Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1881-07-15
Correspondence.
COMM NICATED.
'Quite Ingenius.'

Editor Of the Times:
Sir, in your issue OF the sth inst, you tried
very hard indeed TO sophistjC.te nv argument
in erard TO the rights of the co'ofrd people to
hold any State or county othees uadrr the
Ma ylInd constitution and laws made in pur-
suauCe thereof. You saws Mr. Basil II Mullen
colorei holds forth in last week : IaRspfnfenf
on the question OF the colored population being
deharred by The constitution OF MARYLAND from
holding any State or county office Mr.. Null
len writes quite fiuently. and Gaorc, the con-
Siliu'ion and the laws IN the mos off hand
manner possible. lie does not prove his prop
osilion, though, BY a good deal " Sir. ha ?
IA ha and neither have YOU Nr Eiitor, re
futed a single word that have SAID ha, in
stead OF refuting my Argument. aud demon
stratiug yours, Won pervert the track and made
tor the ',ex-Coufedgraie Demuera,iv-Eepuhli-
cans as you choose TO term our su-c.tjgei Re
publican friends in this county ami Sft'- You
seems TO think that the ignorant cuior-si PEOPLE
have been deiuded by their sa-ca, led friends
YOU say, . - specious i the argument. that 1t
appears to have been accepted even bv oac 50
intel!ig gent Mr.. Mullen appears f. ON his
piece 10 ''e. - But Mr.. Editor. Uul'i IKE TO
have The Democratic party OF whom per
cese that you Is oae, TO know that neither
they nor the so-callri Republican party can
ielude me, for though have valet with and
supported the sO-cillri E-pEbss 49, party in
this county and State, lave very ttl.e faith
in its RepublIctnjsm or IL promise made to
the colored people about election TIMES. and
simply support said parry Tor political uecss-
sitv. a. Charles Jules Gutte-u Nuu3d have
il. But an not "A lawyer. ghralOgiaR and
4 politician. " neiiher an "a s,alssri Of IN.
s,alwar,s,' bu; am Republican from prin-
cpal and nothing else and no promises that
Ftnr mari no Y. aHFT to \
from right 10 wrong. Sir. although the rights
OF suffrage had never been exercised by the Al
rican race when the constitution OF 1851 WAS
made vet they the African race. have been
exercising these rights long enough for the
word white 10 have been eIpun.ed from the
constitution. Ten years have passed since the
adoption of the l+th and 18th amendments Of
the Federal constitution, and We; we fud the
word white used 10 the Maryland constitution
as a qualification 10 vote and hold Uiilyes
But says the Editor. "the same constitution
in Article ,. of the Bill OF Rights, hosever. ex-
presslv states thar the Constitution OF the
United States and the laws made or which
shall be made in pursuance thereof, are aud
shall be the supreme law of the State; and the
Judges of this State and sill the people of this
State. are and shall be bound thereby any
thing in the constitution or laws Of this Stale
to the contrary Notwithstanding Therefore,
when the l4th and 18th amendments subse-
quently became incorporated into the Cait.d
States constitution, they became rs virtue OF
this clause of our constitution, a part and par
eel of the organic law of Maryland, and bind
ing on our courts and people. Bu, Mr. Edi-
tor, If this has been so conceded by The
Democratic party, as you have said, WHY has
the Democratic law makers aud the law inter-
prefers disregarded these amendments and
10 Ian a. IL
said lith and 18th amendments 10 ihe United
States constitution. Sir, instead Of the re-
strictive word white" in Article becoming
"a dead letter. as you say, il has become a
live letter in almost every law that has been
passed by the legislature since the adoption OF
said constitution of 1867. II has even crept in
our public school system, for | find in the
school law of lS72 that the word " hiie is used
as an sdmittance TO the public schools in this
State, and the colored teachers in Baltimore
city, with one exception has been debarred
from teaching their own race in that city.
Now, Mr.. Editor, if the Democratic party Is
such friend to the co,ored race and wishes to
see them elevated, why have they 1.-THE Demo-
cratic party) retained the word white" in the
State constitution, and made laws in pursu-
ant thereof They have had control of the
State Legislature for at least ten years and
when the Hon. 5. 7. Suit, of Prince Georges
county, offered amendment To the constitu-
ton by striking out the word ''w hite" from
that instrument why did not the Demo-
cratic representatives in the Legislature concur
with him? 1t was because they knew that if
such an amendment was adopted, il would en-
title the negroes to all the immunitics enjoyed
by the whites And in conclusion let me say
that there is not a colored man in this State
that would like to see our colOred people
elected to county and State Offices more than l.
if they could quality. But am convinced
that the word white" is an obstacle in the
way that knocks everything up side down, and
we cannot be constitutionally uprighted until
this obnoxious word white is expunged
from the State constitution. Bat suppose
that you think Temporal mutdntar It nos mu-
tamur in Ills. So thanking you for your In
diligence, am yours very truly,
Vale,
BAsIr y NrttFN