The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1888-01-13

men vote the Republican ticket
when they vote at all and less than
One-tenth Of the colored men vote the
Democratic ticket Now then, you
can easily judge for yourselves. il
more than onc-third Of the white men
vote the Republican ticket and less
than one-tenth of the colOred men tho
Democratic. there being 10000 moro
black than white men in the State.
that State ought to be safely Repub-
lican." In view of this fact, tho
speaker said, that with fair election
and an honest count Mr.. Cleveland
would have no more chance to carry
Mississippi than he would to carry
Vermont or Ohio. He said candid
Democrats in the South knew that was
SO, and justified the suppression of the
colored vote on the ground that it was
necessary to keep white men in Office.
This is the old Democratic cry of
white mans government, but Mr..
Lynch said it was fraud; for IF we
had perfectly free. fair and honest
ballot throughout the South to-day,
there would come up to Congress and
to all of the offices as the result of the
colOred vote a majority of white men,"
Thus his plea was for the enfranchise-
ment of Southern Republicans and not
merely of colored Republicans. The
Republican vote was suppressed be-
cause of politics, not because of color:
at is not question of color" said
the speaker; sit is question
of party. They count out not
black men because they are black.
but Republicans because they are Re-
publicans. They count in Democrats.
not because they are white but because
they are Democrats. and they want
the Offices" This state of things ex-
isted because public opinion at the
North tolerated it. and it would con-
time to exist until the Northern peo-
pie We're aroused to a realization of
the situation. The election of Cleve-
land by the Mississippi plan. giving
him the electoral votes of at least
three Southern States to which he had
absolutely no claim whatever. was
construed as an Endorsement of South
ern methods and license to continue
them. He regarded this as the para
mount question before the country
to-day and beyond comparison more
important than the tariff question. As
long as the present state of things con-
tinued neither the tariff nor any other
question could be fairly settled.
What does it profit YOU" he said.
''to get the judgment of the peo-
pie on the tariff question. the judg-
ment of Pennsylvania. Rhode Island.
and Massachusetts. and New York. if
that judgment is to be set aside
through the suppression of the pop
ular judgment in One-half of the States
of the Union?" Again he asks: "What
is the use of making the tariff an issue
if the people are not allowed to decide
upon it? What is the use o: having
the majority of this people in favor of
protection when you allow the minor
ity to defeat that will by appointing
men to Congress instead of electing
them?" We have given only a gem
eral outline and a few of the salient
points of the speech. which was ter
rible and evidently truthful revelation
of Southern politics. 1t shows that the
solid South means nothing more nor
less than the overthrow of Republic
an Government in several States.
Popular elections do not exist there.
Such thing rs fair election and an
honest count is unknown. 1t is
reign of force and fraud in the interest
of Democracy, n state of things that
makes the constitution of the United
States mockery and the American
flag a Haunting lie. 1t is laying tho
foundation of second rebellion by
the destruction of popular suffrage.
and it calls for continued crusade in
the interest of free ballot. -Lsdian-
dpolis Journal.