Evening star., 1901-03-12

Unless the legislature has the authority
to do what is now proposed to be done,
where did it get the power to order that
a ticket wrongly marked should be re-
jected? If the right to vote and the exer-
else of the right are coextensive, how
could the legislature reject ballot once
cast?
The News in reply, says: 70. .-....-
This is a bubble so shallow and con-
temptible that one has sense of humilia-
tion in condescending to answer it. The
two things placed here in the same cat
egory are as different from each other as
honesty is from rascality, as different as
the dealings of an upright business man
from the methods of bunco steerer. In
der any law whatever, owing to the imper-
fection of all human machinery, some
things must go wrong; and an election law
is no exception to the rule. Because some
few cases of loss of vote through accident
occur under the existing law, say these
sharp practitioners it must be quite legit-
innate to make law expressly designed to
cause many thousands of voters to, lose
their votes. Because, from the nature of
things, some individuals will, in every cleo
ton, through circumstances peculiar to
themselves. fail in the exercise of their
right to vote, therefore it is perfectly
proper for the legislature deliberately to
make that exercise impossible, or nearly
so. in many cases as it pleaSes.
THE case of the disfranchisers would
have been infinitely better without any
plea at all. 1t is preposterous to suppose
all in covering up the true character of the
proceeding contemplated On the contrary,
the bald assertion that the legislature may
interfere with the exercise of the right of
suffrage much as it pleases, provided
only it does not nominally deny the right,
should serve to awaken the people to the
true nature of the impending legislation
The doctrine set up in defense of the act
is far worse than the act itself. If the
legislature can impede the exercise of the
right of suffrage by any contrivance 1t
may choose to adopt there is absolutely no
limit to the means to which 1t may have
recourse in order to perpetuate domination
of any party or faction. According to this
extraordinary doctrine nobody can COM
plain of being deprived of the substance
of right so long the shadow of 1t is
left to him.
Political Effect.
The probable political effect of the pro-
jected disfr:lnchisement is being considered
somewhat anxiously by both sides; The re-
publicans fear the immediate results. but
hope for a reaction in their favers. Some
democrats. at the same time, are appre-
hensive that even the immediate results
will not be pleasant to them. Says the
Baltimore American on this point:
THE developments last week at An
napolis indicated that the democrats are
not in perfect accord on the disfranchse-
ment bill. Just as had been predicted,
delegates from the sections where the IL
literate 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 Annapolis, for an explana-
tion why they should be thrown out of the
party when they had voted the democratic
ticket all their lives. This feeling is much
stronger in some of the counties than the
leaders appear to be aware of. An litter
ate man who has fought for his party all
his life will naturally object to being
Si before
in a humiliating manner when he has
committed no crime that warrants such
treatment. The democratic leaders them
selves must know that If illiteracy had
been an issue in the campaign when the
present legislature was elected the result
would have been entirely different. Hitter
ate people are acutely sensitive about edu-
cation. and it is certain that they would
never have voted for men who are now de-
liberately trying to degrade them in the
eyes of the whole state
THE election bill, if it passes in it's
present shane will injure the democratic
party more seriously than the leaders ap-
pear to think. 1t will soidify all the wa
vering democrats against the party, and
many hitherto regulars, but who are in
favor of honest dealing may be expected
to vote with the republicans. If it had
been desired to get an expression of popu-
lar opinion on an education qualification
for voting, the open, square method would
have been to call constitutional eonVCn-
at the polls. The will of the people having
been expressed in a constitutional amend
ment, it's legality would be unquestioned.
But to resort to underhand method of
striking at the liberties of the voters is
something entirely different. Every voter
who will be disfranchised by the proposed
bill will feel personally insulted- no matter
to which party he belongs. To expect that
they will not resent the effort to stgmatize
them in such a public manner is to show
an astonishing ignorance of human nature.
LAS things look at present, the demo-
Gratis are preparing a Waterloo for them
selves at the November election, when
new legislature is to be chosen
The Baltimore Herald thus calls atten-
tiOn to an inadequate provision in the pro-
posed law:
BY the election law which Mr.. John
Prentiss Poe mas prepared at the direction
of ex-senator Arthur P. German and Gov
ernor John Walter Smith the register of
voters who fails or refuses to ask Judge
Alvey or Judge Clabaugh or Rear Admiral
Schley any of the American soldiers
serving in the Philippines the questions
necessary to disfranchise them shall, upon
conviction, be punished by Imprisonment
in Jail for not less than thirty days nor
more than three years, or by fine of not
less than $50 nor more than 81 1000, or by
both such fine and Imprisonment.
by the same bill the maximum penalty
which can be imposed upon the supervisor
of elections who willfully disfranchises the
people of a whole county by refusing to
Seilu out the OIilcldl DallOtS is a 1ne or
81 600
How exquisite is the sense of proportion
of Messrs German, Smith and Poe My
Lord Coke used to say that the common
law was the perfection of human reason,
but he was careful to add that the reason
Of the law is not always mans natural
reason. So the election morality of Messrs
German. Smith and Poe is, as we know
from their own recent testimony, the per-
fection of human morality. 1t is not how
ever, a plain mans natural morality"
An Outside View.
AS typical of the outside newspaper view
the following comment upon the situation
by the New York Sun is interesting: ~
The obvious the unconcealed purpose
of the attempt to disfranchse negro citi-
zens of Maryland throws ray of light on
the motive of the whole southern disfran-
chiSing movement. -.. .-..--.--
I'm Maryland there is no possibility Of
negro domination No pretense of fear
of it is made or can be made, for only
about one-fifth of the population of the
state is colored. The purpose of the dis
franchisng movement is purely partisan
1t is simply democratic scheme to gain