The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1883-05-26
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tons anu newspaper INITIATIVES nv S''
paign in Virginia has opened already with
great violence. In ths call for Demo-
cratic State Convention at Lynchburg,
July %, the keynote is sounded with a
lusty blast:
A maliRs influence has drawn the color
lima openly aud plainly, and banded the
black vote against MS by sill the well known
appliances which affect that class OF people;
Nothing that we cherish or hold sacred Will
escape the tahiti and canker Of this alliance
uuless there shall DO found pitfiouSm
enough and public spih enough among ne
Conservative votes OF the State 10 meet thls
.,1srere aud renal this assault with united
front. .-,..,o
spirit the ancient herl,ai OF Virginia, Is still
!, .herished possession OF her people, th,s coh'
veution Is summoned, aud the committee
earnestly invukts the local authorities OF the
rtriy to csrry out the full spirit OF the reso
lutlons above.
The immediate cause OF this outburs'
seems to be that Governor Cameron, in
the Language Of the Richmond DRpotch
"has turned out white gentlemen and put
ia two negroes" as school trustees in Rich
mond. We do not know whether the
W ,i,e gentlemen were better fitted than
the two negroes 10 be trustees, and In TACT
this point seems TO be waived in the con
troversy, for the Dispatch recently laid it
down without qualification that ut is an
honor to negro schools to have white trus
tees over them. 1t Is disgrace to white
schools to have negro trustees over them"
This is distinct drawing oil the race line,
and on this line tho Democratic
hosts are being formed for battle. The
Di.patch further says; There are eighty
thousand more white than colored voters
III Virginia, but out Of all that immense
majority not man can be found who Will
encourage the negro to bring on war Of
tn. races. Will the white Coalitionists?
No. Will Governor Cameron? A thous'
and times, No." Then the Coalitionists are
not the "malign influence" which the State
committee refers 10 as having drawn the
color line openly and plainly, and banded
the black Vote aRhlhst w.
y The forcing Of race issues is always un.
fortunate, but it is not anew thing in
those States where slavery was 1.-THE an
Gent heritage" Slavery is gone forever,
but traces Of 1t remain in the Ignorance OF
the colored race and the prejudice OF the
white. In this very State OF Virginia
there was "malign influence" which drew
the color line sharply, and on one side oil it
were ireemen, on the other chattels This
influence saw the slave made freeman
and voter, before the law the equal OF the
white man. The thing was done and could
not be undone. It was written in the Con-
stitution, a fixed fact. Instead Of accept
ing the results OF the war in good faith"
the old slave-holding class, by individual
endeayor aud through the machinery Of
the Democratic party, sought to deprive
the colored man Of his rights under the
law, and, II must be confessed, met with
great success. This Is recent and familiar
history, and there is no need to go over it.
In Virginia, as in other Southern States,
the old masters could have controlled the
freedmen II they had chosen to be friendly
to them. They preferred coercion, and If
the negro does not always know who are
his friends he instinctively knows who are
his enemies. He knows when he is kicked
and who kicks him; who gives him schools
and who withholds them; who gives him
the ballot and who takes it from him. This
is why he is against the Democratic party
ia Virginia, and is glad to be banded"
with other forces which are hostile 10 it.
The Democratic party in Virginia can
not no unprecedented and willing 10 recog'
nize the black voter as the equal Of the
white before the law, or It's leading news.
paper would not go on" as the Dipatch
does. 1t Is Mortified at the thought that
two OF the nine trustees Of the Richmond
public schools shall be colored men
hardly an unfair division as against the
whites in a city having 80 large colored
population. And the Dispatch uses this
argument: "Fiye OF them constitute a
quorum. OF these five, three constitute a
majority. So that as there are two negroes
on the Board, these two negroes and one
white man could Of course outvote the
other two white men," II four white men
absent themselves, when there is 80 much
at stake, that would not be the fault OF the
1.-TWO negroes and one white man."
But even this Is not the worst feature as
the Dbpatch views the question: ut cannot
be tolerated for moment the thought that
negro trustees shall be seen sitting in the
Theatre next month surrounded by lovely
young white girls. No, this will never hap.
pen. The negroes or the white Children
one or the other-will be absent. The city
Of Richmond will never DO degraded by
that spectacle" Worse sights than that
have been seen in the city Of Richmond,
and negroes figured in them. But that
was in the day when the negro had no
rights, though, in the scientific inquiry
which sought to know what the bleaching
out process would do for the race, negro
women had special favors accorded to
them. Even prejudice has lis limits.
In all this outbust OF indignation against
the appointment Of two negro trustees we
do not hear 1t said that they are incompe.
tent to discharge their official duties, or
that they arc men Of bad character. The
protest Is directed against their color, and
based on ground which Is against the
spirit of our equal laws. Social equality
which the negro does not demand-has
nothing to do with this controversy, which