The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1880-10-22

-" TWICE a WEEK today presents
overwhelming reasons Why every man,
who has the good d the State ut heart,
should employ the utmost effort to ave
Florida from again falling under the
bliehting onrse If Radical domination.
We cal special attension TO the sighifi-
cant language used by Witherspoons -
quoted by our correspondent. It has long
been known to Republican white leaders
that it is and has been the desire Of such
men as Witherspoon to make FloridG a
negro STATE ~ indNciag he 5sdcks from
adjoining Ssascs to e1aigrdss Ajtser. The
scheme originated with the late colored
Secretary of State, J. c. Gibbs, and was
strongly urged by John r. Scott Of Jack
sonville, also deceased, and othera Gov.
Stearns, who saw the terrible effect such
scheme if successful would have on the
prosperity of the State, admitted to the
writer that the change of the State gov
eminent from Republican to Democratic
control would have greater tendency to
defeat the accomplishment of this scheme
than if the Republicans continued in
power. This was in 1875. There is no
doubt whatever that the Inauguration Of
Governor Drew two years later, and the
better enforcement of the criminal law
since, has had the effect to materially In
terfere with the colonizing scheme if not
to defeat it for the time being, while there
can be as little doubt on the other hand,
in the minds of intelligent men, that if
Republican rule is restored, and restored
by the votes of the negroes themselves
for if restored at all it will be restored by
their votes the scheme will be revived
and urged with strong probabilities of sue
cess. The words used by Witherspoon
show that the colored leaders are merely
biding their time. 1t may be unwise to
comment on this subject, but we warn
property-holders and all others of the dan
ger impending. 1t is no party question,
but matter involving higher interests
than the mere success of this or that ticket.
Witherspoon said
{" We let you ac1ite folks Aaoe your 0scn soay in
the Convention; the coIored delegates supported all
your nominations as you desired, soiM the pledge
that you could carry the State. Our turn comes
merit and then zoe coIored people ,ciU dictate al the
Nominations and By an exodus from the surround
ing States to F1oridd sciu hold IL for all time My
- Al:
drge majority Of noniisees sciN be cOOred men,"
1t is significant fact that there is not
white Republican now before the people
for any office, with scarcely an exception,
who was not placed in nomination By
permission Of the negroes Such was and
is the case in Escambia, Jackson, Gads-
den, Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Suwannee,
Columbia, Nassau, Duval, St. Johns, Put
nam, Monroe and Alachua. The same is
true with respect to the nominations of
Conover, Ledwith and Bisbee. ave let
you white folks have your own way"
says Witherspoon. He says his nomina-
ton "was only sop" 1t was more than
that it was the result of bargain, for
his nomination was secured by the ma
nipulations of Conover over Martin, and
in return Conover got the support of JET.
ferson county at Gainesville over Ledwith
and Cole and this gave him the nomina-
ton for Governor This is only a part of
the by-play. The " turn of the negro 10
yet to come, and ,Conover's nominee for
Congress in the First District points out
: the means by which the State is to be
Africanized and held for all time" Lucas,
whose utterances here on the stump have
never been repudiated by either Conover,
Bisbee or the San and Press, avowed that
the Republican party contingently sympa-
thized with this negroizing policy, neither
has word of remonstrance been heard
from any Of these sources against the infa-
nous ISLANDERS of Hicks and such as him,
all tending to prevent intelligent immi-
grafton and render the Africanizing scheme
more likely to succeed.
We repeat the warning SO often uttered.
There is danger ahead. The defeat of
Bloxham and the Inauguration of such q
man as S. B. Conovcr will be the prelude
to disaster. Lawlessness and extravaganza
will again run riot, All that has been
gained in the way of peace and order in
the last few years will be put to hazard if
not lost, and we shall be RENTED to our
former condition Of suspense and anxiety.
The matter is now with the people They
can avert the danger at the polls, and it
remains to be seen whether they are fully
alive to the situation. The State contest
dwarfs, in our judgment, the Presidential
struggle. The State will continue to
reasonably prosper whoever wins in the ma
tional election, but the restoration of local
Republican rule means mischief and ruin
to every interest. e