The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1898-01-21

from West Florida. was added T. the
territory in 1872, and restricted suffrage
to the "landholders, freeholders and
housholders within the town, and fol.
lowed this with section in the very
language of the one quoted ABOVE from
the charters of Woo1yille and Port
Gibson, but this was am,rded IN 1915
so as to limit suffrage as written IN the
following section, viz,
NO person shall vote at any election
| for president and commissioners, asses
sor and collector for said town, unless
| he is twenty-one years OF age ana shall
have been a freeholder in said town. or
the tenant of house or separate room
at least six months previous to any
election, and shall have paid a county,
territorial or corporation tax, nor I'M
| less he be citizen of the United States,
or shall have resided within that part
| of West Florida, now in the possession
of the United States, at the time OF the
| change of government in that province
The next legislation pertinent was the
act of congress, approved April 18th,
1914, amending the organic law of the
territory; this provided Each and
every free white male person. being
citizen of the United States, who shall
| have attained the age of twenty-one
wears and who shall also have resided
one year in said territory previous to
any general election, and be at the time
| of any such election resident thereof
| shall be entitled to vote for members
| of the house of representatives, and
delegate to congress for the territory
aforesaid. "
The only effect of this TIT was to dis
pense with the property qualification
previously prescribed ana to substitute
in its place the payment Of countA
and territorial tax. In 1915 an cleo
ton was authorized for the purpose Of
locating the county seat of Jackson
county by act providing simply that
such persons as Were authorized to
vote for representatives might cast
their ballots thereat, but in 1916 a like
act for Adams county was passed pro
vidins every free male white person,
being citizen of the county OF adams
who shall have arrived at the age of
twenty-one years. and resided in the
said county twelve months previous to
the said election. shall be permitted to
vote thereat, and nons other This
brings us to the end Of territorial leg
islation and from it we learn that
ownership of or anchorage to the soil
was a prominent conception OF the
times; all else as q necessary Qualiti-
cation for voting, even age, color and
sex, seems to have been subordinate, OF
accidental or exceptional There was
certainly no prejudice them in the good
old day. because Of color; the color idea
came from without, from congress,
Under the First Constitution,
The constitution under which Missis
sippi came into the Union as q state
was adopted on the 18th of Aug, 1917,
and by the first section of article three,
thereof the following provision is made
Every free white male person Of the
age Of twenty -one years or upwards,
who shall DO . citizen of the United
States and shall have resided in tAii
state one year, next preceding an cleo
ton, and the last six months within the
county, city or town in which he offer;
to vote and shall have been enrolled in
the militia thereof except exempted by
law from military service; or having
g the aforesaid qualifications of citizen
c ship and residence, shall have paid q
state or county tax, shall bG deemed 9
qualified elector: but no elector shall bt
be entitled to vote, except in the county
or town entitled to seperate represen
tationl in which he may reside at tht
I time of election"
: An analysis of this section shows tina
! in order for person to be a qualified
I state and county voter Hereunder h'
/ he must have been:
d 1. Free. 2. White, 3. Male 4
y Twenty years of age or upward. )
II A citizen of the United States. G. !
n resident of the state for at least on
year I. A resident of the county cit,
or town at leas six months s. Enrolled
in the militia unless exempt therefrom
or he must have had the aforesai'
qualifications Of citizenship and resi-
deuce" and have paid state or count,
tax
? What our foreIathers meant b.
g alternate qualifications Is harl a
l this day to find out. A literal construc
5 tod would have authorized a free whit
G male person having the qualification
/, of citizenship and residence to hay
n voted irrespective Of age, but there
t no record of infants having exercise'
f the right, nor it there in our books
judicial Interpretation of the consttu
o tional provision. 1t is notable, too, il
y respect to this section of the fundamer
{ tai law, that crimes did not disfrar
chise under the terms Of the constitr
. ton itself and that the murderer, tn
thief Ct ID oD,ne genus are regulated b
o the legislature so far as voting was col
e cerned by the 9Th Sec of the 9th Articl
It which provides, laws shall be mad
z to exclude from Office. and from sui
d frage, those who shall hereafter be cor
4 victed Of bribery, perjury, forgery G
4. other high crimes or misdemennoIs
e We find however, that the legislatul
re Tin 1922 undertook to perform its dut
le in this regard by providing that n
II person shall vote at any election wba
ID ever in this state, who shall have bee
,e convicted bv the verdict Of jury, an