The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-01-27
THE QUESTION OF sEcT1oNAL1sM
Editorial Reply Of the "Greenvillc
News to the Letter of the Hon.
Edward McCrady, Jr.

Colonel Edward McCrady is a fair and patr-
otic man and we print his letter with sincere
pleasure. His evident icar anu hatred of SEC
tionalism is shared in the NeOs office, in
Greenvlle county, and In the up country.
With him, we consider editorials like that of
the NeUs TO which he refers dismal presages
that the blood the intellectual power and the
Olina have been in vain, for that editorial,
written with sorrow enough, expresses the
feeling Of hostility and distruSt toward one
section of the Stale existing in another.
That feeling does exist. Efforts to conceal
its existence or to smother itself are useless
and foolish. 1t is expressed by the public
men and newspapers OF the up country: who
would not and could not, even II they had no
higher motives than their own immediate ad-
vancement, say such things without public
sentiment to back them.
Admitting that there is feeling In the up
country agant the low country, there must he
u reason for it. The people OF the up country
are honest, intelligent, patriotic Carolnians
They are not so ignorant, brutal anu malt
cious that they would hold and nourish ILL
will and hate against their brethren without
cause or provOcation.
Admitting that the feeling exists and that
there Is reason for its being. the wise and pa
triotic man will seek to discover that reason,
physician will not attempt the cure of an eat
ing ulcer or y dangerous wound by covering
1t from his sight or plaSterins 1t with bread
and milk poulticcs and denying its existence.
Man Is weak and f;illble, Liable to error and
always disposed TO look on his side of a quar-
rel. Therefore we should consider this quar-
rel under the assumption that the wrong may
really be on our side or on both sides. But
from our standpoint we are compelled to be-
lieve that the existing feeling in the up coun-
try Is the fault of the low country, and more
especially of Charleston.
We accept Colonel McCrady'S statements ms
absolutely correct and not requiring vcritfca-
ton from the records. He shows that IN the
house, where there was an assured majority
for the census, Charleston was Tor the census; ;
while in the Senate where Charlcston's two
votes would have carried thccensus they were
persistent:y cast against It, her Senators lead-
ing the opposition: and that when it came to
4 close vote in the House on the question of
recedng from the census rider, when Charles
ton's members could have been OF actual SER
vice to the census, they were against it.
The facts that the Senators from two up
country counties. Union and York, voted
against the remaining ten or eleven of their
section and the census and that in the House
half dozen members from the up country
were against the census has no bearing on the
question that we can see. The question of
economy was discussed and it may have in
f1uenced half a dozen men. But the House
passed the census bill by an overwhelming
majority; the Senate defeated it, and nobody
has ever accused that body OF being squcam-
Istl of expenditure.
This census action is one incident of many
and only crowning outrage. The up coull-
try is surely the sufferer by it and the low
cOQhLry IS as surely TIC Sill1eT 90 VI Lnc Cit-
nal, the university, the citadel, and the divis-
ion of the State offices.
Suppose Colonel McCrady should try new
plan. Suppose he should say: 'There Is feel
ing between the UP country and the low cOun-
try; let us recognize 1t like honest and manly
men and seek to heal 1t by removing the
cause: let us begin at the beginning and here
after base repreSen tatiOn in our Democratic
conventions on white population SO that they
may represent Democratic votes; let us in the
low country he content with half the State Of
fices; let us build our own universities col:
| legs and other educational institutions and
pay for them as our brethren have done; let
i,S develop our own manufacturing enterpriS.
es as our brethren did that we may compete
with them fairly; let us respect the poverty
and poor, foolish, parsimonious ideas of our
brethren and limit expenditures from the
general fund TO the actual necessities of gov
ernment economically administered; let us
give our brethren the representation to which
| they are honestly entitled under the cOnstttu-
tiOn and be satisfied with the same, In House
and Senate. They have done us good service
they pulled us from the slough of deSpond
against our resistance and have always come
| to our aid since; they have been faithful TO as
and have yielded patiently. Now let us be
! GUST to them"
Might not that put down this hideous spec:
tre Of sectionalisIn, heal all our wounds and
make us the united, strong, glorious people
we ought to kc?