Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1896-09-16
TIlLMAN IN JOHESBORO.

VI tdkt the ttSt III Il DfODtil wv utl
who is liable for a poll tax. suppose he
is worth 5000 or $4,000 or $2n,0SD, he can
pay his poll tax and vote while leaving
State and County to wait for what he
owes in the way of taxes on his property
and perhaps, forcing the filing of 4 bill
in Chancery TO collect what he owes. As
was well said by Hon. John Netherland
aud others in the Constitutional Convcn-
ton; "The poor citizen" with justice can
say the State requires me to pay to "the
uttermost farthing,r all that | owe, as a
condition to my having any voice in the
Government, while the same rule is not
applied to my well-to-do neighbor. iii
is said that the property owner if liable
for a poll tax must pay 1t in order to vote,
just as the poor nan Il dot will be
readily admitted hat an arbitrary tax,
say OF 81 on all male persons of voting
age is not an equal burden, one man can
pay two dollars easier thar another can
pay two cents.
Those who believe in a property quail
fication to the right of suffrage will adj
nit that this poll tax method of eXclud-
ing the poor from participation in the
Government is the worst method that
could have been adopted.
This Constitutional provision was in
operative, it was not self-eXecuting. 1T
was still in the power of the Legislature
by refusing to pass any act for its en-
forcement. to permit the provision to re-
main asleep and harmless. And 1t did
sleep for twenty years. Under John C..
Browns administration, under James d..
Porter's administration, under Albert s.
Marks administration, under VIM. b.
Bates administration for twenty years
it was suffered to remain Il dead letter.
No attempt was made to infuse life into
it, and bring il into active operation to
exclude the poor from a voice in the
Government.
What Brown, and Porter, and Marks
and Bate did not do, Robt. J.. Taylor
thought was so important-and was of
such pressing necessity that he called an
Extra Session of the Legislature in lSgO
imposing upon the State extra expense,
for the purpose of enacting the poll tax
law. He is the father of the poll tax
qualification OF the right of suffrage. 1t
was harmless in the Constitution and
was introduced into the statutes Of the
State with the approval and signatureks
Mr.. Taylor, and he now boasts of il an
tells the people that the purpose of the
law is to preserve the purity of the ballot
box, when it is a fact recognized by every
man that 1t is a SQUIRE and invitation TO
corruption and a positive obstacle in the
way Of n citizen of moderate means OBJ
the citizens of the State have been so de-
moralized that they expect and wait for
candidates to paw their poll tax.
Instead of promoting purity in clec-
tons it offers ENCOURAGEMENT to corrup-
ton. If there must be a poll tax qualili-
cation the law should require eycry voter
to pay his poll tax in person 80 or 60 days
before an election in order to vote, and
should make ii n crime for an officer re-
ceiving the tax TO antedate the receipt or
to write il otherwise than i'm ink and the
poll tax recent when nrnsenfeh MI thr
ballot box should he slammed "votcd M
August election.n or .yoted nj Tho No.
vember election as the ease may {e. so
that it may not be possible fof the same
receipt to qualify n dozen or moreindi-
N1u tha ~ Is nov ihe pelleI OF lneIeopl
conserve tbe nmritv Of H." Mia ia, a.
object seems to have been to.excltde a
large class OF honest voters, wing and
ura;; N, % tbnso rIhuii,ratu ~ ~ ~. ivy
vo ~ '"os0 ""o "io """"s ~ ''e'
''e r.,e.m NH
uhi'or'i n",'o' LAW
Another law which we are asked to
believe is intended TO preserve the puri-
tv 6f oIoctions and which onrtiost T., an
I at 4 ~ ~ a.
son anu oheloy ana except the cry OK
JACKSON, requires tIat INC 3aIlots siiall
pe seven llches loHg ana tIIee lnG!les
W~lue,pr0Vlueu ucNla'ioh OF q ol 'hcl
IN lenslh or one siXteehth IN WAN lNaY
ne ana tney shail 4e on pllIn
Mhl'emPspea ~l u"M hoU
VICE or s'gh oh 'neil 10 lhuicdtv lle
politics VI 'ng tHeH Mhoso n"lues ule On
tHe .pchc.s. inns Plesertc ie PuIily
Oh clectlohs ny eIl~parrasslne ~ eieclor
III YOUNG acG9rulns 70 ms ppH tlc3l con
Nioet1ns, Wv 10y viaphis nhe uus ~ u
eIecllona 10 throw out paiipls lnat 'ney
niay ue,erIllhe "lo ny Oh PapeI ol tle
IlsnV uesree ol Wn,.ehess u nIc 700
iohS Vi toosHor', 700 orVoo harroW'
Registration.
Voters are required TO register in the
oonntios ~ sholhy noyidsdn u.milton
ord Krov ond Gjril nistI,t, hn,.innn
,.u.. 200
population Vi -,ouV.
To a good registration ,lw applicable
to counties and voting mr. incis having
n Iarro ond dorso ,09nr 4 ,tnr TX na9
"tai5o W." PIP s'ion W. nou
opJect, out the law Wnlfh received llle
signature OF boV' Iaylof on Mafch III,
lS0O,contained a provision to still further
promote corrupt Influences i'm elections.
and that is the nrovision ronttirlno y
narson 10 nrosont III, ronis Ia ~ "
p1ioo ~ PaIsoiu "Io ~ lu''Vi' W
tlilcale Ill order 10 entltle MN TO vote.
Since the passage OF that law one Of the
plans resorted to by corrupt lOcal party
bosses to control elections was To- buV
I'm these registration roriiG,otos from
an1 81, - I'm
PVmUti ~ war 'otorn.
inc republican party mas insisted that
this corrupt provision of the law should
be eliminated. Mr.. Winstead, the Repub-
lican candidate for Governor four years
ago and Mr. Evans two weave nyn Mint
oo55 66rtits nvil arTants "oo5V u ~ HH.on,uHt
w ouui.e WI oileots anu SnpWeu unatll
wasohly necessary 70 posi- inc llstol reg
istered voters a number of days before an
election and to have the books of regis
tration at the polls. But this provision
~ Tho law which rocoi,ad H. isna H'ra
- GG""w V. ~ a..In1.;;,su wy elE n"tule
VI uo.olloi ny III sun srSilaihs 70 pro-
mote inc purity rejection" II lacllltate
the operations OF the local "Workersp
Dor,ob Jov,
~" LAW
TO q Just Australian ballot law no ono
would object, put as IN the Poll Tax Law,
ana IN the Registration Law, and Uniform
| Ballot Law, provisions were mnde. ihp effect