Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-03-29


RADICAL REsPEGTPoR TIIENEGRO.
The respect which the Radicals enter
tain Ter the negro is receiving some very
striking Illustrations For instance, the
effort to give the negro the ballet in Ohio
was defeated in the Legislature Of that
State, in both branches Of which the Rad
icals have a majority When the question
Of calling a convention TO amend the con-
stitution Of New York was before the
Legislature Of that State, negroes not
possessed Of the property qualification
now required by law, were not allowed
to vote, though the Legislature is strongly
Radical At the meeting Of the Repub-
lean State Central Committee of New
York, held at Albany, on the Dist inst,
Mr.. Spencer, Of New York city, offered
the following resolution
Resolved, That this, the State Commit
tee of the Union Republican party of the
State of New York, recognize as one of the
doctrines of the party whose representa-
tives we are, the right Of every citizen to
equality before the law, and congratulate
the country upon the action of many
hitherto prominent Rebels in the South
ern States in their recognition of the situa-
tion and acquiescence in the action of
Congress giving to the black man a vote.
s$ssThere was great anxiety, in view Of
the recent action of the Legislature, to
secure the adoption Of this resolution,
but majority of the committee refused
to endorse the doctrine, and the resolu-
ton was lost by vote of eight for to ten
against it. In the South the Radicals,
where they are in great minority
among the white people, regard the negro
as entitled not only to equality before
the law, but to the ballot. In the NortD,
where there are very few negroes, so few
that their votes could not influence any
election, and where the Radicals and Re
publicans are in the majority, they do
not think it at all expedient to trust the
dark man and brother with the ballot.
The Radicals Of the South need the ne
gro vote to enable them to carry the cleo
tions and get into Offices, and the Con-
gress ordains that the negro shall vote in
ten of the Southern States, and hold
Office, if they..,can be elected In Ten
nessee, where the Radicals, although
greatly in the minority, have obtained
power through adventitiOus circum
stances, the negro vote is wanted to help
them retain this power, but with a ma
jority in both branches of the Legisla
ture, they persistently refused to allow
the negro the privilege of holding Office
They are desired and expected
to vote to continue in Office
Governor Brownlow, who has de-
clared within two years that they are
ignorant, docile, easily led by design
ing men, and not safely trusted with po,
litical power, and who did nothing tC
change the purpose of his party to deny
the negro the right to hold office Eigh.
teen months ago he declared that negro
voting cannot suit his natural prejudices
of caste" that 4" it would be bad policy
as we'll as wrong in principle to open the
ballot box to the uniformed and exceed
ingly stupid slaves of the Southern cot
ton, rice and sugar fields" Now he
fears that he and his Legislature cannot
get white votes enough to continue them
in Office, and they appeal to these "unin-
formed and exceedingly stupid" negroes
to save them from the indignant but
Just reward Of an outraged people II
the Radicals could have retained THEN
lease-hold upon Office through white
votes, they never would have conferred
the right of suffrage upon the negro
This is fully established by the fact that
in the North, where they do not need his
vote, they steadily refuse to confer the
right of suffrage upon him.