The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-06-26
REGISTRARS URGED
TO DO THEIR DUTY
Chairman Simmons Promises
Them Protection.
THE RADICALS FURIOUS
They Want United States Marshals
at the Polls.
BUT THEY'LL NEVER GET THEM THERE
There is No Law on the Statute Books AulhCriz-
ing Their Appointment or Giving Them !
Any Supervisory Power Over the
Registrar or at the Polls.


Hon. F. NJ. Simmons. Chairman of
the Democratic State Executive Com
mittee, was interviewed on yesterday
in regard to the threats recently made
by Lieutenant Gov. Reynolds and SEN
ator Franks, the two Republican can
didates for Corporation Commission
ers, to have United States Deputy
Marshals at the polls, and to arrest
Registrars who refuse to register
such persons as their party may wish
to have registered.
Mr.. Simmons said that these threats
simply showed the desperation of the
Republican leaders. 1t shows they see
defeat staring them in the face. 1T
has been a custom of that party in
the South. whenever they see them
selves about to be defeated, to turn
to the Republican National Admins
tration for help. In 1896 Pritchard
wanted Federal soldiers; Mr. Holton
is said to have recently interviewed
the President with reference to send
ing Federal soldiers here this year;
before the people, surrounded the
Registrars with United States Mar
shals, and force them to register ne
gro boys under twenty-one years of
age, negro criminals, imported ne
groes and negroes, who having once
registered, in their own names, pre-
sent themselves to be registered UNI
der various aliases. They would imi-
tate here in North Carolina the Late
example of Kuntucky's usurping Gov
ernor who, having conspired to assas-
sinate the man who had beaten him
beofre the people, surrounded the
Democratic Legislature with soldiers
to coerce it into recognizing his fraud
ulent claim to the office of Governor.
The mere suggestion of these things
by Republican candidates and news
papers is an insult to the people OF
North Carolina. 1t is a foolhardy at
tempt to bulldose and intimidate the
Registrars and Judges of Election.
There are now upon the registration
books the names of between fifteen
and twenty thousand negroes who
have no earthly right to vote, put
there by fraud and perjury, and kept
there by the infamous provisions of
the Fusion election law of 1895 and
1897. The Republican managers have
sent out secret orders to the negroes
to press registration, and they are
seeking by these threats, to terrorize
and coerce Registrars into allowing
every negro to register, whether quail
flied or not.
Continuing, Mr.. Simmons said that
he had thoroughly investigated all
the acts of Congress bearing upon
these subjects, both personally, and
through competent attorneys, and
that as a result of these investiga-
tons, he had found that there was
absolutely no authority of law for
what these leaders of the negroes pro-
pose to do. He said the act of Congress
passed in February, 1870 authorizing
the appointment of supervisors of
elections and the presence of Deputy
Marshals at the polls, commonly
known as the Force BILL had been
expressly repealed by the act of Con-
gress passed in February, 1894. and
that there is absolutely no warrant
in any United soates' statute for their
appointment, or for the exercise by
them of any such authority. The
Deputy Marshal undertaking to eXer-
else any supervisory authority, either
before any registrar or at the pools,
should be Immediately arrested under
the provisions of our State laws, max
ing it a misdemeanor to in any way
interfere with or obstruct an officer
in the discharge of his duties as Reg
istrar or poll-holder. A Deputy Mar
shall has no more right to interfere
with the registration or the polls than
private citizen, and would be amen
able to our State law, just as would
any private citizen; for his acts in
that behalf would be without color of
law.
In regard to the threat to arrest
Registrars, Mr.. Simmons said that no
authority can be found i'm any United
States statute for such arrests. SEQ
tions 55O7, $500 and $50. which are
cited by certain Republican papers
and leaders as authority for Deputy
Marshals interfering with elections,
do not give jurisdiction to any United
States Court. A Registrar is a judi
cial officer. acting under the author
ity of valid State law, and can no
more be interferred withtor hiEdered
in the discharge of his duty of passing
upon the qualification of persons of
fering to register than a Judge of the
Superior Court in the trial of per-
son charged with illegal registration
or illegal voting. or any other offence
against the laws of the State. The
right to register and vote is right
arising unuer the laWS Oh the otate,
and outside of any Federal jurisdic-
ton, except in cases where it appears
that the right is denied under the
law simply because of race, color or
previous condition of servitude. To
say that Registrar, iudicially pass
ing upon the right of an applicant
TO be registered, in which no ques-
ton is raised on account of race. but
in which the question raised is one of
homage or non-residence or other dis
qualification. and decided against the
applicant, is liable to arrest if the de-
cision does not suit the Republican
bosses or candidates, is not only alb
surd but revolutionary. These are
not the days of Candy or of 1868 and
1870. In those days men went to