Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-01-24
HIIMINe row, WBDNEsDAY, JAN. Rl
nisoELlAEEoUs REcoRD
Ia nuvar and the Rourht.


Tho Buyer and the Bought.
The relative guilt Of those who CON
tribute $4,000 for the corruption of an
election and the man who sells his vote
was plainly and effectively set forth by
Rev H. =. Barrett of Dover, in his sermon
Of Sunday last, report Of which was
printed in Every Evening The former
be elassed rs "sinners in the upper tenth, %
and the vote-sellers as the "snners In the
lower tenth" "When one Of these sim
ners in the lower TENTH" he said. "sees
one of the sinners in the upper tenth draw
ing check for $4,000, and giving the
money 10 debauch electors, 10 buy votes
to buy human beings like you buy cattle,
he, poor fellow, who has hard time to
buy food and clothing, thinks il no more
harm for him to sell his vote, and thus get
a little Of that S5O,0oO, which he so sadly
needs The man drawing the checl, is the
more guilty of the two"
There is not the slightest doubt Of the
eoundness Of this conclusion. The vote
buyer is infinitely worse than the vote
seller. But both are bad, very bad, and
the question for tho decent element Of the
community is: How may we reach the
evil by not only making it dangerous
for any man TO buy vote, in view Of swift
and suro punishment, but by educating
and elevating those who are prone 10 the
temptation Of a money price for their
manhood suffrage TO a resoluto courage
20 resist the temptor and sin no more?
To this wrotched and unfortunate class
Of human beings we know Of no stronger
appeal than that Of the high element Of
manhood conferred upon them by their
suffrage. II is the one possession that
makes them, upon ono day Of the year,
nt least, the peer of any man, rich or poor,
high or low, educated or simple. powerful
or weak. With the weapon Of the ballot
IN his hands on election day, a man is as
good as any other man. How completely
this is the case Is set forth in one Of the
most effective poems ever written by that
great writer of appealing verse, John
/ Greenleaf Whittier, more than sixty wears
ago. Il is entitled "Tho Poor Voter on
Election Day" and we reproduce It here
in FULL
The prouiest nov is but my peer,
The highest not more high;
Today, of all tho weary year
A king of men am 4.
Today, alike ara great or small.
The nameloes and tho known:
My palace IL the peoples hall,
The ballot box my thronel
Who serves today upon the list
Beside the served shall stand
Alike the brown and wrinkled fat
The gloved and dainty hand;
The rich Ia level with the poor.
The weak is strong today
And sleekesi hroadcloth counts no more
Than homespun irock of gray.
Today lot pomp and vain pretence
My stubborn right abide;
I act plain mans common sense
Against the pedantH pride.
Today shall simple manhood try
The strength of gold and land
The wide world has not wealth TO buy
The powerin my right handl
While there's a grief TO seok redress.
Or balance 20 adjust,
Where weighs our living manhood less
Than Mammon's vilest dust
While there'e right 20 need my vote,
A wrong 20 sweep away,
Ipi clouted knee and ragged coati
mans a man today
These lines should touch the conscienc,
Of every vonal seller of suffrage in Della
ware and incite 10 reform. For even tn
man who sells his vote has conscience
although he may tramplo Il under foot an,
suppress It's promptings by violence. An,
n anything viii reach that abused an,
tampled conscience. and give Il strength
these noble lines Of the good gray poet
Nill.
But the vote-huyer has absolutely n,
conscience. II he had the veriest shres
Of an inward monitor he would mover hol,
out a dollar for the purchase Of poo
mans vote. For him the rigors of IN,
law-for he fears. II he does not feel. II
him the organization Of honest voters nov
in process Of formation. for the purpose o
rdding our elections Of the terrible oursi
Of bribery and corruption, will find
motive for their most strenuous efforts
The votc-buyen the men who furnisl
the corruption funds as well as those VIII,
act as their agents and intermediates
may be pursued by the anti-bribery or
ganizaiion with the vigor and persistency
Of wild animals trailing their prey.
The law provides no punishment for The
poor, misguided. tempted man who SELL
his vote. His punishment overtalles hin
he instant his fan becomes known. Il Il
visited upon him in tho scorn and con
tempt Of his fellows. oven Of those VIII,
so hasely tempted him. But the lav
does provide a severe punishment for thi