The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1885-10-30


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The burden Of Senator Hoar's speech
in the Massachusetts, Republican Con-
vention and Of the platform adopted By
that Convention was that In certain
Southern States where Il y asserted that
the blacks are all Republicans and the
whites ali Democrats the Republicans
are not permitted 70 vote--or that e
they are their votes srs suppressed in
the count. In this way il Is claimed
that the Democratic party has beep
able to elect . President. 20 keep ma
jonty Of the House Of Representatives
and 20 maintain IN undue represens
tation In tho Senate.
| II these allegations were literally true
the situation would be q bad one Ii IL
deplorable enough in whatever light il
may be viewed. But the assumption Of
| Senator Hoar and OF Republican plat
form builders in general. while not
entirely false. Is in many re-
spects unwarranted. The situation
ut the South Is regards the
| franchise is entirely logical. and
it Is easily explained. Similar conditions
would produce similar results in the
| North or anywhere else. A race hardly
I! emerged from barbarism. suffering frop
the degrading effects Of three centuries
| of bondage. was unwisely made the po-
litical equal Of . race which had one
| thousand years the start OF il in every.
thing pertaining to the science Of gov
ernment. Ignorant superstit;ous. bru-
| tai, easily led and more easily dupcd,
4 these people were for time controlled
| by adventures from the North. whose
\ dominion In the South was the most
| scandalous era ever known in modern
history. The negro voted. but he did
not rule. The plundercrs who robbed
and impoverished the whites deprived
| the negro also Of the means Of gaining
livelihood. and were. in fact his
| worst enemies. A state Of society which
| paralyzed industry. inundated capital
/ filled millions Of semi savage minds
with an idea thar freedom meant license
and that toll was unnecessary. confjs-
Gated property and saddled the State
with debts which could never be paid.
though grievous in its effects on the
whites. was even worse il its influence on
the blacks In the disorders which pre-
ceded the overthrow Of this vicious rule
all fair men saw the inevitable conse-
qucnces Of misgovcrnment. and il can
be said to the credit Of the party which
is now deploring the absence Of thess
conditions that one Of its Presi-
dents. Mr. HAYES, was most instru-
mental in relieving the South from that
accursed rule which no Northern State
l ~ro..1l ~ - <<.I <<.~
From the fall Of the carpet-bag gov
constantly in view. One Of these Is the
people. both whites and blacks. in every
/ thing pertaining 10 material wealth and
, prosperity. The other is that the ne
groes. abandoned by the self-seeking
: aiventurers from the North, have been
left entirely TO their own resources by
| the great Northern party which clsiD1s
/ their allegiance. II has never sent an
orator to address them. barrel to
organize them or political literature
. for them to read For ten years they
have had no knowledge Of the existence
! Of Republican party. save where an
occasional Chalmers might seek to gain
their votes BY appealing 70 their fears
or their prejudices They have become
docile, industrious. progressive and
| prosperous. They are gradually OBJ
. tanning clearer insight into the re-
sponsibility Of citizenship They will
, not all vote the Republican ticke.. but
, they will vote more and more numer-
ously. If undisturbed, until 1t no very
distant day the ratio Of stay-at-homes
will not be larger at the South than it
!, Is at the North. The non-voting males
, Of Rhode Island are proportionatcly
, more numerous to-day than they are in
. any Southern State save one
As to the claim that Mr.. Cleveland
owes his election 90 the suppression Of
the colored vote 1t may Be said that
| there is no basis for the ASSERTION what
! ever. In only two States do the negro
males Of voting age outnumber the
whites; and. assuming that every black
, vote had been thrown for Blaine and
every white vote for Cleveland. thus
: giving Blaine the electoral votes Of
South Carolina and Mississippi. the re-
suit OF the election would not have been
changed. The South Is making rapid
progress and the negroes are sharing
In Il fully. The question Of suffrage .
solving itself. Any step backward
, would be fatal not only to the South
but to the North. - Chicago Herald
N.--