The Portland daily press., 1872-07-19
Cant Trust Them

Mr.. Sumner says that he can't trust ''his
negroes with the Democratic party. Ac-
cordingly, he hesitates to join Mr.. Greeley in
uniting with that venerable political organ
ization. Well, Mr.. Summers hesitation is
quite natural considering, all the circumstan-
ces of the case-consdering that all theDemoc-
racy of euery State have alacays opposed,
from first to last, and by every means in their
power, every project for the amelioration CT
''his negroes" condition, and have never, up
to this day, evinced, in any practical way, a
change of opinion. Unless some scheming
Iago, like Schurz, maddens the Massachusetts
Senator by reminding him anew of the per-
sonal wrongs he thinks he has suffered, it is
not likely that the latter will get any nearer
that has not moved a step forward since
Frank Blair formulated its doctrines in the
Broadhead letter of 1868. There is one very
simple test of the present Democratic attitude
towards the race for which Mr.. Sumner has
labored so long and so well. 1t is a matter of
common knowledge that the great doctors of
the Democracy hold that the fifteenth amend
ment has not been legally made part of the
constitution. They contend that the Congress
which framed and submitted it to the people
was not Congress of all the States entitled to
representation therein, and that, the South
ern States acting under duress, the ratifca-
ton of the requisite three-fourths of all the
States was never obtained. They merely
propose by accepting the Cincinnati platform
(under protest of an influential minority to
,ouiue for the present all informality in the
adoption of the fifteenth amendment, and
"accept'' the situation, thus leaving the main
tenance of Mr.. Summers negroes great char
ter mere matter of grace and favor, instead
of considering it an irreversible guaranty of
political equality, placed beyond the reach of
caprice selfinterest or any revulsion of pub
lie feeling. Holding, as they do, that negro
suffrage is lawful during their good pleasure
only, they are surely no more likely to OBJ
serve an obnoxious compact that has already
served the purpose of obtaining them a return
to empire, than they were when in 1854, Un-
der the lead of Senator Douglas, they repeal
ed that other solemn compact, the Missouri
Compromise. The proof that we do them no
injustice is singularly complete. They have
it in their power by means of Legislatures
which they control to give the amendment
three-fourths of the States beyond all cavil.
Yet who ever yet heard of Democratic legis-
lature's giving its assent to the new section
of the constitution? Nor have they an OPP
portunity to say that the time for action has
gone by, the Secretary of State having duly
proclaimed the complete adoption of the
amendment, for it has not in several instances
been too late for them to attempt to with
draw the assent of Republican legislatures pre-
viously given! Mr.. Sumner cannot, therefore,
be accused of morbid cautiousness when he
hesitates to join party that valves its dead
ly hostility to CHS negroes until its sup
posed magnanimity has given it control of
the nation with the power and the will to
sweep away like chaff all the guarantees of
civil rights and political equality with which
it has been the labor of Mr.. Summers later
life to surround his chosen people. Like all
Republicans from principle, Mr.. Sumner per-
ceives that if Horace Greeley, owing bis sue
cess to Democratic votes and surrounded
chiefly by Democratic influences, should be-
come President, the negro would find his
rights and liberties respected no more than
they would have been in case Seymour had
succeeded in 1868. ...