The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-07-27

State of California. I. prohibits tnD State of North Carolina from derra chising the Indians, who are citizens ek the United States and living wltnin their Jurisdiction. It prohibits the ct4ts oi Alabama from disfranchising ne- gro because he belongs to the African race, because of his color. or becauee he was once a slave. It will prevent the State of Massachusetts as well as the State of Mississippi from disfran- chising the Filipino when he comes to live in this country SO I say that ne Fifteenth Amendment is not sectionAB but National in its character.
 Mir. Samford-Will the gentieman permit himself to be interrupted1
 M.. Spears-I don't want to De fn- terrupted. ..<
 Some gentlemen say that this ordi- nance is not in conflict with the Fif- tcenth Amendment. Do they believe what they say. They seem to De m earnest and would ask the gentlemen in all sincerity pray tell us by wnaS process of reasoning you have been able to bring yourself to this conciu- sion. The common people of the State see the discrimination at glance. The women and children know 1t and It is common talk everywhere that this or dinance discriminates against the nee gro as a race. Some gentlemen say | that they hope to live long enough to 1 ses the Fifteenth Amendment repealed. | would ask them if they hope to live | long enough to see the death of this | Republic. We have only had fifteen amendments added to our National | Constitution since 1t was signed by l Washington and the fathers of this 1 Republic. and in my judgment, with all due respect to every man in this Convention, the thirteenth. fourteenth and fifteenth amendments that have been pinned to the beautiful Goddess of Liberty from time to time, these three last amendments have added more to her beauty. more to her strength and more to her glory than all the others, notwithstanding they were pinned upon her beautiful form by the bloody hands of war.
 Now. gentlemen, want to take up this Board of Registration, and I hope that you will give me your attention. There has been considerable interest aroused throughou: this State by req son of the publication of the letter of Senator John T, Morgan against the grandfather clause. The effort of the Senator and the gentlemen comprising the minority of the Committee. re. minds me of some old ladies striking at the tail of snake. If the Senataor and | do harm to this hideous monster. if they want to kill this serpent that is | about to beguile this Convention, why | 6o not you hit 1t on the head. Why l do you not strike at the seat of poison, why do you not hit the Board of Reg istration? What a beautiful system ia this Board of Registration. composed of three partisaas appointed by partisan Governors on the recommendation of l sORr rfxatt tH1A AraA tr1 do what. O. they say if this board don't register every man that wants to be registered he can take an appeal to the Circuit Court or courts of like Jurisdiction by filing 8 petition in thirty days. That makes 1t necessary for him to employ a lawyer. He has to go to the Circuit Court. He cannot appeal to a jury and have the case tried near his home. where his witnesses are nec- essarily bound to live. No. he must so to the Circuit Court, at the court house. 1t may be 25 miles from where he lives. He has got to take his witnesses with him and when he gets there all the presumptions are against him. The whole scheme is against him. The clerk of the court has uniformed the solicitor who represents the State and who Is there to contest the citizens right. The burden of proof Is upon him. He is pre- rSumed not to be entitled to vote. lie goes before the court and the Jury un- der cloud. has to be tried by twelve men and he must convince all twelve of them that he is entitled to vote. Notwithstanding that eleven of the jurors may be convinced that the citizen is entitled to vote, yet if one Is not so convinced he is thrown into costs and disgraced and disfran- chised in his county. If you want to purge the electorate, if you want to purify the ballot. if you want 10 do the clean thing hy the people why did ycu not appoint board of three honest men ard tell them to go into each county and take the list of regist cred voters and whenever they came to a man that was not entiti-d to vote to strike him from the lIsi and give him notice and let him take m appeal ct the court. and let the burden of proof be upon the State. Let him go to court with presumption in his favor pnd let the burden of proof be on the State, and let the State he required to Ei,tke out it's case against the citizen. That is what you should dn If you want to do the fair thing. Why. here you have reversed the whole machinery of tte common law. You have turned back the hands on the clock of civilization a tHOubdHO ySdTSs dhfl aL yOus No man will be envied by anybody sf- ter he has cast his vote for this Reg lstration Board. When he does 1t, mel ancholia will seize him and claim hina for its own. He will never occupy his seat in the United States Senate. 1Le cruel hand of fate will write ;ross his forehead in great big black letters Political Failure" " The hand ot des- tiny will take him up from or .he floor of this Convention and pitch him over into the pest house of Alabama politics and there he will be left on the political scrap pile. There he will remain for the balance of his days in state of miserable political quarantine. and when the ho-r Of dissolution shall cvcrtake him, when the cold but well come hand of death shall he laid upon his aching head to still and quiet his painful heart, sad and disappointed loved ones will carry him out and at the dead of night inter him in a po- litical potters field. On his grave no grass will grow, around his grave no flowers will bloom, about his grave no bird shall sing.
 Mr. Freeman--Will the gentleman yield for a moment?
 M?. Specrs-I don't like to be inter- rupted. My time Is going on
 MT. Freeman-1 want to make a mo- ton to extend your time forty min utes in order that yau may finish your argument.