St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1895-11-23
AN AMENDMENT.

U3lJOt IelOIm Iu1L ~ CdlCulSIeu W
eliminate the ignorant aud vicious
paupers from our elections. Judge
Taylor Beattie and Gen w. j.
Behan. two Of the chief white
leaders OF the Republican party
have issued an edict conde,nniMg
the amendment aud calling on
the Republicans 20 vote against 1t.
Thus we find that all the hue and
cry Of the Republicans, white aud
black. for free and fair and honest
for the purity Of the bal
lot box, ETC., has been tile veriest
bosh, and that all they meant was
that every thing with two legs, out
side u the penitentisry, be he the
most brutal and ignorant negro or
white vsgabond or freshly imported
psuper or escaped convict from
Europe, SHALL be permitted 70 exer-
else the franchise Louisiana and
influence our elections. And there
is another element hostile to the
amendment, and that is the ward
heelcrs and strikers, whose bread
aud butter is in politics and who, SO
soon as the franchise is expurgated
and corruption banished from our
elections, will be left without q vo-
cation. Indeed, look where you
may, il will he found that opposition
to the suffrage amendment and bal
lot reform is inspired by sinister
motives and emanates from the very
clements it is desired to eliminate
from the control Of our elections.
Indeed, the very strongest argu-
ment in favor OF the two measures
is the hostility of the Republicans.
negroes and rinssters to them.
They are both Democratic meas
ures. Tile amendment was formu-
lated BY q committee OF Democrats
and submitted to the people by .
Democratic Legislature. 1t is in
every sense q Democratic measure.
ana every Democrat ought to stand
BY it. Az for the ballot reform, that
is ! movement that emanated from
Democrats Of the most pronounced
stripe, ana tie object Of the two
measures is that, each suplcmentins
the other, will give rs honest cleo
t,ons. II the people are in the least
fit for self government, means able
and efficient representatives in
both houses Of the Legislature, a
clean and incorruptible municipal
government and honest and effici-
ent ad ministration OF the criminal
laws.
Under the amendment and .
sound ballot law no man woi thy q
vote, fit to exercise the right OF free
men and to walk among men, will
be deprived Of any privilege. A
man can never grow too old to
master enough learning to meet
the educational qualification re-
quired; and any such man, il he
does not take to s'bOok larnin,
can in a few years accumulate the
amount Of property required.
There are plenty Of men OF course
who will never learn to read, and
who are too sliftless to save up a
few hundred dollars; and we shall
be frank enough 10 say unequiv0-
cally that it is the declared and
specific purpose Ut the amendment
and ballot reform law to eliminate
this ass Of ignOramuses and shift
less human beings from tue polls.
They may be men whom fortune
has dealt hardly with; but IL they
have net pride enough OF character,
il they do not sufficiently value the
right Of the franchise to secure the
lit education Or the little property
that will sntitle them to exercise
that in, stimable privilege aud to
feel that in their brogans there
stands tree American cllizen with
the right and the duty to take .
part in the affairs of his country,
the Country has no use for him or
for his kin0; and none such should
be allowed to vote; to enter an
election precinct and Offset perhaps
the best, and wisest and most
patriotic man in his community.
This country wants these laws
because the country wants to be
by intelligent white men
without the necessity Of miscount-
ing the ballots and without bull
doing. And far more .haR tile
country the city needs these laws
and needs them in their strongest
shape for. before we can secure an
honest and faithful administration
Of municipal affairs. we must get
rid of the votes and the power Of
the hoodlums, the heelers, ignorant
negroes and whites. the ballot box
suffers ana the fresh lmp0rtations
Of ignorant criminals from Europe.
A few dsys since vessel landed
in this port with four hundred Ita'-
ian immigrants on board it is safe
to say that not one of these can
read Or write or speak the English
language, or understand the first
principles Of our governmental
system; indeed we doubt II many
Of them could tell us who is the
president Of the United States.
Ard yet it is safe to say that every
male among that four hundred from
eighteen years Of aye up will vote
IN our next election. Ibis is but
> single case: and if it were but .
single case the matter would not be
50 bad. The injection Of even four
hundred ignorant foreign voters
into our elections would not be
sufficient to debase or to measurably
influence our elections. But there
are dozens OF such cases every year :
and il that class OF people do not