The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1895-05-08
per construction is aquestion for the

\. That as to the statements con
tanned in the eighth paragraph of the
bill. your respondent says, that he ad
mits that on the 24th of December
1894, the General Assembly of the
State of South Carolina did pass an
act entitled AN act to provide for call
ing a constitutional convention, tc
provide the number and qualification
of members of the convention, then
compensations, etc., and to provide
for the election of the same, and to de.
fine and prescribe the qualifications OF
the electors, the manner of the election
and of declaring the results" " That
section four of said act is as follows
Every male citizen of the United
States and of this State, of the age OF
81 years, not laboring under the disa
bilities named in the Constitution OF
this State, and duly qualified to vote
under the existing laws of the State,
and duly registered as now required
by law Or who having been entitled tc
register as voter at the time of the
general registration of electors of this
State, which took place in the year OF
our Lord, 1882, or at any time subse,
quent thereto, failed to register at such
time as required by law, or has be-
come citizen of this State and who
shall register as hereinafter provided
in such cases, shall be entitled to vote
for delegates to said convention.
That section six of last mentioned
article is materially misquoted in the
seventh paragraph of said bill, in that
the most vital point affecting this ac.
ton is omitted, and that said section
is as follows: That, on the first Mon
day in March, in the year of our Lord,
1895, the supervisor of each county
shall, at the county seat thereof, open
his books of registration. and shall
hold the same open for 10 consecutive
calendar days thereafter, except Sun
days, between the hours of 10 o'clock
in the forenoon and 4 o'clock in the
afternoon. except in Charleston, Beau
fort and Richland counties, where the
said books shall be kept open from 10
o'clock in the forenoon until o'clock
in the afternoon during which time
any elector then or Heretofore at any
time entitled to register as qualified
voter. or who has become citizen of
this State, shall be, during the time
herein fixed for such registration, and
also on the days now fixed by law for
registration, entitled to register as such
as hereinafter provided: and any elec-
tor having been heretofore duly regis
tered, or having since changed his
residence, or having lost his certificate,
shall be entitled to have the same
transferred or renewed as now provid-
ed by law" That section seven of the
Iast-named act is correctly quoted
by the complainant; that he denies
that the time allowed for the registra-
tration of electors is unreasonably
short, or that the provisions of section
eight of last-named act are burden.
some, harrassing, unreasonable or un-
necessary, and that they result in a
practical denial of the right Of electors
to vote; that as to all the other matters
and things stated in the seventh para
graph of the bill, your respondent
says he is advised and ayers, that no
sections or provisions of the registra-
ton laws of South Carolina therein
referred to, or of the Constitutional
act of 1894, violating Or
contravene in any particular whatso-
ever, either of the Constitutions of the
United States, or of the State of South
and respectfully submits
that the proper construction Of all OF
said acts is a question for the court.
VI. That as to the matters and
things stated in the ninth paragraph
of the bill, your respondent submits
that a proper construction of the Sec
ton and articles of the Constitution of
the United States referred to in said
paragraph is a question for the court;
that he denies so much of the para
graph of the bill as avere and charges
''that said registration laws are not rea-
sonable, uniform, or impartial regula-
tons of the elective franchise; but, on
the contrary, their purpose and effect
is directly and indirectly to abridge
and impede the constitutional right of
the citizen to vote, to embarrass, rem
der burdensome the exercise of the
elective franchise and, under pretense
of regulating, to utterly destroy the
suffrage of the compliments or other
citizens of the State.
VII. That as to all the matters and
things set forth in the tenth paragraph
of the bill, your respondent calls at
tention of the court to the act of the
General Assembly of 1894, known as
the Constitutional Convention Act,
and respectfully submits that its pro-
per construction is question for the
court.
VIII. That as to the matters stated
in the eleventh paragraph of the bill,
be admits that he is supervisor of reg
istration for Richland county, and is
now exercising tn duties of his office,
and purposes to continue to Go so,
but he denies that the registration law,
Or any part thereof, is unconstitutien-
al.
TX. That as to the matters and
things stated in the twelfth paragraph
Of the bill, your respondent says that
the supervisors of registration are re-
quired by law to open the registration
books on the first Mondays of May,
June and July, 1895, for the registra-
ton of electors, but your respondent
denies that such registration will be
void and illegal, or that the laws
providing for this are unconstltution-
al.
X. That as to the allegations Of the
paragraph of the bill, your
says that he has no knowl-
edge or information as to whether the
complainant has heretofore registered
as anelector, or has endeavored to do
50, or whether he has ever voted at
any Federal or State election, but de-
MES that the registration laws are un-
that the rules, regula-
lions and restrictions, described by
them are unreasonable, unnecessary
Dr. burdensome.
NJ. That as to the matters and