The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1870-02-11
I" Fair Play 1s . Jeyyer'-Southern VS..
Northern Democracy.

As o general rule, the moderate De-
mocracy OF the New York World has
commended sitself favorably to our
Judgment There is,, however, one
expression lately used by the World
which We think requires an explanation.
The World, in d. recent article, whilst
advising the South TO accept the fifteenth
amendmant and to make the most of it,
remarked that negro suffrage will pre-
Val, OF least anil atze, tho nert Presiden-
tias election. 6the World, by this intima-
tion, means to hold out to the South the
idea tllat the Northern Democracy will
seek to abridge or overthrow negro suf
frage, upon condition that the South now
shall undertake to win for the benefit of
the general Democracy as many colored
votes as possible, for one we repudiate
the suggestion. s'Fair play is jewell"
end %s iinteada intend TO 70 wear ;ss. "Honesty is
the best policy" and we intend to pur-
sue it eyer-even in politics. The fact
OF the matter is, we cannot afford to
deal with the colored suffragans other
than in perfectly candid way. We can
afford to make no promise to the ear and
break it to the hope. When We say
thing, we must mean it, with no mental
reservation whatever. When the South
ern Democrat goes before the country
with the acceptance Of the citizenship
and the equality, at the ballot-box and
before the law, of the colored man, lie
must mean what he says. The good
faith and ancient honor of the Southern
gentleman are involved, and these will
be maintained. The colored man natu-
rally looks with suspicion upon the
ex-slaveholder. If we would win the
confidence of the colored man, it must
be done by showing to him that we are
concerned for his welfare, take an
interest in his improvement, and arc
above deceiving him. We must make
no promises that we cannot redeem, and
we must attempt with him no miserable
arts of grand or petty deception.
Another point in this connection: it
is this, that the Northern Democracy
must not undertake to prescribe to us of
the South the party attitude to tho
negro. We should not consent to this.
This question is par excellence Southern
question, and if We can accept the suf-
frage of the nesro-we who ore so much
affected by it-why surely the North,
with so few of this class, ought to be
disposed to acquiesce. In the last Pre-
sidential canvass we took the ground
that it would have been wise and polite
for the National Democratic Convention
to declare in favor of qualified suffrage
for the freedmen, just as the South
Carolina Democracy had done. For
taking this ground-which time has
vindicatea-we were criticised not
little, and were told that we took less
high ground than did Mr.. Pendlcton
and the Northern Democracy. To this
We replied that it was for US to dictate
to Mr.. P. and the Northern Democracy
on this question, and not for them to
dictate to the South. We take the
same ground. We desire to act with the
national Democracy in advancing the
political and material interests of a
common country. But the Southern
Democracy, at least on the question of
the coIored man, should claim con-
trolling influence. We repeat what we
have before said: LET nc, if possible, re-
move the colored man from the political
arena-not by excluding him from its
privileges, but by settling his case de-
cisively and fairly. There are great
questions Of finance, industry aud 60
vernment which the country should
grasp, ana it would be we'll for us and
for the negro to strike his case from tho
political docket. We are tired of the
case. IF the country has decided it on
the basis of the fifteenth amendment,
we can honestly say that at last we are
satisfied with this, to wit: that IL is settled.