The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1882-04-11
A CHANGE.

The logic of the position taken by the
republican party in the reconstruction laws
| and the constitutional amendments adopt
ed after the war is reversed entirely in the
anti Chinese legislation. 1t shows that
! the negroes We're not made citizens from
any love of natural justice, but upon a
| mere calculation of partisan advantages.
| In like manner the Chinese bill was passed.
not because the republicans believe that
the white labor of this country is entitled
to any protection from Monaghan compe-
tition, but because they believe it to be alb
solutely necessary in order to save the
Pacific States to the party in the next
Congress and at the next Presidential cleo
tion. N
But it is now very clear that many of
the republican leaders are heartily sick of
what they contemptuously call the negro
experiment. This sentiment appeared
very distinctly in the Chinese debate. Sen
ator Jones, of Nevada, who is known as
one of the most trusted councillors of the
faction now in possession of the offices,
was especially outspoken. He regards the
negro race as being totally unfit for the
control and management of institutions
created by and for the white race; and
when he come to denounce the Asiatic he
logically and fairly enough included the
African in the same category. The admis
sion of the latter to the ballot box, where
he holds the balance of power and gives
government to the whole Union, was, in
Senator Jones opinion, an almost fatal and
extremely foolish sentimental error, which
he does not propose to repeat on ever so
small scale in the case of the Chinese
1t is not at impossible that in the
course of a very few years the freedmen
andTtheir descendants, to whom the elective
franchise was given to- serve republican
party purpose. viii becompelied to look to
the democrats mainly for protection in the
exercise of that privilege. Ignorant, inno-
cent, confiding, and bewildered by the sud-
den acquisitfon~of a great power, the blacks
listened to the carpet bag emissaries of
their supposed friends at Washington; and
now all the crimes of the reconstructed
period are charged up to their account.
And to make matters worse with them, a
certain class of visionary republicans come
forward with startling schemes, demanding
millions from the general Government for
so-calied education, to be distributed to
the states according to the ratio of Hitter
acy," to prepare an enormous mass of sim
pie electors for the exercise of franchise
conferred Oh them many years ago. Moth
ing has ever occurred, no proposition was
ever made, better calculated to shock us
from our sense of security in reliance upon
the virtue and intelligence of the people.
When it becomes necessary for the Federal
power to educate the voters, that is to say
to take its own master under tutelage, tue
end of the popular government will be at
hand except as to the forms. And this
odious centralizing plan, of which the al
legged ignorance of the colored voter is
made the pretext, is deepening the race
prejudice, and Strengthening even among
republicans the hostile impressions so bold
~ expressed by Senator Jones. When the
blacks, like other people, educate them
selves, they will be fitted for political power;
but they can never be trained by the very
Government which by their votes, they are
to control. Meanwhile the party
which attempts to disfranchise any large
body of American citizens black or white |
will come to serious grief.-N T. Sun.