The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-03-27
THEPAfH OF DELIVERANCE
UPON TIE -oo&nI-
r1oN OF SOUTH CAROLINA.
Only One. Peaeeab1e Solution Of our
Dimcuit1es.
ne THE EDITOR OF THE NEWS

DlmCU1L1eSs
.e,. TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEWS
In recent numbers you have notlcea tne
disturbed condition of feeling in this State,
and have correctly indicated the causes OF IL.
And as, from these causes, it appears to m
that action, In some form, must result, have
thought 1t proper to address you upon !gthe
subject, and to Indicate policy which, ifit be
not the best, may serve, at least the purpose
of stimulating Investigation, and OF stirring
thought to the discovery Of better.
r. It is apparent that there is much anxiety
among the white people Of this State with re-
spect to their fortunes, material and political,
and apparent also that there Is just occasion
for it. Their material interests are depressed;
labor is unproductive; business is unsuccess-
ial; estates are comparatively valueless; taxes,
with no reference to the just requirements of
the public-.no respect to our ability to meet
them-moro exorbitant than the most pros
perous people ever bear, are imposed upon
us. and to all is added the conviction that " e
ARC without political rights; that the govern
1aent is In the hands Of the negroes; that they
are unified for that office; that they are unin-
structed In It's duties, insensibie of Its RESPONSE
bitles; that they have every vice of legislation;
that they are venal, capricious and corrupt,
without the address or shame to conceal their
vices; that, unified to govern themselves, they
are singularly united to govern land that I'M
conscious of the wants of amore elevated pee
pae, they are wItho:ta a sense OF obligationto
consult them. We see that, within the bref
period of their authority, they have already
changed the laws and forms to which we have
been accustomed; .they have attempted, land
attempt still, to further change our domestic
relations, and seeing that they are distinct
from us in race and many circumstances OF
their condition, and particularly in the fact
that they are without participation 10 the pp-
mon property, we are impressed with theesn-
victiot that they must act upon that distinc-
tion; that they must be instant La Imposing
burdens which they do not share; that their
government must be, what seme .of them ad-
init it is, system Of plunder organized, and
that one Of its most important objects must be
to drive the present owners from their prop
efty, that they may take 1t, and thus become
the exclusive proprietors, as they are at pres
ent the rulers, of the State.
And this condition, bad as 1t Is, is little
likely of natural causes to be changed. TIE
negroes hold their power In virtue Of their ma
jorlty Of thirty thousand votes, and that ma
jority will not diminish. In this alone Of all
the Southern States does the negro much pre-
ponderate, and In no other than Mississippi
does he preponderate at all. In all the other
States, therefore, he will be under the fe-
straints at least of. civil discipline, and that,
however imposed, will be sufficient to drive
him to the license and the power In this.
They must come from other Southern States,
therefore--none will 60 away, and the number
will not diminish. That Of the whites will not
Increase White men with reluctance VIII
oantinua under negro gnnarnment--hr' or
mailmen only viii come to 1t; and under tie
operation Of natural causes, therefore, the ne
grees cannot recede, the whites cannot ad-
vance in numbers, and that majority Of votes,
the condition Of their presen. power for an
extended period, must continue.
Nor Is this condition to be defeated by any
act of Congress. Party is but process OF
society. Society In this country is radically
Democratic. Democracy is the paramount law
of Its constitution, and at present the :Repub.
lican party is Its process: The Democratic
party can take the place only by appearing to
be the filter representative. But that 1t cannot
do by proposing in any place to limit the cleo
tive franchise. and proposing therefore to
limit that franchise in this State, it will never
get to power. But In power 1t could never
make the Limitation. Congress has no power
to act upon domestic relations in State. But
If 1t had, or if without that power, it should, as
under the Republican party, 1t did 30 under
take to act, It would be met, as the Republican
party was not, by the restrictions ofa positive
provision of the constitution. The fifteenth
amendment prohibits the limitation of
the elective franchise for race, color or preyi-
Gus condition, either by Congress. or State,
and the Democratic party, therefore, must not
only sttain to power, but 1t must attain to that
power, both in Congress and the States Of the
Union, which will enable 1t to repeal pro-
vision of the constitution, before any act of lts
Congress, in Limitation of the negro franchise
in this State, can have the force of law. Then
even time must .elapse before there can be
repeal Of the amendment. During that time
they must retain the power. With these COP
ditions, 1t is not to be expected that the Demo-
cratic party can comply; it is not to be expect
ed, therefore, that, under the inspirations Of
the Democratic party, Congress can restrict
the franchise; IL is not to be expected that,
from the Republican party, such inspiration
can come, and it does seem clear, therefore,
that neither of any. natural cause, nor of any
act of Congress, will the negro majority be de-
feated in this State. And it would seem Of
that the negro government, preg-
nant as IL is Of ruin to the whites, must con-
tinue.
But certain as it may be that, under the
operation of natural causes, Il must continue,
as certain is it that the white people OF this
State will not submit to it. If they would,
they could not. 1t means extinction. White
society In this State, without representation in
the government, Without protection to pro-
perty, would cease to exist, and If the white
people should aspire to that exhibition of
more than mortal patience necessary to en-
lurance of all the tortures of extinction OF