The evening times., 1899-11-18
GEORGIA ELECTION LAWS.
An Amendment to He Acted Upon by
the LeKislaturc.


ATLANTA, Ca, Nov. 1s.-There is a
s~Ang movement TO place Georsia in I.ne
with Mississippi. louisiana and sosth Car
clina in the matter of disfranchisng the
bulk OF the negro vote of this State At
the last session of the Legislature tn s
question was discussed in caucus of a
score or more members who favored the
disfranchsing scheme. but no action was
taken.
On the first day OF the present session
however, a bill was introduced which bad
| been carefully prepared during the las
summer. and which embodies proposed
] amendment TO the State constitution. Ii is
| in substance the North Carolina an
though 1t is in some respects even more
! extreme. unlike the laws OF Mississippi
and Louisiana. it does not contain an alter
! native property or educational quaiifca-
! tion. but has the latter provision on'y. 1t
! is provided that when any would-be voter
offers his ballot he may. BY the managers
/ Of the election precinct at which he offers
! 10 vote or upon demand of any citizen, lie
| required TO read and intellige nty interpret
any clause or section CT the ccnstit -tion
l tenn is not used at elections in this State
it is thus placed in the power OF any of the
! many "challengers'' who surround ever
, ballot box to put to this test anyone who
attempts to east ballot. The manage OF
the election are rested with complete dis
erection to determine whether or rot the
applicant has read and lntell:gently inter-
rai ha ri Or NJ he q, ri
tion which is submitted TO him.
There is in the pending bill no provision
,, for an appeal from the decision OF the cleo
tiOn managers as 10 the educational qualifi-
cation of wouldbe voters, and therefore IL
would be in the power of the managers al
any precinct tc reject as many proffered
votes as it might please them To DO.
Like the pending North Carolina amend
ment ard the laws of South Carolina. Mis-
sissippi, and Louisiana, the Georgia amend
ment eXcepts from all it's provisions lineaI
descendants of those who were qualified to
vote by the laws OF this State in 1867. This
includes the great bulk of the illiterate
white vote in the State. and excludes, OF
course. all the illiterate negroes as no
regro could vote in Georgia before 1868
The prospect of the passage of the bill
10 submit this amendment TO the people of
this State is not bright. Ii has 10 de-
cided support from the State press. Not
single prominent daily newspaper ir
Georgia is advocating ii. and the majority
of the weekly papers have nothing to say
about it. 1t is opposed by many Of tbs
ab!est men in the Legislature, and its sup
porteIs are by TO means confident OF sue
cess.
The most influential negro leaders. those
VINO nave done most to keep the relations #,
between the whites and the negroes as coed
as they are are actively at work against /
the measure. They are appealing. and with
good effect. tc their white friends TO stand 7
against this measure. assuring them that
IL would irritate race prejudice and undo
the coed results of the work OF those who
have been trying TO convince the negro that j
his white employer. landlord. or neighbor 4
is really his best friend-that there is I
community of interest and should be a cor
diality of feeling between the two.
Some Of the most prominent white men
in the State oppose the amendment, because
the Georgia negro has long since ceased to
take interest in politics. and. with rare ex-
csptiCns. is on excellent terms with the
whites. They meet the argument that Ahe
would put premium on educa-
ton by pointing out that, while it would
do so for the negro. it would not for the
iiliterate white man. as all he would have
to do would be TO show a descent from an
ancestor who could vote thirty-two years
ago.
Georgia is by no means excited over the
question and there is a great contrast be-
tween the state CT feeling about it here and
that which is being exhibited in North
Carolina over similar measure. This in
duces the opponents of the disfranchising
amendment to hope and believe that there
is no popular demand for it and that it will
be defeated in the LEGISLATURE