WEST VIRGINIA. 



753 



> 



0. ) 



in connection with tho provisions of the En- 

 forcement Act, so called, Governor Stevenson, 

 by a letter dated September 8, 1870, requested 

 -tate Attorney-General to give his opinion 

 in writing; whereupon this officer wrote him 

 the following answer: 



STATE or WMT Vraoiwu, 



CHABLKSTOIC, &ptmbr 9, 1870. 

 To Hi* Kxcdltney, W. E. Stnenton : 



DEAR SIB : In reply to your favor of the 8t)> 



-iiiK' my views in writing "as to tho kind of 

 affidavit required by the third section of the act of 

 Congress entitled 'An act to enforce tho rights of citi- 

 zens of the United States to vote.' " etc., approved 

 May 31. 1870, and who under said section would bo 

 entitled to vote by virtue of said affidavit, I have the 

 honor of submitting the following opinion : 



In every cose where the applicant for registration 

 has been refused to be registered, for the want of 

 qualification under the laws of West Virginia, the 



tion of the Enforcement Act." They said: 

 44 The supervisor and inspector of election will 

 render themselves liable to the penalties of 

 the Enforcement Act, if they refuse to receive 

 the vote of any citizen presenting this affidavit, 

 and demanding the right of depositing his bal- 

 lot -" Several suits were instituted against 

 election officers by citizens who thought them- 

 selves wronged in being refused to register and 



vote last fall. 



The result of the p Opa l ftr vote at the ^jj 

 , ... . 



election was almost entirely favorable to the 



Democrats, and completely changed the politi- 

 cal complexion of the State. They elected the 



Governor, all tho State officers, a Judge of the 



r^.,.* ~* i_ *v T> 



Court of Appeals, two out of the three Repre- 



sentatives in Congress, and a majority of mem- 

 bers in both Houses of the State Legislature, 

 which now stand: Senate, 12 Democrats and 

 10 ^publicans, most of whom are holding 



on tho register of voters, as required by Section 42 over 5 Honse of Delegates, 38 Democrats and 



of Chapter 8, of the code of West Virginia. But in 13 Republicans. 



the exceptional case, provided for in tho 8d Section The following is the Federal census of West 



of said act of Congress, that is to say, where a person Virginia for the years 1860 and 1870 : 

 has been refused registration, because of his " race, 



color, or previous condition of servitude." he should __ ____ 



be allowed to vote (though not registered), if qualified COUNTIES. 18?0. i. 



according to tho laws of our State, provided no pre- - : -- ^^____ 



sent to said officer of election his affidavit, stating his 5 ar , bour .................... 10 - 312 s - ! ' :>s 



offer to be registered, the time and place thereof, the ! e j; k ! > ley .................... '! '-"-''! 



name of the registrar or board of registration that re- Braxton ' ' ' MB 



fused to register him, and that ho was refused to be Brooke...................... 5^464 



registered '' on account of race, color, or previous Cabell.V... ............ ____ . 6^429 8,0*0 



condition of servitude." It must be stated in said Calhoun .................... 2,989 a. ><>. 



affidavit, that the refusal to register him was u on cla y .................... 2,196 



account of race, color, or previous condition of servi- Doddridge ................. 



tude,' ' for the obvious reason that in no other case Qjfao-e' .............. 4 <W8 ''! " >i 



can a person bo allowed to vote, unless his name is Grant... ......'.'... -Mirr 



on the register of voters, as required by said Section Greenb'rier' .'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.".' ..... '.. 1M17 12,211 



43, of Chapter 8 of said code. Tho views above ex- Hampshire .................. 7,643 13^913 



pressed are fullv sustained by Attorney-General Hancock .................... 4,363 4,445 



Akerman, in his (recent) official instructions to Gen- S 11 " 1 / ...................... 5l5 lS : '- M ' 1 



eral Goflf, United States District Attorney for this ? " k r 80 n .................... Kj2S 



State, directing him to dismiss all prosecutions j e ff e rson M '\- 



against registrars, except where the offence consists Kanawha................." 221350 ie',150 



in a refusal to register on account of " race, color, or Lewis ...................... 10,176 7. '.'.' J 



previous condition of servitude," and also by Hon. Lincoln ..................... 5,053 



Hugh L. Bond, Judge of the Fourth Judicial Circuit J*fJ?"i ................... 5 '^ ' '' :{S 



of the United States in and for the District of West McDowell .................. 1 !b2 



Virginia, m his decision on August 29, 1870, at Mar- JgjgSj, ........... """i;;; igS KM 



tmsburg. West Virginia, in tho habeas corpus case Mason . ......... 15978 9' 173 



of John Mcllwee, registrar of Mineral County. Mercer'. .................... 7.(*;i 6319 



Yours, very respectfully, etc., Mineral ..................... t;.:ti'.i ____ 



A. B. CALDWELL, Attorney-General. Monongalla ................. 18,547 13,048 



Monroe ..................... 11,124 10.7:,7 



contrary to the opinion of judge Bond, cited :&&:::::::;:;;;;;;;::: T : i'^s 



in Mr. t/aluwell s answer, Judge Jackson, of Ohio ........................ 88,881 2-.'.-i 



the same State, had decided, in a similar case, Pendleton ................... 



that the provision of the Enforcement Act is Po^hontas.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'.' 4io69 



applicable to the white man as well as to the Preston .................... 14',554 



negro, the former being equally protected by j^f^ .................... 3'^ 



it in his right to register and vote, if he takes Randolph'. '.!'.!!!!!!'.!!!!."!! s^ses 

 the prescribed oath. 



For the use of white voters, legally qualified, Taylor .'.'.'.".'.'.'.'. '.'.'.'.'.'. ! ! .'.'.'.' '. '. oisur T! i^ 



the Democrats also prepared and published a Tucker ........ 



form of affidavit, apparently answering the re- nJMhar ! " .' ..... KM '. ''*rl 



quirements of Mr. Caldwell's construction of Wayne .'.'.".'...'.'.'.'.'.!.'.'.'.'..'.'.'. TjBBI (..TIT 



the Enforcement Act; such affidavit "to be weud" ............... i'vM V;a"i 



filled up and sworn to by tho legally-qualified win... V.'.V.V .'.'.'.'.'.".'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'. 



white citizen who has been denied registration, JJ 00 * 1 ; ..................... W'SS? n |V "' 



and to be presented at the polls on the 27th "* ................... 8,171 .86i 



of October, in accordance with the third sec- Total ....... . ......... 448.088 878,886 



VOL. x. 48 A 



