The age-herald., 1901-08-02


 of the duties of his office, each registrar shall take the same oath required of the judicial officers of the State, which oath may be administered by any person au- thorized by law to administer oaths The oath shall be In writing and subscribed by the segistrar, and filed in the office of the probate judge of the county.
 A Popuist View.
 MT. Reynolds of Chiffon said while the members of the party to which he belong ed constituted small minority still, they represented white people. He was not un- der any pledge as to how he should vote. He had been opposed to the calling of the convention because he believed 1t was un- wise to hold one at this time. The com mittee on suffrage after fifty days hard labor had presented a plan to the con- vention which delegates on the floor did not understand. How then could the peo- pie understand it? Even members of the committee differed as to the construction of certain sections. This section, he thought, was devised not to turn men out but to turn them in. No penalty had been provided for the registrars If they failed to do their duty. It gave to three men in every county the right to say who should register, and once on the list there was no way to get them off. No restric- tions were thrown around them. They were not held accountable. He asked Captain White If he would accept the plan himself if he knew that every regis trar in the State would be opposed to him politically. Captain White replied that what he himself might do individually would perhaps not be entertaining to the Afr had never yet seen a lawyer who could not get out of answering question Con- tinuing. he said that the people would rise up and condemn the convention for giving them worse election law than they now had. You could not trust men politically as you could personally. We are told we must trust these officers, but can we do It? AS to the constitutionality of the law we must leave that to the lawyers He paid a tribute to Governor Jones and said that he considered it unconstitutional He read an editorial from the Age-Herald condemning the registration clause.
 Some of our best men are men who car- not read or write. Many of these were our soldiers. He said that the registrars would probably be riding around on free passes and in case of a railroad strike they would probably say to the strikers that If you go back to work we will reg ister you, but If you do not you can't vote. Although constitutional conven- tion has been discussed in Alabama for six years, I never heard the property qualification mentioned. If dollars are to vote why not let man with 800 vote three times If a man with $500 can vote once? Answering the question of MT. Smith, If he was not opposed to every thing the convention did, he said he had been opposed to the convention but if they made a better constitution than the present one he would vote for it. But he did not see where anything had been done toward promoting fair elections.
 The Oates Amendment.
 Governor Oates offered an amendment to provide that not more than two of the registrars shall be of the same political party. The section, he said, already re- quired that the registrars should be good men, but the Democrats were In power and he thought the opposition should have some representation.
 Judge Walker of Madison spoke against the amendment. He did not think 1t wise to put a political provision like this into a constitution. He did not want this board stamped as partisan polit- ical board He moved the previous ques- ton on the subdivision and the amend ment, which was ordered.
 MT. Oates amendment was then taDleQ by vote of "A to 49 and the subdivision was adopted.
 Subdivision was read, as follows:
 2. Prior to the first day of August 1902, the board of registrars in each county shall visit each precinct at least once, and oftener, if necessary, to make a complete registration of all persons en- titled to register and remain there at lesat one day from 8 o'clock in the morn ing until sunset. They shall give at least twenty days notice of the time when, they will attend to register applicants for registration, by bills posted at five or more public places in each election precinct and by advertisement in a news paper. if there be one. published in the county, once a week for three successive weeks. Upon failure to give such notice or to attend to any appointment made by them in any precinct, they shall, after like notice, fill new appointments there- in; but the time consumed by the board in completing such registration shall not exceed sixty working days in any county except that in counties in which there is any city of 5000 inhabitants or over. the board may remain In session, in addf- ton to the session hereinabove prescrib- ed, for not more than three successive weeks in each of said cities; and there after the board may sit from time to time in each of such other cities not more than one week in each month, and ex- cept that in the county of Jefferson the board may hold additional sessions. of not exceeding five consecutive days du- ration for each session, in any town or city of 300 or more and less than 5000 inhabitants. No person shall be register ed except at the county site or in the
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