The age-herald., 1901-09-29
Not an Office Seeker, But He Has Been a Candidate for
 Many Years

 diers and their descendants by one and the same act. The descendants of sol diers inherit nothing from their fathers, but father and son and grandson are given the privilege of voting at one and the same time. The gentlemen who make this objection overlook the source whence the power is derived. A person is said to inherit a thing from his ancestor at the latter's death. In this case the son derives nothing through or from his fla ther, but directly through the sovereign legislative act of his State.
 Quotes From His Record.
 He says that no standard of character or understanding Is provided and no pro- vision Is made as to the character and quantity of evidence that a citizen must produce ih order to be registered. This Is a singular criticism to come from the same brain from which emenated that notorious and almost disastrous declara- tion known as the 18th plank of the Dem ocratic platform of 1892, which announced that the right of suffrage should be con fined to the 'Virtuous and intelligent" |" That was all there was about it. A man should be virtuous and intelligent before he could vote. This was the distin- guished ex-govenor's conviction at that time. and it must be remembered that at that time a Democratic nominee was en- gagged in a bitter struggle for Governor against Capt. R. F. Kolb.
 What Is the standard of virtue? It Is absolute. It implies perfection. What Is intelligence? When used in this gen. eral sense it implies a general knowledge of practically all the matters about which men are concerned in this world. So that the distinguished ex-governor, who now loves so well the dear people, in 1892 was anxious to exclude from the lists of suffrage thousands upon thou sands of the poor and unfortunate white people of the State.
 Now the good character clause is not so rigid. It means just about what a similar clause in the jury law means. Persons cannot serve on juries unless they possess good character and are fit and competent to act as jurors, and these facts are determined by the jury com missioners in their discretion. This has been the law ever since Alabama was a State and you know that 1t is not very hard for white men to get on juries, no matter what their condition in life, pro- vided they are not notoriously bad. Ev- cry white man who applies to the regis trar to be registered, will be presumed to have good character until the con trary is shown. His identity in the com munity being established, he can be reg istered as a matter of course. Further more, if he applies for registration, he will not ordinarily be asked whether he Is soldier or the son of a soldier, or possesses good character.
 The two clauses of the temporary plan will operate concurrently, and the regis tras is not bound to register a man defin- itely under the one or the other clause. If the man who applies is known, his Identity shown, 1t can safely be assumed, in the absence of any challenge or ob- jection, that the applicant is entitled to be registered under one or the other or both of these, clauses, and will be reg lstered. This will be the common sense practical application of the temporary plan, and we can predict 1t with the more certainty because similar plans having the same object in Mississippi, Louisiana, and especially South Carolina, have been attended with this result as practically all white men who applied for registra- tion under the temporary clauses of the constitutions of Louisiana and South Carolina were admitted, but only about 10 per cent. of the negro votes were ad- mitted, the bulk of the negro vote being the very ignorant and vicious element which creates the evil all of these States have set out to remedy.
 Retire After 1902.
 The registrars must be three reputable and suitable persons" resident in the county, to be appointed by board con sisting of the Governor, Auditor and Commissioner of Agriculture. These reg istrars perform only one act of registra- tion, continuing during certain mont hs of the year 1902, and then they retire from office and their offices become ex- tinct It Is practically charged by the ex-governor and by General Shelly that the appointing board, being candidat es for office, will appoint registrars who will further the interests of the members of the board as such candidates, and that the registrars so appointed will use their offices in a partisan and unfair manner in permitting registration. In what way can these things be done, ex- cept by excluding white men from the registration lists? Do these gentlemen seriously charge that Governor Jelks and the two other members of the board will collude with their appointees, the regis trars, to exclude white men from regis tering under the temporary plan? That is to say, collude to permit only such white men to register as will be favora- ble to the candidacy of the members of the board? If this is the charge the peo- \ pie of the State of Alabama should rise up and repudiate 1t. It is unworthy of the high positions occupied by those who make 1t, and it is a gross insult to the distinguished gentlemen who will com pose the board of appointment.
 i The distinguished gentleman says that the soldiers clause of the temporary plan has been declared unconstitutional by our two Senators. We take issue with the gentleman on that proposition. Sem ator Pettus has never declared this clause unconstitutional, but authorized the statement to be made on the floor of the convention during the debates on this question that his opinion had been given solely with reference to the grand father clause of the Louisiana constitu- tion. which is very different thing from the soldiers clause of the Alabama con stitution. Senator Pettus, as a good Democrat, has announced his intention to support the new constitution soldio.