Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1885-09-25

South, and against over-ooinage Of silver.
------
The silent South"
In the January number Of the Century Mr..
Geo. W. Gable, the novelist, q southern man,
and an ex-Confederate soldier, who still holds
fast to all his love for the South and her PEG.
ple had an article entitled 1.-THE Freed
mans Case in Equity" in which he made
plain statement of the wrongs which are still
heaped on the negroes as an inferior race, and
as plainly said that, sooner or later, the
Southern people must of themselves acknow-
ledge these wrongs and right them. The ar
ticle provoked much discussion in the South,
some of 1t angry and vituperative, and most OF
it holding that Mr.. Gable had not rightly rep
resented either the spirit or the attitude Of
the Southern whites toward the blacks. The
most notable contribution to the discussion
was the article in reply to Mr.. Gable contrib
uted to the April Century by Mr.. Geo W.
Grady, editor in-chef of the Atlanta Oonsti-
tuition. The articles of both Mr.. Gable and
Mr.. Grady were summarized in our columns
at the time of their appearance.
In the September number OF the Century
Mr.. Gable replies TO his critics in an article
which he gives the significant title, 1.-THE ST.
lent South" The article covers eighteen pa
ges of the magazine, and is so compactly FILL
ed with careful statement and close, oonvinc-
ing reasoning as to justly entitle It to be
called a monograph on the subject which It
presents. Our space does not permit us to
attempt even q complete summary of the ar
tice, but it is of interest 10 single out lis es-
sentisl points.
To begin with Mr. Cable notes with salts
faction how little, comparatively, Of heat and
recrimination there has been in a discussion
of theme which, twenty five years ago, was
held in the South not to admit Of discussion.
Both aides in the controversy occupy much of
common ground, and "the common field of
assertion and admission broAdens as we move
on" How plainly, Mr.. Cable Gays, We feel
the date of this discussion to be 1884.8b-not
earlier-when we hear 1t freely admitted to
be "matter of record" that the laws accord
ing the common rights Of humanity to the
colored people "are sometimes openly evaded
and sometimes virtually suffocated."
II we mistake not the most important ser
vice which Mr.. Gable performs for his South
ern brethren in this article Is the mastery
and unsparing way In which he clears away
the mists from 1.-THE sticking point"-the
difference between civil rights and social
rights, or rather between civil rights and So
cial equality. Many Southern people, espe-
cially those whom Mr.. Gable calls the IRA
ditionists," confound the two terms and sin
cerely believe that the one involves the other.
But their error is transparent one. $50.
cial equality can never exist in community
civilized enough and numerous enough 10 be
aotuated by an intellectual and moral Ambi.
ton" but civil rights are the common heri-
tage of common humanity.
Beyond the family circle there are no
such things as social rights but when our
traditionists talk about too hasty sympathy
having fixed by enactment the negro's social
and civil rights they talk-unwisely. All the
relations Of life that go by fmperSonal right
are civil relations. All that 90 by personal
choice are social relations. The one is all of
right, 1t makes no difference who we
are; the other Is all of choice, and Il
makes all the difference who we are; and
1t is no little fault against ourselves AZ
well as others, to make confusion between
the two relations. For the one we make
laws for the other every one oonsults his
own pleasure; and the law that refuses TO
protect civil right, constituting It q social
privilege, deserves no more regard than IL Il
should declare some social privilege TO be
civil right. Social choice, civil rights but
civil ErtUitege, In America, is simply heresy
against both our great national political part
les at once"
What Mr.. Gable contends for, in short, ia
indiscriminate civil rights for both races and
having thus made his meaning clear he shows
that those, who falsely claim that equal civil
rights means social interminRlinR" and
eventual amalgamation of the races, beg the
whole question no less than do those who hold
that neither race wants equal civil rights. On
this latter point Mr.. Gable says there is one
thing that neither race wants: ITO see the
civil rewards of deoency in dress and behav.
Tor usurped by the common herd of clowns
and ragamufins. But there Is another thing
that the colored race certainly does want-the
freedom for those of the race who oan to earn
the indiscriminAte and unchallenged eiuH not
Social rights of gentility by the simple act Of
being genteel."
The issue as to what the black people real
ly want in the way of inAlienAble civil rights
in spite OF the stereotyped assertion that
Neither side wants them tOaO," Mr.. Gable
brings down to question OF fact, and the ar
ray OF evidence which he cites to prove his po-
sition shows that he has not jumped at conolu
sions or confined his observation to any limited
area of southern territory. By extracts from
the letters Of many oolored correspondents.
by extracts from newspaper articles and by
testimony unwittingly given by prominent
white men who take the opposite side, he
shows that the oolOred people do desire the
common enjoyment Of civil rights, that they
always accept these when permitted, and
never confound civil with social relations"
Shorter, but equally conclusive, is Mr.. Cables
answer to those traditionIsts who hold that
"the interest OF both races Is against com
mon participation in civil rights for the rea-
son, as they allege that common partioipa.
ton means common sociality, and common so.
ciality race amAlgamation.
We must maintain, they say, the clear
and unmistakable domination Of the white
race in the South Why, certainly We mustI
and we must do II honestly and without tam.
pering with anybody's natural rights and
We can do 1t. But why do they say we must
do it2 Because character, intelligence
and property belong prominently 70 the
white race, and character, intelligence and
property have the right to rule So, as
far as the reasoning Is sincere, they are bound
TO mean that not merely being white entails
this right, but the possession Of character,
intelligence and property Aud the true
formula becomes the clear and unmistaka-
bic domination of 'ohAraster, intelligence
and property in the South. But il this be
the true dootrine-ss who can deny II Is p
then why, after we have run the color line 10
suit ourselves through all our truly social re-
lations-why need we usurP the prerogatiVe
to run Il 80 needlessly through civil rights,
also II is widely admitted that We are
vastly the superior race, in everything-As a
race But Is every oolored man inferior to
every white man In character, intelli0enoe
and property Is there no responsible and
steadfast element at all among q people who