Sections applied simply to the garrisons, of
soldiers in the service of the United States,
for so many years. We have heard here, all
around this hall, that hundreds, and thou-
sands, and tens of thousands of these north-
ern soldiers never inlend to return at all after
the war is over; but they intend to settle
here and remain here. I have no doubt that
many of them in Maryland, to-day, intend to
make this State their home in the future, and
yet, under this proposed section, if these men
were to go to the polls to-morrow, and swear
that it was their intention to become bona
fide citizens of this State, they would be ex-
cluded from voting.
Mr. MILLER. if they voted as soldiers From
and for their own Static, they would he exclu-
ded and rightfully excluded. Last fall some
of them voted, because they happened to have
been six months in our hospitals, and when
the question was asked, when they were ready
to swear through under the forms of our
election laws, "When did you last vote?"
They answered, "The commissioners came
around not more than three or four months
ago, and took our vote."
Mr. SANDS. Then they did not come with
the intention of becoming citizens. But I put
the question—suppose it was their bona fide
intention to become citizens of this State.
Mr. MILLER Then they would be entitled
to vote.
Mr. .SANDS. No, sir.
Mr. PUGH. In my judgment the law is
plain enough. This matter must be left to
the judges. The difficulties arise at the polls
to a greater or less extent; they cannot be
avoided. it is a question of intention which
the judges must determine. We cannot avoid
the difficulty, because as it now appears it
will still arise if the amendment is adopted.
Mr. BERRY of Prince George's. This makes
it a matter of intention alone.
Mr. PUGH. That is the law already. So
what would be the benefit of adopting the
amendment ?
Mr. BERRY, of Prince George's, The bene-
fit would be that that man would be excluded
from voting, who is a soldier, and says that
he did not come here with the intention of
making this State his residence, but would
vote in New York should he return there.
Mr. PUGH. That is a question for the judges
to determine, if they allow that man to vote
they will do wrong. They are now left to
act on the question of intention; and the
question of intention will arise just as surely
under the section suggested by the gentleman
from Anne Arundel (Mr. Miller,) as now.
And we will be in just precisely the same
position whether the amendment be adopted
or not. I shall vote against it.
Mr. MILLER. I will modify my amendment
by leaving out " or while confined as a public
prisoner."
Mr. STIRLING. I voted against this amend- |
ment, and intend to vote against it again;
and I wish to state the reasons that induce me
to do so. I am not exactly certain whether
the amendment states the law as it now stands,
or whether it goes absolutely to the extent of
saying that a man coming into this State,
under the circumstances mentioned in the
provision, shall under no circumstances have
a right to vote. If it does do that, it goes
too far. If it does not do that, then it is un-
necessary, I would rather let the law stand
as it does, than put anything else in the con-
stitution that might cause difficulty. We
halve already provided in this constitution
that no man shall vote in the State unless he
is a resident. And what is the necessity of
any provision of this kind 7 If any soldier is
to vote he must be first registered, and that
does away with the entire difficulty proposed
to be remedied by this section.
Mr. EDELEN. You do not propose to regis-
ter at the first election,
Mr. STIRLING. No, sir; but very soon
afterwards. I know now what the law is.
The judges may fraudulently or ignorantly
administer that law. But they may fraudu-
lently administer this provision if it is put
into the constitution, if a man is disposed
to get around the law, he will get around it,
unless you make it so absolute that there is
no difficulty about it. You cannot make the
question of intention absolute and free from
difficulty. There would be no security in
Baltimore city with a provision of this sort.
If these soldiers want to vote, and their offi-
cers connive at it, all the soldiers would have
to do would be to take off their uniforms and
run around town in citizen's clothes, and no
one would know they were soldiers. There
is always some degree of fraud in our elec-
tions, and will be unless there is a registry
law. There is no other mode of preventing
fraud, because the judges of election will be
imposed upon. And if the judge of election
is a strong party man be will never challenge
the vote of a man who comes up with a polit-
ical friend. Not one man in fifty would do
it. I would rather let well enough alone. 1
do not know but what I may be caught with
this thing; I do not know exactly what the
effect of it may be; and I prefer to let the law
stand as it now is.
Mr. BERRY, of Prince George's. I move
that this section be informally passed over, so
that members may consider it. I do not con-
sider it entirely perfect,; it may be alienable
to some of the objections urged by the gentle-
man from Baltimore city (Mr. Stirling.) It
may be an important provision to put into
the constitution. And in order to make it as
perfect as possible, I move that it be informally-
passed over.
The question being taken upon the motion
to pass over the section informally, it was not
agreed to. |
