Birmingham age-herald., 1894-12-18
A NEW IDEA.

PROPOSING TO SEPARATE COUNTY ELEo-
 TONS FROM STATE.
 To the Ago-H r1ld:
 Ia the present recess of the general as- sembly members will hear from their con- stituents more deliberate views of the con- f1icting claims of parties to the possession of the state government than could be con- templated or expressed before the prelim- mary steps toward dual executive had been actually taken.
 It is not now go much the question of Verification of one or the other claim 10 possession, important as Governor Oates and his antagonist concur in admitting that question to be. No revolution moves backward to the starting point to install legitimate forces in power. All that human wisdom can accomplish in such cases we have upon our hands here in Alabama is 10 consent to justice for the moment and to trust to the spirit of justice to control for a long period reaching into the future. Upon this basis we ought to proceed In Alabama, and upon it believe we will proceed.
 Undoubtedly the race question is the controlling factor of disturbance with us. If we look back over the period since 1865 we find the white counties have had pre- ponderence of weight in the state govern ment. Patton, Lindsay, Houston, Cobb and O'Neai have been our governors from the white counties in that time, and Seay and Jones only from the black belt, five of the former, as against two of the latter, down to the present contested case. In this instance we discover there is 10 ground for dscord between the two sections, be- cause until recently the whites were solid and the blacks were ignored.
 Ia my humble opinion if the white peo- pie of Alabama are restored to unity among themselves the entire system of registra- tion and elections must be remodeled. This result can be very easily gained.
 To begin with the beginning, let us SO n1f krtt~ l.x each county shall have the privilege of con- trolling its county elections as an issue in themselves, separate from the state and federal elections. This suggestion is in direct line with Mir. Jefferson s views upon county government. The forcs of the sug- gestion in the case of Ala abama is discovered in the fact, apparent to all, that as long as elections must be conducted in a certain way in the black belt to keep the whites in power in the county offices elections will be conducted in that way. The black belt counties will not have negro judges of pro- bate, clerks of court, sheriffs, etc., and no human force or ingenuity can compel them to surrender their government to the negro mum erical majority.
 From this initial all effort to restore har- mony in the state must proceed.
 Through what procedure must high statecraft operate in the premises?
 Let us take up MT. Jefferson's funda- mental theory of self lf-government-the county government. Let all county elec- tions be held on a separate day from state elections, so that state politics shall be wholly disengaged from county politics. One step more-let each county have au- thority to relegate it's government to ap- pointees of the governor; or to resort to the ballot box to provide it's officers as it may in its wisdom determine it's own in- terest.
 Remove the disturbing element of county government from state elections and hold elections for state and federal elective offi- cers on the same day and elect senator's in congress by the people on that day.
 There are various bills now pending looking to reform of elections, indicating the prevalence of general reform temper. This feeling will become intensified by re- dection at home. When the legislature done to calm the discord of today.
 MARENGo.