Mr. PETER. In our county it was done, and
a fresh election held.
Mr. STOCKBRIDGE, There was a fresh elec-
tion in that district, and here are the men
elected to represent that county. Then there
has been no interference save in one election
district, and that has been remedied, and here
are the gentlemen as the result of it. Nobody
has protested against it. Yet here is fore
shadowed, and gentlemen's remarks this morn-
ing have foreshadowed precisely the same
thing, their resistance if they happen to be in
the minority, with all the means and power un-
der their control? And what are the means and
power under their control? Gentlemen will
know, if they remember, that within the past
few days, in Indiana, hundreds of thousands
of rounds of fixed ammunition have been fer-
reted out, and thousands upon thousands of
the best navy revolvers. These are some of
the "means under our control" which are
to be used in maintaining the purity of the
ballot-box, and the fairness of elections.
I say then that the opposition to this arti-
cle is not designed, and does not tend to pro-
mote the purity of the ballot. What is the
pure ballot? Where the citizens of our State
can declare their preference for the man of
their choice. What did our fathers say when
they formed their constitution, and how stood
it in the constitution of Maryland always un-
til 1850? They bad no scruples on this point.
They said in the convention of 1776 :
"Art. 6 That the right in the people to
participate in the legislature is the best secu-
rity of liberty and the foundation of all free
government; for this purpose elections ought
to be free and frequent, and every man hav-
ing property in and common interest with and
an attachment to the community ought to
have the right of suffrage."
They believed that an attachment to the
community was essential to the right. But
now men appeal to the bullet from the ballot.
And then when defeated with the bullet also,
they claim the right to appeal from the bullet
back again to the ballot, and under conditions
of their own dictation.
That same convention went further. Gen-
tlemen say that we are tyrannizing. Let me
read another order adopted in 1776 in this
very hall:
" Ordered, That no person who has refused
or neglected to subscribe to the association
(unless from religious principles,) be permit-
ted to come within the doors of this house
during the sitting of the convention."
That shows the spirit of that day, when it
was said, and said truly, that every man hav-
ing an attachment to and an interest in the
community, who designed by his vote to up-
hold the interest of the community, and he
alone had the right to vote. But now men
suppose that treason is to stand on an equal
footing with loyalty to the laws and to the
constitution of the country. |
But, Mr. President, not only have we a
clear right to adopt this as a means of" self-
defence, not only have we the revolutionary
right, in the language of this resolution, and
of members here, to meet revolution, if ne-
cessary. by counter-revolution, but we have
at all times the right to maintain the govern-
ment against revolutions. Men institute a
revolution; appeal to bullets; and then com-
plain if we do anything more than to fight.
They set your house on fire, or come with the
torch to do so, and then complain that you do
not confine yourself to the legitimate business
of pouring on water instead of striking down
the hand that is applying the torch. Is there
any doubt as to our right in this matter, that
it is as much a duty to strike down the hand
as it is to pour on the water? When all these
great interests are at stake, we are bound to
take efficient measures to protect ourselves
against the repetition of these outrages. If
gentlemen will resort to resistance "with all
the means and power under our control," they
can do so. I know not what effect it may
have on others, but for one I am ready to
meet whatever in that line may come.
SEVERAL MEMBERS. So am 1; so am 1.
Mr. STOCKBRIDGE continued: We have seen
this resistance inaugurated. It is threatened
now to be brought north of the Potomac and to
be inaugurated elsewhere if the people shall pre-
sume to cast a majority of votes against the
man of their choice. The instances which we
have witnessed for the last few months, even
while assembled here, and in our own State,
show that all is fair and right if we get the ma-
jority, and all is wrong and a shameful viola-
tion of the constitution and to be resisted, if
we fall into the minority. If that be the ground,
let it come.
Mr. CUSHING moved the previous question.
Mr. MARBURY. Will the gentleman with-
draw that motion for a few moments? There
is one statement I want corrected.
Mr. CUSHING, I will withdraw the motion
if the gentleman will renew it.
The CHAIRMAN (Mr. Daniel.) The gentle-
man from Prince George's (Mr. Marbury) had
the floor before the motion for the previous
question was seconded. The gentleman can
proceed,
Mr. MARBURY. The gentleman from Balti-
more city who has addressed the convention
(Mr. Stockbridge) attempted to show this
convention that in the various elections held
in this State for the last two years there had
been no military interference, and said he had
not heard of any military interference what-
ever. Now I will inform him that at the last
November election, which elected the legisla-
ture of which he was a prominent and distin-
guished member, at that election, in my own
county, a company of military, under the
command of Colonel Baker, a government de-
tective and general military superintendent
for our county, came down to our county seat, |
