The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1888-02-09
A Singing Communication.
-1tLSntu COnStiuti0u.

ing to his able Commercial Gazette
One Of these is Colonel Fred ID.
Mussey. who, in spite Of his politics.
tries to be fair. He doesn't always
succeed, but the struggle that he has
with himself gives flavor to his let
ters that is not to be found else
where. But the best of Editor Hal
stead's correspondents is Judge VIM.
NJ. Dickson, Of Cincinnati, who is al
together a voluntary correspondent.
The judge writes as follows:
Your diction is copious; your i'm
agery ettiorescent. grotesqre; your
eloquence sublime; your affection for
the negro touching, but you evade
the question. must bring you to it.
Shall we continue a sectional agita-
ton until We compel the southern
states to submit to the rule of the ig-
norant field hands ? Would Cincin-
natl vote in the affirmative on this
question? This you dodge. You say
that Cincinnati would vote by an
overwhelming majority for the main.
tenance Of the rights of men No
doubt of that; but that is not my
question. The constitution and the
law Of Ohio guarantee to the colored
children Of Oxford, O.. admission to
the public schools, but the white citi-
zens Of that village nullify that con
stitution, and deny the colored chill
dren their school rights, and this not
in Mississippi, but in the shadow Of
Paddy's Run, the town honored by
your birth. Seventy-tive OF the lead
ing citizens have banded together to
boycott these poor negro children
not, mark you, to protect themselves
against the vote, the rule Of these
negroes-but to deny to them the
opportunity of education. And you
are silent The wrongs Of the negro
of Louisiana touch you but no: these
at your own door. And yet the peo.
pie of Oxford would vote to enforce
negro rule in Louisiana. Now, in my
opinion, it is cruel-it is inhuman-
to deny to the colored children the
school. 1t is also illegal, unconsti,
tutional, in every way regretable, to
deny to the southern negro his vote,
and it is monstrous injustice to give
to the whites there the advantage in
representation Of this negro vote.
But Of what value in either place to
the negro are roy unavailing regrets?
If race prejudice is cruel and inhu
man, how can l help it? If civiiiza-
tion would perish to allow the igno-
rant field hands south t. rule? And
if dared to enforce it, how could |
succeed? Were you in power to-
day what would or could you do !?
Reduce, you say, representation un-
der the fourteenth amendment? You
cant. That part Of the fourteenth
amendment is dead--killed by the
fifteenth amendment. What. then, DO
you propose? A vain and aimless agi-
tation? That is child's play.
Will you send an army south to
compel submission to the rule Of the
Ignorant field hand? Grant tried this;
sent soldiers into the Legislature of
Louisiana. unseated certain members
and seated others. You tiercely de-
nounced this and holted Grants
nomination. So did Whitelaw Ried,
and frantically cried for Brutus to
relieve US Of tyrant, an act that
Grant never forgot nor forgave. Can
you do now what Grant failed to do
then? Would Cincinnati aid you in
sending an ar!ne'l force south? Would
it be good for the negro to awaken at
this time a fierce race struggle?
These are plain questions; will you
answer them? Flighty anathema, sky
rocket defamation, droll buffooncrv
may amuse the groundlings-theY do
not deceive the judicious. Mr.. Edi-
tor, the race question is 4 difficult
one it becomes fearfully difficult in a
community where the intelligent
white man is outnumbered five to one
by the ignorant field hand.
Then arise conflict Of rights. In
1919 John Quincy Ada'ns recorded
in his diary, speaking OF the race
problem as it then presented itself
with slavery, these words: This is 8
question between the rights Of human
nature and the constitution. The
problem of to-day is q question be-
tween the rights Of civilization and
the constitution. Until we can see
our way clear to a proper solution Of
this problem, is it not the part Of
wisdom to leave it to the people di-
rectly involved in it? At all events it
is clear that it would better things
to refer this question TO the citizens
Of Oxford" ="
This is 8 view Of the matter that
Editor iIalstead cannot afford to is-
cuss. and he disposes Of it in an off
hand way that is very refreshing. He
says that the judg" is las ignorant as
any field hand" and that the matter
is so far impertlnent that it is not
worth following" In fact, the great
editor adds, the Judge is about the
most ignorant man about tue actuali.
ties of politics that | know" This is
indeed a tremendous falling off from
the great editors usual trenchant
! style. Our opinion is that Judge
Dickson would make very fine edi'
tor.