Arizona republican., 1894-02-08
WIDE OPEN,
Restrictions Removed
From Fraud.
The Federal Elections
Bill Repealed.
PopuliStS Vote With Their
Democratic Allies.
Bland Cuts a Passage in the House
for the Silver Seigniorage
Coinage Bill.
By the Associated Press.


WASHINGTON, Feb. THE bill repeal
ing in total all federal laws regulating
the control of congressional elections,
has passed both houses of congress and
only awaits the signature of President
Cleveland to become a law.
After several weeks discussion the
senate today finally came to vote on
the hopse bill repeating the federal
election laws and it passed by vote of
SO to %. Numerous amendments were
presented by the Republicans, but were
voted down, the Democrats not even
taking the trouble to join in the debate
on the amendatory propositions.
Stewart of Nevada voted with the
Democrats on every proposition, giving
as his reason that he thought the power
of the executive was already too great
and that the centrallzing tendency OF
the age should be checked at once if the
repu bile is to survive. Three Populists,
Allen, Kyle and PETER, also voted with
the Democrats on every amendment
and on the main bill. The measure
passed by the senate is identical with
the bill as passed the house.
Chandler presented an amendment
which provided that only so much of
the existing election laws as provides
for deputy marshals at elections be re-
pealed. The yeas and nays being de-
manded on Chandler's amendment it
was defeated by 81 to 40, Stewart,
Allen, Kyle and PETER, Populists, vot-
ing with the Democrats. Chandler
then presented an amendment the effect
of which was to apply to the repeal OF
sections of the bill relating to super
visors and deputy marshals, but to
leave on the statute books the Grimes
section.
81 hope this amendment will be
satisfactory to the other side," said
Chandler. "By its various sections the
existing law providing for marshals
and supervisors will be repealed, but
we shall still have the Crimes act, and
crimes against suffrages in connection
with congressional elections will still
be punishable under the United States
statutes and in United States courts"
Again the yeas and nays were de-
manded and this amendment too was
defeated, the vote being II to SO. An
other amendment was presented by
Chandler to restrict the scope of the re-
peal by retaining still smaller num-
Der of Grimes" provisions but it, too,
was rejected, IS to 80.
Chandler then presented an amend
ment designed to retain certain pro-
visions of the act of May 81, 1870, and
to this amendment he said he asked
special attention of Senator Stewart as
the senator from Nevada, said Chand-
ler, had succeeded as the grand
champion of freedom in the senate
chamber in securing the adoption OF
the fifteenth amendment to the consti'
tuition. He declared then that the con-
stitutional amendment was worthless
unless congress made law to en-
force it.
"Does he intend" asked Chandler
''to contribute his vote here to strike
down a portion of one of the greatest
and noblest acts of his life ?"
''At the time the bill passed." said
Stewart, ''we had just passed through s
civil war; we were in process of recon
struction; many things were necessary
then that are not now. The states mus
assert their rights; they must be upo1
the side of the people. l don't thinE
they have any protection against the
federal government. ANY social Law
that might be supplanted by stat
law l want to see wiped from the statut'
books"
This amendment too was rejected b,
i28 to 80,