Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1910-04-28
THURSDAY. APRIL %, 1910.
PHONE No. Sc
Mr.. STUART AND THE CONSTITUTION.

The republican attack on Hon. Henry
e. Stuart, on the ground that he was
member of the constitutional conven-
ton, which disfranchised the more I'm
desirable portion of the Virginia electo-
rate, is beginning to bear fruit, it seems.
We have received from a citizen of
Scott county letter from which the
following is extracted:
81 want you to get you to post me up
how you are booming Mr.. Stuart I'D
the man who took such an active part
IN making up our constitution which dis
franchised as 1 understand it more than
two thousand white voters in the CO. of
Scott and suppose you ought to rush
him go to where he can do the rest of
us up job
We had not supposed that the more
intelligent republicans of the Ninth dis
trict would allow themselves to be in
fuenced by the attempt of their party's
press and politicians to create prejudice
against Mr.. Stuart because he was a
member of the constitutional conven-
tion. But it seems that we are mistaken.
1t was, of course, impossible to frame
a constitution every provision of which
would please everybody, but we should
think that the republicans have less
reason than the democrats to be dis
satisfied with Virginia's new constitu-
ton. The Ninth district has not gone
democratic since the constitution went
into effect nine years ago, nor have the
republicans lost more strength in the
state than the democrats.
1t was the purpose of the members of
the constitutional convention to take
the ballot from the ignorant and vicious
element of the negro population. If in
order to accomplish such purpose it was
necessary to disfranchise a scarcely
more desirable class of whites, the price
was not too great. 1t is a matter of re-
greet only that the mistake was made of
requiring the payment of poll-taxes six
months in advance of an election, pro-
vision that causes many good citizens to
lose their votes. Our opinion is that
most of the two thousand white votes of
Scott county who were alleged to have
been disfranchised by the new constitu-
ton are DISTINGUISHED through the
operation of this law and have only
themselves to blame, In other words,
they are not disfranchised at all. They
simply neglect to pay their poll-taxes,
and therefore cannot vote.
But, as already said, this method of
offankfnrr NJ a.. l.
ing fruit. 1t is not probable, however
that the crop will be large. Bristol
Herald Courier.
We publish the above in full from the |
Herald-Courier to show how entirely |
the Democratic press misapprehends,
or tries to misunderstood, the purpose
of the Republicans in assailing the rec
ord of Mr.. Stuart for his part in the
making of the new constitution. Some
of his most ardent advocates, among
them the Roanoke Times and the Clinch
Valley News, have admitted that the
suffrage clauses of the constitution
have disfranchised thousands of white
voters. And they have tried to place
the responsibility for the loss of citizen
ship upon the men who are disfran-
chised. Now comes our Bristol con-
temporary with the declaration that it
was impossible for the Democrats 'to
take the ballot from the ignorant and
vicious element of the negro popula-
ton" without DISTINGUISHING "a scarce
ly more desirable class of whites" !
Then, the Herald Courier admits that
the payment of poll taxes as prerequi-
site to voting has caused a good many
citizens to lose their votes, but does not
claim that the designated two thousand
disfranchised white men in Scott county
have lost their suffrage through the op-
GRAFTON of the poll tax requirement.
Therefore, we must infer that these
two thousand white men in one county
of the Ninth district belong to that class
which our contemporary designates as
"a scarcely more desirable class of
whites" Surely we have a vast num-
Der of such white men in the district, if
this inference be true. They were not
here when Mr.. Stuart was helping to
make the constitution and its disfran-
chising clauses. That he so thought is
evidenced by circular he published to
his constituents in 1901, while he was a |
Of the Constitutional Conven-
hon and was earnestly endeavoring to
secure the election of Mr.. Montague for