend school. 1t would be the
'eight of cruelty for the State to
make insufficient provision for edn.
alton, thus compelling thousands
0 grow mp in illiteracy, and dis.
ranchising them because Of the H.
iteracy, for which it is more to
'lame than they are"