The Washington herald., 1915-01-22
Precedents In Politics.

President Wilson has smashed some old prece-
dents and made new ones, and so has his party.
Attorney General Gregory has not only smashed
old precedents, but he has defied Democratic
boges In 1892, the Democratic national platform
warned the people that the policy of Federal
control Of elections to which the Republican
party has committed itself, is fraught with the
gravest dangers, scarcely less momentous than
would result from a revolution practically estab-
fishing monarchy on the ruins al the republic?
Grover Cleveland was elected President on
that platform and within year after his inaugu-
ration all the Federal election laws, enacted dur
ing the reconstruction period, were repealed. The
South was free from the bogy OF bayonets at the
polls, and the States were longer interfered
with by the Federal government in their con-
duct of elections Some Southern Democrats
feared that the constitutional amendment pro-
viding for the election OF Senators by popular
vote, might furnish an excuse for Republican
administration to again hold inquisitons on the
elections in the States, but they have not had to
wait for Republican action.
The Department of Justice has authorized an
inquiry into the election of Representatives and
Senators in Indiana and Illinois. There are
charges of fraud and intimidation in Indiana and
of bribery in Illinois. Such charges have been
made in many States and Congressional dis
tricts in the past, and there has not been Con
gress in many years that did not have contested
seats to be considered under the constitutional
authority that each House shall be the judge of
the elections and qualifications of its mem
bers" The charges of bribery and corruption of
the ballot have been tried in the State courts and
in Congress. All this heraldcd Demo-
cratic reform, and Champ Clark said in his
speech in the Fifty-third Congress, advocating
the repeal of the Federal election laws, that the
Republicans had been cast into outer darkness
because they were opposed to free elections. The
Democrats thrust into outer darkness at
the next election and kept in outer darkness for
sixteen years, but the Republicans did not in
terpret their victory and long lease of power
as a commission to again assert the Federal
power over elections.
That left for the Democratic administra-
ton, under the direction of an Attorney General,
who is Southern born and Southern bred. 1t is
true he has not begun his activities in the South,
but in States which promise to be Republican in
1916 and against prominent Republicans, but
prccedents are dangerous, in the law, and if a
Democratic Attorney General can investigate the
election OF former Republican Speaker, and a
former Republican campaign manager in the
North, Republican Attorney General could in
vcstigate the election of Democratic Senators
and Representatives in the South. And when it
comes to making Investigations OF the charge
of bribery under a section of the criminal code
for the punishment OF conspiracy ito njure, op-
press, threaten intimidate any citizen in the
free exercise enjoyment of any right priv
ilege secured to him by the Constitution laws
of the United States" it looks as though the
Republicans might have the best of the argument,
and more opportunity to make political capital
out of that law than the Democrats. Section
10 OF the criminal code, under which the
department is said to be acting. is in fact,
relic of the Federal election laws put into the
criminal code only few years ago Some Demo-
Gratis suspected that the Republicans put it over"
on them.
The vote in Mr.. Cannon's and Mr. McKinleys
districts in Illinois last November was greater
than the total vote in the Congressional election
in the State of Virginia, where ten Representa-
tives were elected, or in Georgia where twelve
Representatives were elected, or in Mississippi
and Arkansas together, where fifteen Representa-
tivcs were elected The total vote in these two
Illinois districts was o7,675, or almost one-half
the total vote of the great State of Texas, by
which eighteen Representatives will have seats
in the next House 1t would not seem possible
that many voters in the belt of Illinois could
have been kept from the polls by threats of in
timidation, and at the time there could have
been free elections in the South where two great
sovereign States polled fewer votes than in two
districts of Illinois.
If Attorney General Gregory should be sue
ccssful in keeping Uncle Joe Cannon and William
B. Mckinley out of Congress, on the complaint
Of violating the criminal code against conspiracy
10 intimidatc citizens in their rights under the
Constitution, it would be a great Democratic vic
tory, but if he does not, he will still have made
precedent which may live TO plague the South
and even Texas which has two distinguished
members of the Cabinet.