The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1903-10-24
EXACT A CORRUPT PRACTICES ACT,
Baltimore San.


1t is gratifying to the people who are in favor
of honest government that the Republican
State convention declared for the enactment of
a corrupt practices act. This is entirely in ac-
cord with the record and the known sem
timents of their candidate for Governor. Mr..
Stevenson A. Williams, while member of
the State Senate some years ago, introduced
bill to amend Section 3, Article 1, of the Con-
stitution by limiting the penalties for bribery
of voters to the person offering the BRIDE I'm
der the Constitution as it now is the penalty
applies to both the bribegiver and the man
who sells his vote 1t was the theory of Sena-
tor Williams that if man knows that he will
put himself in the power of another he will
not be so apt 10 offer bribe. OF course, the
main object of a corrupt practices act is
to prevent bribery. 1t is perfectly plain
that professional politicians of neither party
want any law passed which will interfere with
the collection of campaign funds. The only
way, therefore, to secure the enactment of such
law is by the pressure of public sentiment.
The buying and selling of votes is a most
odious crime, and it is the only crime which,
under the Constitution of Maryland, is pun
ished by a perpetual loss of suffrage. The
person convicted of larceny or other infamous
crime is disfranchised unless pardoned by the
Governor. But the person who buys or sells
vote, or who buys a citizen to refrain from
voting, or who gives or causes to be given an
illegal vote "shall, on conviction by court
of law, in addition to the penalties now or
hereafter to be imposed by law, be forever dis
qualified to hold any Office of profit or trust
or to vote at any election thereafter" This
penalty the Governor has no power to remit,
and so the trainers of the Constitution consid-
cred bribery worse than the preparation of
infamous crimes. That it is more dangerous
to the body polite than most of the offenses
for which men are sent to the penitentiary no
one can doubt
That the practice of bribery at elections in
this and other States is increasing at a fearful
rate no man with his eyes open can fail to see.
The time is cOming-ifit has not already come
when wealth will be substituted for merit as
qualification for Office. Thepractice of bribery
is the corruption of the whole stream of gov
eminent at the fountain head 1t saps and
mines the whole fabric Of popular institutions.
The evils of impure elections are carried into
office and into legislation, for the man or the
party that buys an Office or an election will
make good the money that has been expended.
The evils of the lobby, of trafficking in legis-
lation, of unnecessary appropriations and OF
sinecure offices may generally be traced back
to corrupt elections as their fountain head.
Nothing should be omitted by those who have
any influence upon public opinion or by the
courts and Legislature to make the crime of
bribery odious and detestable. The Constitu-
ton of 1864 required persons, upon assuming
Office, to swear that they had not in any man.
ner violated the provisions of that or the pre-.
ceding Constitutions relating to the bribery of
voters. 1t is unfortunate that this clause was
omitted from the Constitution of 1867