The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-02-07
TUE DAWN THE SENATE.
Daniel, of Virginia, Figures PROMINENT,
In tho Federal Elec tion Debate


on the conclusion Of the routine morn
ing business the Senate resumed con-
sheraton OF the House bill to repeal
the Federal election laws, and Hswley
/ (Rep, Comm made an argument against
it. Everybody, he said, knew the fate
of the bill. The moment that the
Dem ocratic party secured national con-
troll it had been evident that the repeal
Of the Federal election laws would be
one Of the first tasks to which 1t would
setitself
Except the emergency bill relating to
the repeal Of the Sherman silv. pur-
chasing act, this bill was the first dis
tinctive party measure of the Demo
separated were not, Mr.. Hawley said.
made merely for the Southern States
Mr. Perkins (Rep, Gala }, ID ade an ar
gument against the bill. 1t seemed to
him that those who had spoken in favor
Of it's passage had done so from a feel
ing of Of partisan prejudice. They had
done 80, not influenced by any motive
OF the public good. He had waited pa
tiently for some reason to be given why
the federal election laws should be re-
pealed. He had waited to hear that they
had deprived some An eriean citizens of
the right OF fairly casting his vote and
OF having that vote honestly counted
He had been waiting to hear that they
were un-American and that they were
calculated to subvert the rights of
American citizens. But, up TO this time
only two reasons had been given that
had impressed his mind. Ono of those
reasons was that given by the Senator
from Illinois (Ialmer), that the lnws
had not been enforced; and the other
was that they had been passed by the
Republican party for the purpose of
perpetuating itself in Office.
Mr. Daniel, (Dem., Va) referring to
Perkins remark that be had heard no
reason given why the election laws
should be repealed, asked him where
he had been living for the last two
years. Had he been out of tho city
that he did not read the newspapers or
read in Congressional debates that those
laws were to be repealed "by the
kings command meaning by king"
the sovereign people of the United
States.
They had put up their candidates and
given them their instructions Those
candid ates had gone before the great
national commonwealth and had re-
ceived its orders to repeal those laws.
Allison (Rep, Iowa. asked Daniel to
read the ection in the Democratic plat.
form which called for repeal of the Fed
eral elC CLlOD laws.
Daniel said that he did not carry that
platform about with him.
Allison said he had failed to nd anv
such section in it.
Daniel supposed that the Senator
from Iowa had not failed to hear the
discussion of The question in the Presi-
Dental campaign and had not failed 10
hear the result of the election in which
the repeal of those laws was an avowed
and open issue. II he had done so he
would regard Allison's case as incurable,
and he would not venture to suggest q
remedy.
He (DanieD favored the repeal of the
Federal election laws because they
were useless, were very expensive, had
tendency to sectional friction. Sec
tional irritation and sectional antagon.
ism. These laws had been the out
growth OF an old sectional antagnoism
and as that antagonism had now ceased,
as parties everywhere attempted to
| ameliorate it, this relic of the old
antsgonism should BIO laid aside and a
new era welcomed-sn era Of peace and
harmony, com promise, comfy and fra
ternal consideration.
Frye (Rep., Me- opposed the bill and
| quoted from Richmond (Va.) papers the
headlines to reports Of election frauds
in recent election in that State. He
was asked by Daniel whether the Fed
oral election laws had anything to do
with those frauds. They had, Frye dc
| clared The claim had been made that
the Federal election laws ought to be
repealed because the States (the whole
| OF them) could be trusted to prevent
| election frauds.
He was asked by Daniel if there never
had been election frauds in Maine: and
he denied that there had been, although
there had been an attempt by D5mo-
| cratic governor 10 steal legislature.
But he had taken the floor, he said, not
to make any attack on the State Of Vir-
GINA, but to defend the character of
John l. Davenport who had been the
subject Of charges and calumnies in the
two Houses for the last sixteen or
eighteen years.
Frye yielded at 2:3O in order to allow
proposition to be made for an extern
sion OF the time for debate, several
Senators having intimated q desire to
speak After many obstacles PROPOSE
ton was agreed to that the general
debate on the bill shall close at o m.
tomorrow and the vote on it's passage
shall be taken before adjournment. Mr..
Fry.'s speech was almost wholly de-
voted to the purpose, he announced, Of
tho defense of John I. Davenport.
Harris (Dem., Tenn said that If he
were to consult his physical condition
he should be now in his bed at homo,
and that nothing short Of his apprecia-
ton OF the i'm portance OF the pending
question would have induced him to be
in the Senate chamber to day. He went
on to describe the rise OF the Federal