The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1897-06-11

discovery a straight vote. twenty seven
years of unparalleled devotion has not
begotten confidence on the part of Repub-
lican leaders in the Negroes devotion to
| the cause; they treat him as child and
brighten and drive him to do their bidding.
Some one may arise to teach him his
strength and that he is master of the
situation, but we fear that the Moses has
not yet come.
ROCKVILLE ADVOCATE.
We doubt very much if in any State in
the Union there exists an election law
so carefully designed to give undue ad-
vantage to one political party as the law
passed by the Republican legislature of
| 1896 for the State of Maryland. Under
the beguiling cry of reform, at Il cost OF
not less than $15O,OOO, at a time when the
people were least able to bear such an
increased and unnecessary burden there
has been foisted upon the State election
machinery which absolutely destroys the
| secrecy of the ballot, a principle so de-
voutly battled for and won as the essen
| tial of honest and fair elections, and by
| its intericacies, its omissions, and its
semblance of -partisanism, affords
| every opportunity for bribery, false coun-
ting, intimidation and all conceivable
| phases of corruption. The much proclaim
! ed fairness of this gigantic effort at cleo
| ton reform is exhausted with the one
provision giving the two leading political
parties an equal number of election officials
All else is a sham and deliberate effort
to destroy the potency of the intelligent
element of the population in the manage
ment of the States affairs.
PORT TOBACCO TIMES.
There is no room to doubt that the soil
tary motive that inspired the Republican
managers in repeating all the registration
and and election legislation of the State
| and substituting an entirely new code of
| their own manufacture on this important
subject was deliberate partisan purpose
to make those laws an instrumentality of
entrenching their party in power. The
idea that the laws, of 1890 did not
adequately provide for fair registrations
and elections was no part of motive power
leading to repeal. The knowledge that
adequate provision to that end did already
exist in law, and that the fortunes of the
Republican party required machinery for
an unfair election ,unquestionably furnish
ed the inspiration for this reform" A
secondary object accomplished the repeal
of the provisions in the law of 1890 which
closed the door to the colonization of
Washington Negroes into this and adj
jacent counties, which had grown to be
such great mischief under the eXtraor
binary rulings of Judge Stone. There
was every evidence last fall of a purpose
to renew this old mischief and unless the
registration officers exercise extraordinary
vigilance it will be reinaugurated in full
blast this coming fall.
WESTMINSTER ADVOCATE.
The oath of secrecy which was incorpor
ated in the Australian ballot law passed
by Democratic Legislature was purpose
y
simply and alone to give the Republican
election officials complete espionage and
control of the colored vote. When there
was an entirely new registration last year
the Negroes throughout the state were
instructed to say they could not read. The
great bulk of them followed instructions,
and thus the most of them were placed
under control of the Republican election
officials. Having said they could not
read, when they were registered, they had
to submit to the marking of their ballots
by election officials or be in danger of
punishment for perjury.
The Australian system of voting was
adopted in this country to protect voters
and insure them the privilege of casting
secret ballots, free from dictation and
annoyance. Under the act of 1890, a
Democratic measure, such right was
secured. Under the Republican act of
1896 that right was destroyed, because the
oath of secrecy of ballot cleks has been
omitted in the new law. That it was done
deliberately, in order to better control the
colored vote and the votes of other
illiterates, is evidenced by the very I'M
usual number of colored voters who
swore, when getting registered, they
could not read, according to there instruc-
tions.
When the Democratic Editors Associa-
ton made arrangements to furnish facts
to the people regarding Republican rule
in this state, the Baltimore Sun in an
editorial on the matter said that the
people and the Democratic press would
continue to look to the SIN for such
matters, as it publishes all facts concern
ing all parties. They have looked in vain
for any hint of the destruction of the very
essence of the principal upon which the
Australian ballot system is based, and
they will continue to look in vain for
any knowledge of Republican misrule in
Maryland or Baltimore in the Sun.
FREDERICK CITIZEN.
We call the attention of our readers to
an article in this weeks issue of the
Citizen prepared under the direction of
the Democratic Editorial Committee, re-
garding the workings of the Australian
ballot. The Democratic managers who
gave way to the demands of the so-callcd
independent element of the party in
passing this measure have had plenty of
time to calmly review the many outrages
into which it has fallen. Those who were
familiar with the past history of the Re
publican party in Maryland, did not hest
tate to predict that this act would be the
first step toward RELOCATING the Demo-
cratic party from power. There was no
valid reason why we should have changed
our mode of voting; it was giving entire
satisfaction in the counties and no man
was subject to the modification, which
under certain circumstances he must en-
dure in the present system. But some
thing had to be done to please the men