Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1901-10-17


plauded and his audience seemed
greatly pleased with the holiness
and fearlessness Of his expressions.
Some Of the most notable OF his re-
marks follow:
After considering the work done
by our republican friends in taking
the Federal Census was there any
doubt as TO the wisdom of employing
none but democrats to take the State
Census.
The republicans pirate of dem
ocratic conspiracy TO use the State
census lists to purge the registra-
tion books of nonresident voters. /.
should think our republican friends
in st. Mary's would keepquiet about
conspiracy. After reading the re-
cords Of the Federal Circuit Court
and the comments Of even the most
rabid republican journals does any
one doubt that the republicans did
maliciously and wiIlfully and with
intent TO defraud take a Feaeral
Census whereby certain counties Of
this State were given greater repre-
sentation in the General Assembly
and in party conventions than was
their due. "
Does any sane man think that the
other counties Of the State should
have remained supine and quiet
while republican conspirators for
partisan advantage were padding
the Federal Census to give certain
counties greater number of votes
than rightly belonged to them.
General Merriam, Superintendent of
the Federal Census, certified to the
correctness of the Federal Census
lists. Under the law Gov. Smith
had to apportion the representation
in the Legislature under that GER
tificate or take State Census. So,
like the man he is, he called together
the General Assembly toprevent the
completion of that attempted fraud.
The costs and expense of that Extra
ordinary Session properly belong
and should be placed on the broad
shoulders of the republicans who
entered into the conspiracy that
made the session an imperative ne
cessity"
For three months the records of
the State Census were in the Office
of the State Superintendent and
open 10 the inspection of any one
who called to see them. In all that
time the republicans did not try to
secure them. But when the super
intendent was .faHcsns c5iciio and the
records had been boxed and stored
in Annapolis, the republicans woke
to the fact that they wanted to look
at them. Is such action theexercise
of proper diligence? Did the re-
publicans expect the democrats to
furnish them with the brains to run
their campaign"
There is no word i'm the election
law about the Acknowledgement of
anybody. Yetthe republican politi-
clans tell the negro it is intended to
disfranchise him and to favor the
white man. In the same breath they
tell the illiterate white man that the
law was framed to disfranchise him.
THE election law was framed to
confine the elective franchise to the
most intelligent people of the State.
By the law no man having the con-
stitutional requirements is deprived
of the right of registering and any
man who is intelligent enough to
correctly mark his ticket can vote
without a ballot clerk knowing how
he votes. The law does prevent
ballot clerks from marking tickets
and thus testifying to the fact that a
man has sold his franchise and de-
livered the goods.
Il regret that Constitutional limi-
tations prevented giving assistance
to worthy men in marking their bal
lots. 1t would have been given
them If it could have been given
under our present Constitution.
THE time has come for the part
ing of the ways. / do not hesitate
to say that the election law was pass
ed toprevent the illiterate and vicious
and ignorant in the negro ranks
from controlling the destinies of the
State and counties. -
There are so many colored voters
in the South that it takes but a few
white office-seekers to combine with
themtocontrol elections. The South
ern States have eliminated the negro
as a factor in their politics and the
most ignorant, vicious aud degraded
OF the negro race in those States have
begun to move here and will Join
with the republicans to help control
-.