The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1868-02-26
sGGO0T1UMBiiiAis. A.. a Il
Wednesday 1oiaing, FeO. %, 1858.
Negro 0overnnaenf I'm enc South.

suppose taa6 6n6 negro ponnlaEinn ~
the South willxbe able to retain. for
any length of time the1political con-
troll that has been placed in their
hands. Congress has done for them
all that can possibly be done. They
haye had majorities in all the State
Conventions. BY their votes the
Constitutions haye been formed. In
their interest laws have been made,
and for their advantage the frame
work OF things has been fixed. They
seem to feel, the New York Times
truthfully remarks, that power has
been permanently secured to them.
and their special admirers in Con-
gress act as though there could be no
doabt Of their continued supremacy.
Yet tho simple fact that they consti-
tute onlyfa third of the population of
the Southern States, is conclusive as
to their political subordihation in the
long run, In forming themselves
into party opposed to the whites,
they have challenged direct contest
on this point, and as the struggle is
definitely and spointedly between the
races qua races, they have compelled
decision of their claims upon this
ground. In our system, numbers
must inevitably tell. By the dis
franchisement of large number of
the whites, and the coDferring of
universal suffrage upon the blacks,
an advantage may be temporarily Sc
cured to the latter. But. OF most,
this can only have its effect for few
years. Every year sees a vast crop
of young men attain their minority,
to whom the disfranchising laws. be-
cause of participation in the rebel
lion, have no application; and before
ten years have passed we shall have
hundreds of thousands of white
voters in the South who cannot be
disfranchised without an overthrow
of Democratic government. This
alone will give the whitesa numerical
preponderance that will easily over
Come the political supremacy of the
blacks. The negroes, now, have all
the advantages of their numerical
strength. The future can bring them
no increase. Beside their fixed and
absolute inferiority in numbers, they
must grow relatively weaker every
day. If this statement alone were
not conclusive against the political
dominance of the blacks, we would
refer to other fixed points that the
white population of the South will
continue to hold in their favor. The
possession Of the landed property,
the commercial control, the brain
superiority, the political traditions,
are with the white race, and will con-
tinue there. The negro, we trust,
will continue to grow in general
knowledge, in political wisdom and
in Democratic capacity; but it will be
a long time before he is equal in
these respects to @ race which has
the history and opportunities of the
American whites. On the broad
grounds of race, character, condi-
tions, institutions, history and num-
bers, it is evident that the black race
cannot retain political control of the
South, and equally evident that the
race which has enormous advantages
in all these points must show their
effect in politics, government and
power. It is worth while for Con-
gress to keep this in mind in its
political legislation for the South.
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