Rensselaer Republican, Volume 26, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 August 1894 — THE ALABAMA ELECTION. [ARTICLE]

THE ALABAMA ELECTION.

Captain Kolb Make* Beriou* Charge* Against Alabama Democrat*. Captain Kolb, Populist candidate foi Governor of Alabama, Aug. 7, furnished a lengthy interview over his own signature. Among other things he said: I claim to be elected by 18, CO) majority. Any citizen of Alabama of ordinary in* teliigence. who will take the trouble ta examine the figures claimed by the opposition can at once see that it will be a physical impossibility for the ticket headed by Colonel Oates to be declared elected except by claiming a majority ol over 27,0)0 from seven black belt counties having a white voting population not exceeding 12,000. The frauds this year are more notorious and shameful than those of 1892. For the purpose of deceiving the public they have to some extent been shifted. The returns as reported from Lowndes county indicate frauds exceeding anything ever before known in the history of this Slate. In Montgomery, Bullock and Barbour counties the fraud* are hardly less aggravated. The opposition claim Madison county by a majority of 1,443. Our strength in Madison county this year is much more strongly developed than in 1892. when we carried the county by about 400 majority. Furthermore, it is known that some seven or eight negroes were appointed as inspectors in Madison county, several of whom could neither read or write. It is a serious fact that in the city of Montgomery, at 4:30 p.m., only thirty minutes before the polls were closed, not exceeding 1,340 white voters and 74 colored voters had cast their ballots by actual count. Notwithstanding this fact, it is claimed that the city of Montgomery gives a majority of 2.400 for Colonel Oates. At Bessemer more than 400 of our voters were denied an opportunity of casting their ballots on account of opposition leaders crowding the poling places, materially aided by officers of the law in blocking the polling places. Kolb leaders in Alabama say that their candidate will be seated by force of arms if necessary. Another dispatch, however, says: Complete returns, unofficial, but reliable, from every county in the State but two make the Democratic majority 20,124. These two counties are Baldwin and Covington, both small, and they can not possibly change the foregoing result more than a few hundred. The official count in the counties will take place, Saturday. The Democrats have at least twenty-two members of the Senate out of thirtythree, and sixty-one members of the House out of one hundred.