New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-03-19

Win
J. C. MANNING.
North as to the people OF Alabama or Georgia; and
II public sentiment. irrespective OF parties can De
aroused he believes that. through agitation ana
National and state legislation. end may be put
70 these frauds
Bv correspondence and otherwise President Man
ming has already enlisted the sympathy and CO.
operation of number OF representative New-l orK-
ers among them DR.. Parkhurst, John II. lnrnan
Recorder Goff, John :. Wise and Genera! Horace
Porter. Mayor Strong has been asked 70 preside
az the Cooper Union meeting. and number or
prominent OF both parties have consented 10
make brief addresses.
Concerning the purposes OF the Cooper Union
meeting and the plans the league. President Man
ming said yesterday at the Aston House: The
people OF the North understand in general way
that election frauds and ballot-boN stufins have
been 4 Characteristic OF southern elections ever
since the days OF Reconstruction. But they DO not
understand how vastly conditions have changed
Since 1873 republican form OF government has not
existed in the State of Alabama. or in many other
Of the States Of the South Whatever OF excuse
may have once existed has now disappeared AID
the crimes against the suffrage to-day are com
mtted against the intelligence and best sentiment
OF the South.
I'VE have concluded that the rule Of this OIL
garchy OF this little ancient regime which has had
Southern politics for nearly twenty years
must come 10 end. new South has arisen. a
South made UP OF young. progressive and wide
awake The mossbacks have got 10 go They
have kept themselves in Office only by the vilest
frauds and have come 10 the conclusion that.
for the good name and welfare OF the South. these
men must be driven from power.
The Southern Ballots Rights League comprises
men OF all parties and is representative OF the best
blood OF the South. Among our vce-presdents
and on our Executive Committee such
Clark Howell Editor Of The Atlanta Constitution
and a Democrat OF National reputation: W. :.
Patterson OF New Orleans likewise Democrat.
Senator Prtcharl. Of North Carolina. Republi-
can and Senator-elect Marion Butler. OF the
state a Popust: Captain 7. S. Adams. the present
Secretary o. State Of Louisiana. and leader OF
the young Democracy; \. :. CO'iyer. Of Nashville.
Tenn; ex-senator John H. Reagan. OF Texas; Con-
gressman NJ. " Howard. The leader of the Ala
bama Populists and James j. Hines. late candidate
for Governor Of Georgia. You will see at glance
that The League is in no sense partisan affair il
1t is aimed party and has no selfish mo-
Tive a; heart
AIN OF THE LEAGUE.
The aim of the league IS 10 investigate and
make public the gross election frauds which still
characterize and determine the elections in most
0f tn- Southern States. to make contests. 20 or
game a campaign Of agitation and. through
State and Nationsl legislation. to secure proper
election and coutes. laws which are today lack
ing IN most OF the Southern States.
the remarkable feature Of these election frauds
The present time is that where they were for
merly confined suppression Of the black Re
publican vote. their characteristic IS to en-
ploy this very negro vote defeat the will Of the
white majority In Il word, the Bourbon Demo
-rat having lost his white majority seeks to main
tain his supremacy by the use Of the negro vote,
which was the property of the carpet Dagger.
They do not attempt 10 have the negroes vote,
however for the latter still Republican, The
negro has largely ceased TO take any interest in
politics only the intelligent minority OF the blacks
nov take the trouble even to vote They have
been suppressed long that they have lost in
terest Lest this statement should be doubted.
refer Won 10 an interview with Governor Oates In a
Ney-York newspaper few days ago. in which
he used this Identical language with regard to the
negro in politics.
The present plan is not in the least complicated.
II consists simply in compiling a registry list and
stuffng the ballot-box with aufiicient number OF
ballots TO correspond. This is made possible by
the fact that election judges are appointed by the
county officers. opposing representatives. OF
other parties allowed, and In my own ana IN
a number Of other Southern States. practically no
contest law exists. In word the entire cleo
ton machinery is in the hands Of this Bourbon
oligarchy, and IS employed by them in their own
way and for their ends.
Perhaps my own State gives vivid an ex-
ample Of the way this system is worked any
which ] might offer. Here IL a map which Will
show you how the Congressional districts are ger
rymandered so as to include least one black
county each district. The black belt so
sailed extends clear across the State through
the middle The aim Is TO put one black county
n each district. and then roll up big enough
onaiorty in this black county to overcome the
legitimate honest white majority In all the rest
81 The districts Let me give you few examples
Q, how how this fraud operates.
koLB BEATEN BY FRAUD.
'~Thera Is not a shadow OF doubt that last fall
and similarly two years before Reuben f. Kolb was
legally elected Governor of Alabama by majority
ranging from 20 TO 10000 yet this majority was
overcome by forty or fifty thousand votes returned
as cas-, in the black counties. but which never
cast and OF which no pretence OF casting was made;
After the fraud Of 1892, the Populist party last fall
organized all over the State an army OF watchers
whose business II TO attend each polling place
and keep track Of the number Of votes actually cast
These figures which i give you are sworn to by
some OF the most reputable citizens OF my State,
and are on file now al Washington. where they will
be used in the Morgan Reese contest over the Sena-
torial seat from Alabama. In Lowndes County,
black OF course, 995 votes counted for Oates
and 3c1 for Kolb, making total Of 6,S55 or this
number 3,04S never cast at all In Dallas
County the total vote counted was 6.tl7 OF these
1.577 were actually cast; 1910 were fraudulent.
This evidence shows that out Of 10000 votes
ported cast for William &. Oates In the State at
large, at least 1900 more than one-third.
fraudulent and fictitious. Mr. Oates declared