The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-03-09

CORTLAND.


Saturday Morning, March 9, 1907.
Another Progressive Southern Gsvernor.
Governor Orr, of South Carolina, is one of
few leading men of the South who, like Gov.
| Brown OF Georgia, seem to comprehend the
| new situation in which circumstances have
placed them. Mr.. Orr, it is said, fol his liber-
| al sc sentiments was recently rudely insulted at
a public dinner in Charleston by the Mayor of
that city, and resented the insult by leaving
the table, z.s. ..... ..... ........
| A short time since Governor Orr made n
! speech to collection of the freedmen Of
Charleston, which is significant of the chanoe
that has come over the spirit of his dream and
is one OF the most emphatic indications of the
advent Of the new era that has just begun to
dawn upon the South. He recognized the
negro as a man, as a fellow-citizen, whose
right it is to be Industrious, thrifty, wealthy,
educated, and to be the controller OF the free
mans ballot. His speech was free from dog
matism, and unlike the patronizing style in
| which President johnson addressed the col
ored delegations which called upon him at the
| White House. He speaks to the negro as
though he would impress him with sense of
the radical and utter change which has come
1 upon him and upon the South as we'll Old
things have passedaway; all has become new.
| A new state of society is inaugirated, and the
old is annihilated;-a new industrial system,
a new form of education, new codes of legisla-
ton, all recognizing and securing supreme and
abiding rights to tine negro of life, liberty and
property must be instantly provided for. ,-
The eGOvenor reminded the freedmen that
very essential notifications OF the laws have
heen made for their benefit, and the negroes
find that while three years ago they were ex-
Guided from the Court House they are now
permitted to enter it, to give testimony not
only where they themselves are concerned,
but in all cases that require adjudication in
South Carolina.
Protection OF person and redress of person.
| al injury are also secured to the blacks, and
Governor Orr pledges himself to rigidly en-
force the laws against those who outrage and
| Oppress them. s1. -...s-.a zid dfjg
| He also aiiirms that it is due to the negroes,
| it is due to TRUTH to acknowledge that the
| great bulk of the eolored people in South Car
olina, since the extraordinary change have
demeaned themselves with remarkable pro
| priety."
l. Because OF this, and because they are i'm
| peratvely needed, the negroes are desired 10
remain in the State. He recognized the full
freedom OF the negro to go where he can do
best, though he would have him remain where
lie is. Said he:
think your interest our interest; the in
| terest of the laborer and the landowner both
| require that you should be here" Yet .lf
| you get employment elsewhere if YOU can 90
to work where you can be better rewarded
| you should GO" er @
| Thrown upon their own resources, without
capital and without lands, the negroes are
still reminded by Governor Orr that they are
mo worse. Off than a great many 'ofthe
| white men'-hundreds of thousands of whom
| stand in The same relative condition. Re
minding them tina. it is the duty and prov
ince OF all men and women to labor, he COM
lnends the negroes for practical recognition of
the fact. They have been willing to work, and
| where contracts We're made with them. and
they were treated with the consideration they
were entitled to, there has been no cause of
| complaint against them.
r. The schools for the freedmen challenge
Gov Qrrs highest approval, and he suggests
| that the Legislature should provide "a com
| mon school system which will embrace the
| colored as well as the white race" He will
stand by negro suffrage with an educational
| qualification, suggesting that ability to read
the Declaration of Independence and the
Constitution of the United States should be
! the only requirement. of the negro for the ex-
ercise of the citizens highest right This quail
| ification would not be offensive provided it
were irrespective of color, though it would
| probably disfranchise a large class OF The
| white voters Of the chivalrous State
| While the features in Gov. Orr's speech to
which we have referred are indicative of
great progress, and show that he has got up
on the right track, and may come out right
if he follows his own propositions to their
logical conclusons,i it is not to be inferred
that he is up to the standard of eoualitv
which the spirit OF the age and oil our insti
tutions demand. His common school system
he would not have quite so common as we
might enormously imagine. He would have
separate schools for the white and colored
children, and make the money paid by white
and colored taxpayers 90 for the
support of the white and colored
schools respectively; he would impress
upon his hearers that universal suffrage
is mistake, and advise the blacks that they
! will lind il much more to their interest "to
work, and keep clear of politics and all such
subjects But even here, Mr. Orr is not be-
hind many even of the radical party in the
| North. The republicanlegislature of Ohio re-
gard universal suffrage as mistake, or they
| would not refuse to strike the invidious word
white from their constitution; and we are
not obliged to go from the former free States.
il we are from New England, to find infiuen-
tial republicans who think it TN wise to allow
white and colored children to mingle in the
same school room. We have hope of such
men as Governor Orr, and shall soon expect
to see kim walking arm-in-arm, not with
Massachusetts Gen. Couch into another mon
grel Philadelphia convention, conceived and
| brought into being to stop the wheels of hu-
man progress and forward the interests of ar
istocracy and injustice, but with Gen. Butler,
Wendell Phillips or Charles Sumner, in some
future convention having for its object the
promotion of Equal Rights and exact justice,
irrespective of race, caste OF colcr.
The Michigan Agricultural College.
| This is the Oldest and most notable Insti-
! tuition OF this kind in the United States 1t
is established in country almost exclusively
agricultural, and where we might most rea-
sonably look for its practical results. 1t has
been in operation ten years, and nearly
100000 have been expended upon it.
In the Rural Ne,o Yorker of March I'd.
we notice the communication of cores