The age-herald., 1898-03-24

ments. Up to a few years ago I had al- ways voted for the nominees of the demo- cratic party, but in the last few years have determined to pay some attention to the character and capacity of candidates in diVidually, to the extent that l would not vote for the nominee of any one party, or all combined, if I knew the individual to be unfit for the office.
 o. MT. Harsh has your business, or not, caused you to acquant yourself thoroughly with the provisions of the Alabama elec- tion laws, known the Sayre laws? A. have had occasion to examine the law a number of times.
 Q. Now, MT. Harsh. will ask you, if the provisions of that law are strictly ad- hered to, if the ticket in an election is Q long one or at all complicated can the average illiterate voter vote his will under that law? A. In my opinion, he could not. Q. Will you please e. plain the require ments of that law as to how an illiterate voter is to receive information as to the contents of the ticket to be voted at an election? A. He may require the man agers to read the ticket over to him. Q. Has the fxer the right to do any thing more than mark the tickets as the illtterate voter tells him to mark it? A. I think not.
 0. Mr. Harsh, have there to your knowl- edge or not in the past five years been a good many arrests for political offenses In this county? A. I have no actual personal knowledge of any such arrests derived from actually seeing the arrests made. I have, however, knowledge of quite number of such arrests derived from having been called upon to defend parties charged with violating the election law during the time inquired about.
 o. Is it not fact that these arrests were made by democrats, and that the parties arrested were either republicans or popu- lists? A. My recollection is that all the cases that have been called upon to de- fend were those where the prosecuting W t. nesses were democrats and the parties ar rested were either republicans, popullsts O. other opponents of what has been called the organized democracy. My firm was en- gagged to prosecute a man on the cha: ge of stealing ballots, to the best of my recol- lection. The defendant in that case, I un- derstood to be a democrat.
 e.. What was the result of the other cases with which you have been connec ed ? A. My recollection Is that all the cases were dismissed or the defendants acquit- ted, except in the case last mentioned
 o. Is it fact that the arrests of anti democrats by democratic officials on or succeeding immediately election day op- erated to intimdate the class of voters so attacked? A. I have never been an ac- tive politician and cannot say as a fact from my own knowledge what the effect has been.
 o. MT. Harsh, have there not been ef- forts made throughout the state during the last five years to enforce the statutory pro- visions of the law as to representa- ations of both parties in political contests? A. have learned of such in several parts of the state during the time inquired about in the course of my connection with contested election cases, though prior to the election itself I would have no personal knowledge of the actual efforts to obtain representa- ton at the polls by both parties
 Q. Do you know what has usually, or what has been, the result of the efforts