Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-03-27
"TIE NEGRO VOTE"
WStterZon's Reply to Hnlstsad on the Sup
preston CT the Negro Vote.
Henry Wstterson in the April Forum.


Henry Wstterson IN the April Forum.
In order to lay foundations for his
srraignment of two generations of his
countrymen, one Of which st least had no
part nor lot in the rebellion and the other
of which is passing rapidly from the
scene, it is assumed by Mr.. Hal.tead,
nearly twenty-thre years after the firing
of the last shot in that bloody conflict,
that loyalty to the constitution is con-
fned to a single section of the Union,
and in that section limited to s
single party. 1t is assumed that the
white people of the other and forbidden
section are not merely disloyal, but dis
honest and inhunane; the friends of as
sassinstion, partly for the love of 1t and
partly for it's advantage as force in the
elections. It is assumed that the black
people of this contraband section are rot
only qualified to vote intelligently, but
that they agree entirely with Mr.. Hal
stead, and are, SIS matter of course, one
and all red-hot Red Republicans.
It is only fair to Mr.. Halstead TO say
say that he is in this, If in nothing else,
perfectly consistent. During two de-
cades he has made it the business of his
| life to stir up sectional hate, to bend the
history of every day to the service of Sec
tional strife, and TO contribute, so far as
can recall, not one word TO the cause of
sectional good will. Thus, with the best in
tentions, IS he conscientiously believes,
he has surrounded himself and filed the
air about him with troop of political
hobgoblins, who play strange, incessant
pranks upon his fancy. They are none
the less the phsntoms Of an infamed
patriotism, an imperious and restless
temper and an imagination Qf he will
forgive my saying so) not yet quite cured
of It's original and, for the matter Of that,
aboriginal, luridity and fervor.
AS the readers Of the Forum cannot
have failed to observe, Mr.. Hsl3tead
lacks for no confidence in assertion. But
he is still more confident in his statistics
He seems 20 be impressed by the conceit
that "fgures won't lie," all uEcOnscious
that no false witnesses are so eficscious
and constituencies when employed to
make out case for s packed jury. Let
US see how, in his effort to fire the north
ern heart against the south, he employs
| them.
To begin with, Mr.. Halstead takes 1--WE
Is the ratio Of population to ballots, and
In states thickly populated, with a popu-
lation largely urban, this may do very
we'll. It will not do in states largely sg-
riculturzl, in which cities and towns are
few. The habits of life are different,
political excitement does not run 80 high,
men do not so readily corgregste aud
thus influence each other and 30 q full
vote is never polled. Moreover,
"fuIl votes" depend largely on harrow
margins between ths opposing partiass
| When election contests are cIoseTptrty
managers resort to every meSns5 legiti-
mate and illegitimAte, to bring out the
party strength, when in states4about
whose position there is no doubt4 both
parties are lethargic and Indifferent.
Compare, for moment, political affsfrS
| in OHIO with the course OF politics in Ken
lucky. In Kentucky no one clsims that
the negro vote Is suppressed. Aside from
any moyal question involved, there Is ne
| motive to suppress 1t. A negro or 8 R3-
publican is as free to vote, or TO refrain
from voting, in Kentucky as Is white
man or Democrat. There is NO
excitement over Kentucky contest, no
doubt IS to the result. In 1880, for ex-
ample, Hancock was exceedingly popular
in Kentucky, and our people were deeply
anxious for his election; yet with popu-
latiop, according to the census Of 1850, of
| ,648, 800 the total vote cast in Kentucky
WAS 26S, 047, when, according to Mr8Hsl-
stead's ratio, Is should have beer s2st53S,
or suppressed vote Of G1,691 ~ In 1880
Ohio's population was 8, 1893 ,Ge2 aRds &C
cording to Mr.. Halsteao, thaS state Was
entitled to 889. 6l2 votes; itessI 722, 1926,
or an excess Of 81, 713. Ohio went Re-
publican.
In the two states there is wide diver
gence; but 1t is isirer anc more reason
sble to assume fraud, ballot-box stufflng,
false returns and wholesale corruption In
order to account for To- immense excess
of voters north Of the 01ios thsn It is to
account for the small vo.S In Kentucky by
the theory OF nullifcaiiok. The point /
make is, that the populafkn of the south
ern states Is widely Catered; 1t il
chiefly rural. EaturaNy, after the
downfall Of the carpet-bsg goyayn-
ments, the imprisonment or the exile Of
their old leaders, the negroes took less
interest in politics than did the same
population at the north.
Take, now, the whole population and
the total popular vote in 1880. Populs-
tion, 50, 155, 7e3. The vote, according to
Mr.. Hslsteod, should have been I0.031,-
1856, but it was only 9,2O4, 42S. or 800, 900
votes nullined. Or, taking the Ohio
ratio, the total should have been II, $780,
ooU, and thus over 100000 votes were
nullifed.
A wiser statesmanship would see, and q
more humane philosophy would counsel,
surer, speedier and gentler solution Of
the problem, because there is ) perfectly
simple snd ready remedy from every evil
complained OF by Mr.. Halstead. ta
This remedy is the removal OF external
pressure. 8