The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1901-04-04
MARYLAND SUFFRAGE.
Con tin ued from First PAg-.)

choose TO adopt there Ii absolutely
no limit to the means 10 which Il
may have recourse In order TO per-
petuAte domination Of any party or
faction. According TO this extra
ordinary doctrine nobody can COM
plain Of being deprived Of the sub
stance Of right 80 long - the
shadow Of It Ii left to him"
POLITICAL EFFECT.
The probable political effect of the
projected Acknowledgement IL being
considered somewhat anxiously by
both sides. The republicans fear
the immediate results, but hope for
q reaction In their favor. Some
democrats, at the same time, are sp-
prehensive that even the immediate
results will not be pleasant to them.
Says the Baltimore American Oh
this point:
1.-THE development last week at
Annapolis indicated that the demo
Gratis are not In perfect accord Oh the
Acknowledgement bill. Just a, had
been predicted, delegates from the
sections where the illiterste white
vote will be most affected by the
bill objected, for the very simple
reason that they knew those whites
who had voted for them would ask,
when they returned from Annapo-
lis, TOR an explanation why they
should be thrown out of the party
when they had voted the demo-
cratic ticket all their lives. This
feeling Is much stronger in some Of
the counties than the leaders appear
to be aware of. A n illiterate man who
has fought for his party all his life
will naturally object to being singled
out and held up before the public In
a humiliating manner when he has
committed no crime that warrants
such treatment. The democratic
leaders themselves must know that
If illiteracy had been an issue in the
campaign when the present legisla-
ture was elected the result would
have been entirely different. Hitter
ate people are acutely sensitive about
education, and it Is certain that they
would never have voted for men
who are now deliberately trying to
degrade them in the eyes of the
whole state.
"The election bill, if it passes in
its present shape, will injure the
democratic party more seriously
than the leaders appear to think.
1t will solidify all the wsvering
democrats against the party, and
many hitherto regulars, but who are
in favor of honest dealing, may be
expected to vote with the republic
cans. If it had been desired to ge t
an expression Of popular opinion on
an education qualification for voting,
the open, square method would have
been to call a constitutional cOnven-
ton and let the people decide the
question at the polls. The will of
the people having been expressed in
a constitutional amendment, Its
legality would be unquestioned.
But to resort to an underhand meth
cd Of striking at the liberties of the
voters Is something entirely differ
ent. Every voter who will be dis
t'ranchised by the proposed bill will
feel personally insulted, no matter
to which party he belongs. To ex-
pect that they will not resent the
effort to stigmatize them in such a
public manner Is to show an aston
ishing ignorance Of human nature.
"As things look at present, the
democrats are preparing . Waterloo
for themselves at the November
election, when new legislature is to
be chosen"
The Baltimore Herald thus calls
attention to an inadequate provis-
ion In the proposed law:
"By the election law which Mr..
John Prentiss Poe has prepared at
the direction of ex-senator Arthur
P. German and Governor John
Walter Smith the register of voter,
who fails to ask Judge Alvey OF
Judge Clsbaugh or Rear Admiral
Schley or any of the American
soldiers serving in the Philippines
the questions necessary to disfran'
chise them shall, upon conviction
be punished by imprisonment in
Jail for not less than thirty day:
nor more than three years, or by 6
fine of not less than $50 nor more
than $1,000, or by both such fine
and imprisonment.
"By the same bill the maximum
penalty which can be imposed upor
the supervisor Of elections who will
fully DISTINGUISHES the people of
whole county by refusing to sent
out the official ballots is fine o
1000.
SHOW exquisite is the sense o
proportion of Messrs. Garman, Smitl
and Poe! My Lord Coke used t
say that the common law was tn
perfection Of human reason, but h
vas careful to add that the reason O
he law Is not always . mans nat
ural reason. So the election morsli
: ty Of Meesrs. German, Smith an
Foe is, as we know from their n
c mt testimony, the perfection {
D human morality. It Is not, how
I ever, a plain mans natural moral
J, ty"
An OUTSIDE VIEW.
n AS typical Of the outside newsp'
per view the following CONNER
upon the situation by the New Yor
Sun Is interesting:
"The obvious, the unconceale
purpose Of the attempt to disfnl
chise negro citizens Of Marylau