The leader., 1900-08-08

by McLaurin and Sullivan's bench
men in a great many places, but
in Warren, Issaquena and Coaho-
ma, frauds were committed which
would have made the "Shoestring' dis
trict blush. back in Chalmers time.
The returns from Warren to the
State Committee gave Sullivan ST.
votes and Henry So.
The returns from Issaquena gave
Sullivan ls2 and Henry tSullivan's
vote being larger than the total num-
Der of registered voters in the county
The returns from Coahoma gave
Sullivan 40 votes and Henry 9.
1t has now been conclusively proven
by the County Democratic Executive
Committee of Coahoma, called together
especially to investigate the matter,
that no primary election was even held
in that county on June Dist, and that
the returns sent to the State Commit
tee from that county were a barefaced
forgery, made out and forwarded in
the name of the secretary of the coun-
ty committee 10y some over-zealous
and unprincipled McLaurin-S Sullivan
partisan.
1t is believed and claimed that Il
searching Investigation i'll Warren. Is
saquena and perhaps other counties,
where Sullivan received big maiorites
over Henry. would reveal moral and
political rottenness little, if any. less
high handed and shameful.
The vote from these counties was
counted by the State Committee as re
turned. though some of them were
challenged at the time, and the only
single consoling reflection about the
whole disgraceful transaction is the
fact that Henry. in spite of all this
fraud and corruption, defeated Sulli-
van on the face of the returns from
the entire State by over 800 majority.
The rascals, while they were doing
their dirty work, missed it in their
calculation and failed to land their
man by a few hundred votes.
When it is considered that the posi-
ton contended for in this instance was
purely one of party honor and trust
without financial emoluments; that the
candidates, election managers and
voters were all white Democrats: that
the Constitutional Convention of 1879
was called and a new Constitution fran
ed that there might not thereafter be
either excuse or seeming necessity for
even stutfing out negro Republicans at
the ballot box in Mississippi again, it
is simply appalling, and enough to
bring the blush of shame to the cheek
of every honest white Mississippian
who feels pride in the honor and rep
ltation of his State.
And when it is further considered
hat the illegal order of the State Elk
scutive Committee, endorsed by Me
1aurin and Sullivan, was made in the
lame of Democracy, under the dema-
yogic plea that the people might
nave a right to express their
,hoice without the interference of po-
itical bosses, and that these sinking
I'D outrageous frauds on the ballot
,ox were perpetrated in order to send
man to the National Democratic
who was not 50 much as in
ccOrd with his party on the question
which the Kansas City Convention de
Jared to be the paramount" issue of
he campaign, but is really a Hanua
md Mckinley sympathizer, it consti-
.utes stigma and reproach to the
Democratic party of Mississippi which
t cannot too quickly nor too emphat
cally repudiatc.
And finally. when it is considered
hat the State Committee. so unmis-
5akably dominated by Senators Nc
Laurin and Sullivan, shows no dispo-
5ition to expose and punish the per
petratOrs Of these outrageous frauds,
but, on the contrary, proposes to usurp
authority and deflantlg perpetuatc it
self, so as to be in position to serve
its masters in their senatorial aspira-
tons three years hence presumably
according to the same methods it has
served Senator Sullivan this time.
the situation is one t. arouse the warm
and lively opposition of
every opponent of machine politics
and boss rule in the borders of the
To feel and act other
wise is to submit to the sway of i'm
perialism" right here in Mississippi of
the most despicable sort-the impe-
rialism of the party boss who wants to
rule all things political and scruples
at nothing which will extend his sway
and advance his own selfish ends and