“The Purity of the Ballot.” from the March 23, 1871 Door County Advocate
The Purity of the Ballot.
———
Only by preventing fraudulent voting or reducing such fraud to its lowest measure is a government by the people possible. Whenever the ballot-box shall become so degraded that voters shall not be certain of finding in the result of the count an expression of their will, the Republic will be already death-struck. For a despotism presided over by one honest man would be felt to be infinitely preferable to an autocracy of fraud. New York city, for instance, has not been under a Democratic form of municipal government for many years; it has been ruled by a mob—an aristocracy of ballot-box stuffers. Let the whole nation slide irremediably into the condition of New York City, and the very best thing we could do would be to place ourselves under a good strong master—good, if might be—strong at any rate. That city is as vile as Sodom and as misgoverned as Babylon, and nothing prevents the government from being subverted nominally, as it already has been practically, except the average virtue of the States outside.
We are led to this prefatory remark by the excellent law that last week passed Congress “to enforce the rights of citizens of the United States to vote in the several States of this Union.” This law, provides:
1. Certain appropriate penalties for frauds in registration.
2. The appointment, by a Circuit Judge, of two Supervisors of Election for each precinct in every city of upward of 20,000 inhabitants, upon the application of any two citizens.
3. The appointment of special Deputy Marshals to aid the Supervisors.
4. The Supervisors shall attend all registrations; select names to be challenged; copy the poll-lists; scrutinize the registry lists; attend each election; challenge any vote and personally scrutinize, count and, canvass each and every ballot on which is a vote for member of Congress. They shall then forward the result to the Chief Inspector, accompanied by comments on the conduct of the election.
5. The Deputy Marshals shall have power to arrest and take into custody, with or without process, any person who, in their judgment, may commit, or attempt, fraudulent registration, or voting, or for fraudulent conduct, may arrest an officer of the election.
6. Resistance to the Supervisors or deputies shall be punished by imprisonment in the Penitentiary for two years.
The Tribune roundly objects to this law, and declares that it “rests upon the assumption that Congress, and the United States Marshals, and their deputies, are more competent to protect the political liberties of the people than the people themselves.” On the contrary, we say it obviously rests on the fact that the laws can be enforced and order maintained only by officers to thwart and arrest law-breakers in the name of the people. It is founded, too on the notion that has gained wide prevalence that it ought to be the peculiar business of Congress to guarantee fair play in the election of its own members.
The law is arbitrary, certainly. It contains provisions which nothing but the presence of a grave public peril could justify; but the peril as it now exists in New York city is sufficient to justify any extremes short of absolute despotism. It is not only that city that is affected, unfortunately; not only that county and Kings County with their vast interests not only the State whose destinies their fraud decides; but the whole nation for whose President these degraded repeaters are to vote, and to whose Congress they send their representatives. And this nation is more in danger to-day from a corrupted ballot-box than from any other one source. If the majority in an electoral college should once be decided by the fraudulent votes of repeaters, or by the stuffing of ballot-boxes, a rebellion would be imminent, and our form of government would be in greater peril than it has ever before been except when South Carolina seceded from the Union. That danger must be averted, and it can be averted only by removing its cause.
The Tribune says:
“It is understood that this law, as well as the one of which it is amendatory, is designed particularly for New York city, and to secure that State for the Republican party. It is undeniable that the elections in New York city have been for many years fraudulent, and that the persons in power have been able to perpetuate their ascendancy by fraud at the elections. But was not the execution of this law last November, in New York city, proof of its utter futility and folly?”
No; it was a proof of exactly the reverse. The execution of the law in New York city last November was so far from being a failure, that it cut off 15,000 bogus Democratic votes, and brought the honest voters that much nearer to victory. The reason why it did not prevent fraudulent voting absolutely, was for the need of just the provisions which this new bill contains.
We approve of the law cordially:
1. Because it cannot possibly do any harm.
2. Because heroic prescriptions are necessary to cure the disease of electoral dishonesty, which is mortal in its nature if it be not speedily mastered.
3. Because we cannot see why any man should oppose it, except, those whose crimes it will prevent—Tweed, Sweeney, Fisk, Fernando Wood, Cox, Morrisey, and their wretched pimps and slaves.—Chicago Post, March 1.
Courtesy of the Door County Library Newspaper Archive
Election or districting-related posts
https://doorcounty.substack.com/t/election-or-districting-related