Litchfield enquirer., 1877-02-08

numbers of irreconilables refused out right to do it. and were secretly admired b7 those who yielded, and openly ap- p!anded by the ladies When the bolters in 1874 spoke at one time of nominating q aklegrQ for governor, the only daily jour nal then in Charleston, the leading dem- oeratic paper of the States and the South, said that South Carolinians might contrive to put up with colored lieutenant gover- nor, but could not stomach colored ex- ecutive; there was a lne which might God forbidAhsz shpeM never pass. E
 ColoredS politicians. who can be distin- ance, have always been held in detesta- tion; their appearance is the signal for wrathful silence, scowls, and derlsive Vinke; if one of them. in the open air, passS amgtoupA of young white med; ei- ther silence falls on them till he is past. or they burst into laughter and ieer him as long as he remains in sight.
 The intimidation and killing of negroes during Oi6etions scampaighs is a lamenta- ble but significant sign. Negro citizen ship rests solely on the very insecure sup port of United States bayonets; in this matter, again, the whites are guided by sxpediency alone. Whenever they dare. the whites in the Southern States will disfranchise the negro outright and by law;y and in the mean while they will, Tn States they control, practically disfran- C1ise him. For instance, the negro al- ways evades paying taxes-even poll tax --as long as he can, and is notoriously given to roost-liftings. stealing cotton by night. killing hogs, etc., in the woods; accordingly, I am not surprised to see that in Georgia. payment of taxes even the poll tax-is made to disfranchise a voter. that half the negrees are already disfranchised for non-payment. and that every man in Alabama convicted of lar ceny is disffanchised. White employers object to their hands taking time to vote, and one discharged for this cannot obtain resempleymeHt. < Young brayoes turn out upon eleeh hon day, and ieer at. bully, or force negroes coming to vote into fights In some riotous districts of Georgia, which the 1democrats now carry by the sig nificant majority of eighty thousand, not negro vote is boiled; the increase of the democratic majority in Alabama since the State fell into democratic hands is well knS@ng In Georgia thefe are 10 colored state officers, not even constables or po- iee. and negro has not been ,sumnoned to serve on Q jury there for years; there is only one colored man in the legislature. An educational qualification, which is loudly clamored for in some Southern States, would disfranchise ninefy-fve ne- groes out ofa hundred; and though many. poor whites would mirmnr at such a measure, the fire-eaters would bring them round by judioious use of the cane and the pistol. So should not be surprised to see that plan adopted in the Southern States before long. g E-
 The whites, I believe, will never attempt to re.ensiaYe the negro. even should they get out of the Union, or the North refuse to interfere. The matter is often in peo- pless miadsU rmay be iqdge4 bY the ne- currence of Nsnch femafks as s1 wonper what will be the end of thaS thibg9l ''What must we do with the negro?" etc. RuSge-sRslayemsnt presents great dificul- 6es and~ dangers. The negroes would re- sist it to the death; kill women and chll- dFnn, us6 the torch freely, flee to the sWampsy and thence sally out to fight and ravage, so dearly have they come to prize their liberty. And even should. they be ul. timately subjected, there would be. daily and nightly outbreaks, keeping the whites. in constant suspense. But it is unnis- takabla that the expediency, not the wrong of tLe n1eaeuges w0ald constitute the ob- stacle. The whites clearly regard snb., ordination in all things as the ihatural condition of the negro. JsIJ 9YdkH
 Should the North ever grant free play or a separation occur. I should look for the whites to go as fasas they,dare m re- stricting colored ffterty by black codes, or detached, laws. without. actually re-es- tabliShiuR1 4ersofIa1 Iservitude For in. stance, from the irritation felt in conse- quence of the stealing and selling of cot ton at night, and their -incursions into IL "a aS A<E IL bHrns, we may expect negroes to be pro aftereom curfew hour, save under pa. trolor police regulatfens From the ami mostly evinced towards their Union Leagues, political clubs, mass-meetings. etc we may look for the prohibition of all colored assemblages; their churches would pr Jbably be put under police es- pionage, to prevent the discussion of po- Iitical themes. From the great irritation felt at colored men who support their wives in likeness, or send their children (needed to work on the plantationN to school, we should anticipate stringent Va grant laws. and laws forbidding colored children to attend school during work hours, if at all. From the exasperating disposition of the negro to quit employ CTS hefores his time is out, and work un- steadily while employed, we may predict laws prescribing the manner in which they shall hire themselves (perhaps requi- ring strict coutracts. holding than to Ia. bor for stated periods at stated wages), severely publishing idleness and n.aking tte Violdtton of contract by q negro a pc nGt Ofense Bills of that purport have been introduced into the GeorgIa legisia. ture and voted down as premature. Fi- nally, from tho delight with which the . killing of a negro leader is hailed who shows any signs of becoming "dangerous" through his intelligence or culture. it is easy to fOresee that whites would be light. ly punished eff juries would ever convict them) for crimes agalnst blacks, while the criminal law would be severe on black offenders, and convictions easy.
 The Union Leagues gave the negroes their first notions of parliamentary law and debating. They were encouraged to attend courts as spectators. were induct- ed into jury and militia service, and their prominent men were elevated to office
 F6r several years-untir 1S72-in this State they .unresistingly followed the gui- dance oftheir white friends There was little debate at their meetings, and most measures were passed unanimously. On juriee, in the legislature. etc, they were sheepislE. quiet, awkward, and docile. But gradually taeY began to pick up hints and to see things for. themselves. They became ambitions for office and acquired 09nfidence, joined in debate. and criticis- cd the measures proposed by their white leaders; and for few years past they have been growing the most irrepressibls democrats 1t is possihielto conceive. They delight iu attending, either to look on or mingle in all sorts efa sssemblages,
 ehnfch services aud mestinRs, political clubs and conventions mass-meetings, the courts.--as we'll as to serve on iuries or in the militia. They,are astonishingly quick at imitation. and are a mere sec ond edition ofsthe whites At their gath erings all have somethlng to say, and all are up at once They have aifree How of language, and their older men exhibit a practical: get.at-the- facts disposition (narrow.minded of necessity, yet intense from that very circumstance) which is a