The New York herald., 1874-11-06
Are Negro Rights Put In jeopardy ~
tho Democratic victorfess

high road to national success that the friends
of the colored race will feel some anxiety and
misgivings as to the security of their newly ac-
quired rights. The democrats so resolutely
contested every inch Of ground against
the negroes, fighting the constitutional
amendments one by one, fighting the
enforcement acts, sympathizing with the
ku klux intolerance, and denouncing with
out stint the abuses of negro supremacy,
that democratic ascendancy in the federal
government might seem like putting wolves
over the flock in place of the faithful shepherd
dogs. Peril to the negroes will be the
chief topic of infammatory appeal by the re-
publicans in their attempt to stem the tide Of
democratic victory during the ensuing two
years. This topic may be urged with great
plausibility, but probably with great sue
cess. Fears Of this kind will be simulated by
politicians who do not feel them. The re-
publican leaders cannot SO underestimate the
shrewdness of their democratic opponents as
to believe they will attempt to deprive the
negroes of either their freedom, their civil
rights, or the elective franchise. 1t would be
impossible to conceal such purpose if it
were entertained, and nothing would SO GER
tainly arrest the political revolution now in
progress as belief that the Southern negroes
would be remanded by the democratic party
to their former condition.
We have no doubt that the rights of the
negroes will be more secure in democratic
than in republican hands. 1t is the tendency
and effect OF the republican policy to array
the negroes in hostility to the best classes of
the Southern population, and thereby OBJ
struct the ascendancy of intelligence, character
and property in Southern politics. Negro
suffrage has proved to be great evil, chiefly
on account of the divorce effected in the
South between numbers and intelligence
The Southern blacks have been formed into
political party under outside guidance and
control-a party which had set Of interests,
or supposed interests, separate from the gen.
eral interests of the Southern community.
In healthy state of politics there is q
solidarity of feeling between the pros
porous and the poorer classes, and although
there may be two parties-as there always are
in free countries-they are composed on both
sides of the rich and the poor, the intelligent
and the ignorant. 1t is the prerogative of
intelligence to control ignorance, and the
chief evil of Southern politics since the war
has consisted in such an organization Of
the blacks as has arrayed them in oppo-
siiion to the enlightened local feeling OF
the communities with which their lot is cast
But as soon as federal influence shall
cease to control the negro mind intelli-
gence and capacity will reassert their
sway and negro voting in the South
will be as safe as the immigrant vote
has always been in the North. The demo-
cratic party will have no temptation to de-
prive the negroes Of the right of suffrage, be-
cause it will have no difficulty in controlling
the negro mind when the potent federal
influence co-operates with local intelligence
instead of frustrating and defeating it.
Even under the great disadvantage of hav-
ing the federal influence opposed to them the
Southern democrats have made some headway
in controlling the negro vote. In the recent
election in Louisiana quite proportion Of
the negro citizens acted with the democratic
party. As soon as democratic ascendancy is
established in Washington democratic negroes
will be as common in the South as republican
negroes, and the negro question will then
cease to be an element of disturbance The
true interests of the negroes are identical with
the true interests of Southern whites The
negroes cannot prosper when the COM
munity in which they live is i'm
poverished. They can find remunerative
| auIu uho fbo st
business are in full activity. If capi-
tai yields no profits labor cannot expect
constant employment or good wages and the
most important lesson the Southern negroes
have yet to learn is that they cannot thrive on
the depression and ruin of the owners of
property Their credulity has been too long
abused and their simplicity deceived by in
terloping demagogues, who have inculcated
the idea that they have separate interest
from their white fellow citizens This state
of things is likely to continue SO long as the
negro mind Is led by the republican party
but within a year or two after it is left to
local control majority Of the negroes will
be steady democratic voters, and the negro
problem will disappear from our politics.
The democratic politicians, both of the
North and the South, have always displayed
remarkable capacity for controlling ignorant
voters. There has always been large
class Of uneducated whites in the Southern
States, but there was no section OF the
country whose politics, previous to the war,
were so completely controlled by its intelli-
gent classes. 1t has been in former times the
active party in extending the suffrage it has
always been foremost in defending the politl-
cal rights of citizens of foreign birth it has
always felt the most undoubting confidence in
its ability to array the most despsed orders
of the community on its own side in notifies