The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-06-08

the notice If the challenge Is sue
l~cessful. the money thus paid for serv-
ing the notice was refunded. otherwise
the challenger mist lose 1t. Like the
Law OF 1895, IL cast upon him the bur
den Of showing the facts of disQualifi-
cation. but made no provision for pay
ing him for the expense and rou5le
lof securing h attendance Of wit
Inesses TO prove these facts.
Its manifest purpose was TO prevent
and defeat challenges and thereby
make II easy for bad and corrupt men
to pad the books with fraudulent reg
listration.
Under the election law OF 1895 the
democrats did have some voice in the
selection Of election officers and some
representation upon the several election
boards. though IL was always a miner
lity representation; but the Legislature
of 1897, by q combination between the
republicans and minority populists.
passed a law which deprived them %
all representation on these boards in
the negro counties OF the east. 1t placed
the entire election machinery in the
hands of the clerk, register OF deeds
and chairman of the board OF commits
l~sioners. II was we'll known TO the COM
Ibination which passed this amendment
to the law OF 1895, that as a result Of
the election Of 1896 all these offices in
most OF the negro counties We're held
by republicans or populists. and that
by cooperation between the parties
the democrats would have absolutely
no voice in the selection of the election
Officers in UGH counties. The object
Iof this combination in making this
change in the law OF 1895 is apparent.
They wanted absolute control OF the
election boards in the counties in which
they expected large fraudulent negro
registration For the sake Of securing
the control of these boards where they
would be of most value to them they
were willing to risk giving the demo-
Icrats a control which they had not
heretofore had in a few white counties
in which the democrats were in power.
Under the election law Of 1895, as We
have sail before, negro boys under 81
years of age, negroes imported from
beyond the borders Of the state, ne
gro e~X-convictS and negro ~repeaters
were registered and voted galore. The
doors of fraud We're thrown wide open
to these irresponsible and ignorant
voters, and no protection whatever
was afforded to the honest voters OF
the state. The mendmen of 1897
threw these doors still wider open and
left to the white voters Of North Car
Iolina no protection against his fraud
Iulent registration save what their
courage and Anglo-Saxon manhood
give them. 1t must be manifest to every
one that these laws of 1895 and 1897,
lpassed in the name of fair and honest
ELECTIONS, were intended to give what
they did in 1896 most effectively give
the negro an advantage over the white
man, and to increase and multiply his
vote. But this is not all that the cleo
ton laws of 1895 and 1897 Were in
tended to do and have one in North
carolina. The republicans, not salts
fled with a law which enabled them to
practice frauds upon the honest Suf-
Ifrage of the state, passed another law.
the manifest purpose of which was TO
vote the negro solidly for the official
ticket of the republican party and to
prevent the illiterate voter generally
from expressing by his ballot his indi-
Ividual choice for candidates. 1t ought
forever to damn the republican party
and minority populists who passed it
with the illiterate voters of North Car
DINA
1t provided for what may be called
an official ballot. Each party may file
a list of the candidates of that party
for the state offices with the secretary
of state, and a list of the candidates of
that party for county offices with the
clerk of the court, and designate a de-
vice to be printed upon the ticket with
the names on it. This, then. became
the official ballot of that party. This
lldN HdOe II d IllSuel1ledllOI loI dlS
one, not only to vote, but to have in
his possession, with this device upon
it, a ticket with the name of n per-
son printed upon it whose name had
not been field with the clerk of the
court or secretary of state, as the case
may be, as a candidate of the party
adopting that device.
1t has been a right immemorially en-
ljoyed by the free people of North Car
lnlina RI vote for whom thew nlpASp6-
lwithout regard to whether the party
they voted for had been nominated by
Ia partisan convention or committee;
but this was renowned by the legis-
lature of 1897.
The legislature of 1899 undertook TO
correct these evils and passed h cleo
ton law of 1899. 1t provides for a reg
Iistrar and two poll holders at each vot-
ing precinct, and that all shall not be
Iof the same political party. and it gives
Ito the registrar power to examine wit
IneSses as to identity, age n residence
lof the party offerings to register. The
condition of affairs in North Carolina
made this provision particularly neces-
Isary. Shortly after the colored nan was
!: ienfranchised he showed himself the
willing tool Of the heelers INK manipu-
Ilators of the republican party. They
had not these qualities Of "a identi-
: lfcation which the white man possesses
. They were of a rowing disposition,
moved from place to place, and could
{ readily conceal their identity. For the
l same reason it was easy to import
l them from other communities and &c
: register ~ex-convictS and boys under
I21 years of age. These facts, which
:, made it easy for them, with little dan
l ger of detection, to register and vote
! at several different places, were taker
l advantage of by the INSCRIPTIONS re
{. publican white bosses; and repeating
. and fraudulent registration were -
l common hat it became necessary, II
: order to protect the white voters o.
:, the state against having their homes
!. vote offset by illegal and fraudulent
! Ily registered negro votes, to provide
: rigid safeguards against this class o.
!. frauds If, therefore, the democratic
registration laws require particularly
, in these respects, they were made 3
: to suppress fraud and protect whit'
, suffrage. It is boldly asserted, despite
republican clamor to the contrary, tina
the white vote Of North Carolina wa: