Year: 1876

If all the reports that come to us from
the South are true, then the unfortunate
colored voter is indeed set between the
devil and the deep sea. He has his wife
on one side of him with an axe, and a
furious Democrat on the other with a
shot-gun,a and which ofthe two is the devil
and which the deep sea the reader may
settle as he lists. The negro of the period
goes out on the morning of election day to
the nearest polling-places, land his guardian
with the shotgun takes possession of him
supplies him with a Democratic ticket,
and leads him up to the ballot box to see
that the deposits his vote. The man with
the shotgun then dismisses him with a
glass Of whisky and a pleasant laugh.
The colored citizen returns to his home
with many misgiving, and his spouse
watching for him at the door, demands
an account of the conduct. He makes
a nervous attempt to tell lie but finds
that the news of his detection from Boss
Grant has preceded him, and his voice
falters. The household fury leaps for an
axe and with a few well directed blows
layes out her lord and master in such a
condition that he will never more revisit
the gay and festive egistration-board,
nor step proudly into the polling
booth. The sketch is no fancy one, but
simply details the experience of a hapless
negro of Sandy Bottom, near Macon, who
fell victim last Tuesday night to conjugo
political vengeance. His fate suggests
the painful thought that there is a species
of intimidation which no constitutional
amendment can prevent and no enforce
ment act avenge.


BY means of the United States Mar
shal and his deputies, with their batteries
of blank warrants and their threatening
| files of affidavits, the man with the shot
gun may be beaten of, and if all else
fails, Boss Grant can step to the fore
with few companies of soldiers ; but
whs can protect the negro from his wife
His employer may intimidate him by
threats of dismissal, or tempt him by
bribes; but his wife has thousand
methods of coaxing or subduing him.
His cabin is his castle, but he is virtually
prisoner inside of it. No proclamation
| of domestic violence and insurrection
will bring him assistance. He must
yield or die. He generally yields but
sometimes dies. In view of the fact that
| the colored women of the South seem TO
take such an intense interest in political
affairs, and are inclined to assume the
direction of the mems votes, it might be
well to consider whether this intolerable
intimidation which cannot be controlled


by law may not be nullfied by strategem.
i Let the married woman be endowed with


suffrage instead of their husbands. We


venture to say that nobody will terrify
them with shotgun into voting "A ticket
: which they don't want to vote; and nc
matter what way they cast their ballots


their lords and masters will hardly dare


to attack them with an axe when they
come home. We have heard it hnteC
that the system of female intimidation Sc
prevalent i'll the South is not unknown al


the North among white people, although
its existence is most carefully concealed
and those who practice it rarely proceed
| to such desperate weapons as the family
$ axe. If there be any women, however


who, by holding over their husbands til,


terrorism Of social or religious influence
: drive them to the polls like 1.-THE quarry


slave at night scourged to his dungeon,


it would be well that they should shar
the privileges of their darker sisters o
the South. Men who have spent an,
e length of time between the devil and tn
a deep sea will not be particular as to hoy
I they crawl out Of the perilous POSITION
JPorId