The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-10-24
THE DUTY OF CITIZENS.

without interrerence is not only one of the highest privileges enjoyed by citizens of a free government. but is among the most important duties of the individual citizen. The right to inherent and should be observed. Speaking now to Democrats alone, we insist that they owe 1t to themselves. to the party and to the State to turn out on election day. It requires but a small portion of ones time to go to time can be spared It Is possible that one or more of the names on the ticket may not be first choice of the voter. It would be strange if every Demo- cratic voter in Alabama could have the privilege of voting for men of his are not conducted in that way. at least not now and here. The voter should bear in mind that every other voter has the right to choose. and if all should try to get their favorites and ! none others on the ticket there would be no elections In Alabama or else where Each must concede something to all the others.
 The way to look at the matter is that it is the ticket of the party. not of individuals. that is to be voted for. The party has selected a ticket in the regular way. and Democrats fail in their duty if they do not support it. fc argue that the ticket will be elected anyway, and that he needn't put him. self to the trouble of going to the polls. One man has as much right to use that excuse as another has. and it might be that enough of them would thus excuse themselves to cause the election to go by default Then each non-voter would have part of the blame on his own conscience.
 One unpleasant feature in connection with the non- voting habit is the opinion it gives others of our politics. We are continually seeing in Northern news papers criticism of the small vote of Alabama. and we are told that elec- tions in this State are not indicative of the voice of the people but only represent the wishes and acts of few, and how can we contradict such crit icism in the face of recorded facts? For example, the white population of Alabama is about the same as that of Nebraska. In the election of 1904 the total vote in round numbers was 9S.oOO for Alabama and 220,0O0 for Nebraska. As there were comparatively few me- gro votes cast in Alabama the table shows that less than one in ten of the white people in Alabama voted. while the proportion in Nebraska was more than twice as great. It Is the same in most of the Union, and it is no won- der that they criticise us.
 The habit of non-voting is something like the habit of non-attendance at church. It is a habit that grows on indulgence. and the longer either duty Is neglected the more difficult 1t be- comes to break the habit. And there is one peculiarity connected with this habit of not voting and that Is that those who make the Ioudest and most frequent complaints aDOut the pat laws or indifferent officials are gener- ally the men who take no part in the selection or election of candidates. If they want good men elected to office they should join in the work of get ting good men placed on the ticket and then help to elect them. A citizen has no right to complain of the machine unless he puts himself to some trou ble to smash the machine.
 At a fair and moderate estimate we may claim that there are 100000 qual- fled white voters in Alabama today. Assuming that 10000 of them are Re- publicans. which is a liberal estimate, there ought to be at least 150,000 votes cast for the Democratic ticket. If the returns show half that number we shall be very much surprised. This is not right It does not show proper appreciation of Democracy nor of the rights and privileges of citizenship. Certainly a very large majority of the Democrats of Alabama can spare an hour or two on November to perform duty which they have no right to disregard.