"
No law of Congress describes the qualifications of voters in this State,
or in any State.
Congress has provided no registry law. Therefore, what constitutes the
offenses charged in this indictment, must be looked for in the laws of
the State. By no Act of Congress can it be determined in what case a
person votes, "_without having a right to vote_." By no Act of Congress
can it be determined when an Inspector of Election has received the vote
of "_any person not entitled to vote_," or has registered "_as a voter,
any person not entitled to be registered_." These are the offenses
alleged in this indictment. They are penal offenses by the Statutes of
New York. The jurisdiction of the State Courts over them is complete,
and cannot be questioned.
By the Act of May 31, 1870, above cited, Congress has ordained, in legal
effect, that if any person violates the penal Code of the State of New
York, or any State, in respect of voting, he may be punished by the
United States. And the offense is a variable quantity; what is a crime
in one State under this Act, is a legal right and duty in another. A
citizen of Rhode Island, for instance, who votes when not possessed in
his own right, of an estate in fee simple--in fee tail, for life, or in
reversion or remainder, of the value of $134 or up-wards, may be
convicted of a crime under this Act, and imprisoned in a State Prison.
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