The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1897-06-12
SIAM REFORM i
Some Press Opinions on the Regis
tration and Election Law Passed
by the Last Legislature.
THE REMOVAL OF THE OATH
OF SECRECY.
Saint Mary's Beacon.

StlHt MARY DtdCOl
The omission of the clerks oath to secrecy
is but an additional precaution of the leaders
| to insure by the dread of discovery a straight
vote Twenty-seven years of unparalleled
devotion has not begotten confidence on the
part of Republican leaders in the negro's de-
votion to the cause; they treat him as child
and frighten and drive him to do their bid
| ding. 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 verxsapch if in any State in the
Union there exisS Y an election law SO carefully
designed to give undue advantage to one politi-
| cal party as the law passed by the Repub-
| ican legislature of 1896 for the State of Mary
land. Under the beguiling cry of reform, at
cost of not less than S150,000, at time
when the people were least able to bear such
an increased and unnecessary burden, there
has been foisted upon the State election ma
chinery which absolutely destroys the secrecy
of the ballot, principle so devoutly battled
for and won as the essential of honest and fair
elections, and by its intricacies, its omissions,
and its sembance of non partsanism, affords
every opportunity for bribery false counting,
intimidation and all conceivable phases of
corruption. The much proclaimed fairness of
this gigantic effort at election reform is ex-
hausted 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
management of the States affairs.
Port Tobacco Times.
There is no room to doubt that the soli-
tary motive that inspired the Republican man
ayers in repeating all the registration and cleo
ton legislation of the State and substituting an
entirely new code of their own manufacture
on this important subject, was a deliberate
partisan purpose to make those laws an in
strumentality 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 the motive power
leading to the repeal. The knowledge that
adequate provision to that end did already
exist in law, and that the fortunes of the Re-
publican party required machinery for an un-
fair election, unquestonably furnished the
inspiration for this reform" A secondary
object accomplished,t the repeal of the provis-
ions in the law of 1890 which closed the door
to the colonization of Washington Negroes
into this and adjacent counties, which had
grown to be such great mischief under the
extraordinary rulings of Judge Stone. There
was every evidence last fall of purpose to
renew this old mischief and unless the regis
tration officers exercise extraordinary vigi-
lance it will be reinaugurated in full blast this
coming fall.
Prince Georges Inquirer.
Those who desire fair elections and believe
that voters should be left to the exercise of
their own free will in casting their ballots,
will see how utterly impossible this can be
under partisan compliance with the provi-
sions of the new election law. That which ap
pears upon its surface most fair and just,
shows upon inspection to be lacking in one OF
the first essentials of pure election, and void
of a safeguard that has been and should be
invariably used where illiterate voters require
the assistance of the clerks. The object of
the Australian ballot system is to free voters
from intimidating influences. In the law now
in operation this feature is practically an
nulled. and any eolored man who ventured to
vote for friend or TO bolt the rule of his
political boss can be reported by the ballot
clerk with impunity, as nothing in the law
binds him to secrecy, as was formerly the case.
Annapolis Republican
We call the attention of our readers to the
first of the articles prepared under the super
vision of the committee appointed by the
Maryland Democratic Editors Association at
the recent meeting held at Centreyille. 1t
deals with the election law and shows con-
clusively that the so-called reform election
law is a sham and a fraud. The chief merit
claimed for the Australian system of voting is
that it insures a secret ballot and frees the
voter from espionage, and, consequently, from
the influences of bribery, coercion and intim
idation. 1t is supposed that thus the free,
untrammeed and unbiased will of the voter
is obtained This is the theory of the Aus
t.oI I;on of In
politicians and the employers of laborers in
large factories and manufacturing establish
ments have had little or no difficulty in find
ing out how men have voted. The illiterate
voter has ever been at the mercy of the poll
tician or the boss Of the factory. Help had
to be provided to enable him to mark his
ticket as he desired In the law as passed by
the Democratic party in this State, the effort
was made to free the iliterate voter, as far as
possible, from all influences which might
operate to prevent his voting as he desired.
The ballot clerks who were to assist him in
marking his ballot had to take an oath not to
rereal Girectly, or indirectly, By 'cord or act,
holo any person UOted, and were subject to all
the pains and penalties of perjury if they
did divulge how any man had voted.
The Republicans found that this oath stood
in the way of their controlling the $1,000
colored voters of the State, so they were care
ful in framing their new law to leave out this
oath and all penalties for disclosing how voters
may have cast their ballots, Thus the Re
publicans have again brought the illiterate |
negro voters under the strict surveillance of
their white local bosses and of the terrible
race intimidation, to which every negro who
has voted the Democratic ticket in MARYLAND
has been subjected ever since The right of
franchise was given 10 the race. 1t is scarcely
Il. -, al, fha pfA lovp
this omission of the oath of the ballot clerk
and of all penalties for disclosing information
gained in the poling-room as an election Of
fetal, were the result of carelessness or over
sight. They seem rather to have been made
with premeditation and design and for pur-
pose. the purpose being to again solidify the
colored vote, by placing the colored voters
under domination of the local white bosses
through fear, intimidation and race ostracism.
Denton Journal.
The election law of this State, passed in
1896. was, it is said, written by Mr.. John c.
Rose, one of the shrewdest Republican parti
sans who ever shouted reform in order to
stir up strife among Democrats. Now that he
is temporarily inside the breastwoTks he will
mover be heard to say word about ''retorm. y
In his changes of the Australian ballot law,
which the Democrats passed in 1890, Mr..
Rose evidently had in full view three things
important to the Republicans closer
surveillance of the colored voters by their
white leaders, by removing the obligation to
secrecy on the part of those who marked the
ballots of illiterages; removing the restrictions
to the colonization of the colored voters of
Washington into the adjacent counties of
Maryland, and a full new registration of the
voters of the State, knowing that while many
white voters would neglect to register the
colored voters would register to man. The
new registration and the election III Caroline
county last fall cost a total of S2,3l6.62-a
much larger sum than heretofore--SS70 more
than last year Some striking points of diff