Birmingham state herald., 1896-05-27
GOODWIN ON ANOTHER TACK First Appearance in the Role of
 Injured Innocence. OH, MI NOW ITS THE CAP'N Who Was Guilty of "Discourtesy"-Thls Har- monzes With That Sad Old Refrain
 of Fraud.

MT. A. T. Goodwyn makes public the following letter:
 My letter to- Captain Johnston was in every sense public letter. I could, with entire propriety, have originally address ed it to him through the press. A copy of this letter was in possession of friend, who consented to give it to the press only after being repeatedly urged to do so by political friend of Captain Johnston, who applied for the copy as the representative of the Birmingham Daily News, one of the organs of the democratic party. If I violated good taste and propriety In consenting to the publication of the letter, Captain John- ston could have shown this to my dis credit and to his advantage in a joint discussion. There is not word of per sonal discourtesy to Captain Johnston in my letter. Had there been he could have pointed it out in, joint discussion and very properly have demanded a retrac- tion to my discredit and to his advantage.
 If there is single charge and insinua- tion in my letter against the democratic party that is not founded on fact, and that could not sustain in public debate with Captain Johnston, 1t would cer- tainly be to my discredit and to his ad- vantage in joint discussion. My letter is substantially the same that I addressed to the democratic candidate of the Fifth Congressional district in the campaign of 1894. He did not consider my letter dis courteous to himself or his party. He accepted the proposition for joint dis cussion but declined to use his influence with his political friends to secure me a representative inspector at every poll ing place in the district. The result was, a long, expensive and warmly contested election contest case before the house of representatives of the United States.
 In the six white counties of the district, where both candidates were properly rep resented at every polling place, there was not line of testimony showing single fraudulent ballot cast or counted. The same was true in the beats of the three black counties, where both candidates were duly represented by an inspector of elections. 6Hsit
 In the seven beats of Macon county, having 655 white voters and 1447 colored voters, and where both candidates were duly represented by an inspector of cleo tons, the official returns gave the demo- cratic candidate 266 votes and the oppos- ing candidate Al votes. In the three re- maining beats, having 906 white votes and 1907 colored votes, and where the democratic candidate had all the mana gers of election, the official returns gave the democratic candidate 869 votes and the opposition candidate 9 votes.
 In eleven beats of Lowndes county, where both candidates had acceptable in- spectors at the polling places, having I'll white voters and 2500 colored voters, the official returns gave the democratic can- didate 229 votes and the opposition can didate 176 votes.
 In the remaining nine beats of Lowndes county, where the democratic candidate had all inspectors of election at each poll ing place, having 367 white voters and 1922 colored voters, the official returns gave the democratic candidate 2777 votes and the opposition candidate 13 votes.
 In nine beats of the three black counties of Autauga Macon and Lowndes, having 2S4 white voters and 2647 colored voters, where all managers of election were po- litical friends of the democratic candidate and the opposition was denied repre- sentative among the election inspectors, the official returns gave the democratic candidate 2406 votes and the opposition candidate not single vote.
 The same fraudulent practices were shown to exist in the Third, Fourth and Ninth Alabama Congressional districts. The frauds practiced In the Fourth dis trict in the last congressional election were so palpable and outrageous that even the democratic members of the com mittee on elections in congress were forced to admit on the floor of the house that 3177 fraudulent votes had been re- turned for the democratic candidates from ten beats of Dallas county, in which beats the opposition candidate had no inspector of election.
 It stands proven and undisputed in the records of the government that in the state election in August, 1894, the can vassed precinct election returns of Lowndes county showed 2272 votes for the democratic candidate for governor and 361 for the opposition candidate for governor but the official returns sent to the speaker of the house of representa- tives of Alabama and counted by him in the official canvass of the vote showed 1895 votes for the democratic candidate for governor and the same 361 votes for the opposition candidate for governor, thus showing 2723 votes were fraudulent1y returned and counted for the democratic candidate that were never cast and neV- CT existed
 The democratic county appointing boards in many of the counties in Ala bama having refused in 1892 and again In 1894, to appoint one inspector of elec- tions from the opposition as the law re- quired, fully justified me in expressing the fear that the refusal would be repeat ed in 1896, and also justified me in re- questing Captain Johnston. to join me in a petition to the appointing boards to give to each side fair representation at every polling place..
 torial in the Birmingham Age Herald of December Il, 1892, shows that frauds were recognized by leading democratic organs. It says: Public attention is aroused and will not much longer sub init to election frauds on such a scale as are practiced in Alabama. It is almost to the point that in primaries inside the party the manipulator is in as high de- mand as in the elections at law" This condition of things is utterly demoral- izing. As an illustration of the demoral- ization to which the evil influences of ballot frauds are involving the state it