The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1888-05-07


offlceiwould be vitiated. Yet l understand
so we'll how insecure life and property would
be-in short, how intolerant the rule would
be-if we were once more subjected TO negro
government, that am willing. until some
thing better offers, TO allow the present con-
ditiOn 10 stand
81 have given you with substantial accu-
racy the exact language Of this intelligent
and really progressive eSouthernman, and las
sure you that 1t fairly represents the best
thought Of the native whites Of that section,
II, OF course, we except the comparatively
few who have Joined their fortunes with the
Republican patty.
avowed himself free trader; indeed the
whole atmosphere was that Of protection,
and protection without any fine hair split
ting. There was also marked feeling In
favor Of all kinds Of internal improvements.
Perhaps out of the whole number twento
men at various times volunteered TO say to me,
that If there had TO be Republican they pre-
ferred Mr.. Blaine now, as they did four years
ago, because they regarded him as the ablest
advocate Of the doctrine Of protection, and
because they had sympathetic interest In
his South American policy, and very much
desired to see what results he could bring
out Of 1t, and believed that such policy con-
servatively planned and sustained long
enough to give il fair trial would produce
results beneficial TO the whole country. Some
of those gentlemen went so far as to say
that, in view Of the free trade message and
general policy Of President Cleveland, II he
and Mr.. Blaine were nominated they were
not sure but they would support Mr.. Blaine.
But said one of them, do not understand
that | should do that as o RepuDllcan; l
should do 1t as protectiOnist, and 10 record
my protest against free trade. AT the same
time should be just as unwilling as l am
now to have my State under negro suprema-
cy.' This gentleman comes Of an old Demo-
cratic family, and served in the Confederate
army. The young men Of the old Wing fam
lilies, while, by reason OF the local conditions
acting with the Democratic party, and cali
ing themselves Democrats, are very largely
on the side Of protection, but just as firmly
as any Of the rest Of them opposed TO negro
rule, and just as determined TO prevent IL.
"Thls element which have endeavored to
describe In general way as the progressive
element, Is placed in very uncomfortable
attitude The men who compose II are
really not in line with the National
Democratic party. Butlthey stand together,
shoulder 70 shoulder, as one man, In the
question Of local government. Our friends
In the North talk about splitting the Solid
South, and no man In the Union would be
better pleased than | to see that done; but
unless | am grossly In error, two facts
stand out in bold relief as clear as the noon
day sun; first, that the Solid South never can
be split by that plan Of campaign. which, for
want Of better name, has been called wav-
ing the bloody shirt; and secondly, that the
leaders Of the Republican party, send
ern Democracy whenever they wave that
garment. Kindly permit me TO make myself
distinctly understood on this question.
know as well as any man, that the South Is
held in line by unlawful, unfair and not un-
frequently. brutal means; L know that In the
far Southern States there Is not free ballot.
and not a fair count i know that IL the case
had been otherwise this great country would
not today be forced to behold with humilla-
tiOn, the spectacle Of a free trader in the
yVhffa Hnuga. / EnnVv and feel ALL this buf
ask,
WHAT ARE you GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?
What did we do when we had a Repnbli-
can President on the lineiof this constitution
al and moral reform, for 1t Is both? What
did President Grant do about 1t? Hayes.
Garfield and Arthur? What would either do
with such a situation? IL a Republican
President has assumed that State Of rev0-
luton existed and tried TO deal with 1t at the
point Of the bayonet, has the sentiment Of
the North sustained him? 1t was this very
sentiment of the North, not the demands add
threats and general turbulence OF the South
which compelled the withdrawal OF the
troops from that region. l quote this ugly
chapter of recent history merely to empha-
size the point. Now 1 have to ask In fair
ness, What could President Cleveland do
about it?' He might, grant, have display
ed the singular moral perception for o gen.
tleman Of his position to decline TO be the re-
ceiver Of stolen goods. But / also think that
the sentiment of the whole country outside
the party. did not require Of him SO great a
personal sacrifice. Suppose that now Presi-
dent Cleveland were to show a disposition to
put the troops in the South to guarantee TO
the States now deprived OF 1t, republican
form OF government, meaning OF course the
rule of the majority. Would the sentiment
of the North support him? Would the SEN
timent Of the Republican party2 Ifthen you
cannot accomplish this end by force, nothing
remains but moral suasion. And
TWENTY GENERATIONS
would not suffice to accomplish anything In
the South by the kind Of a moral suasion
which our Republican party leaders have
thought the proper remedy for that disease
shall not be offended If you say that | am
not considering this problem on the line Of
ideal, which is to say visionary politics. On
the contrary am considering 1t as a praeti-
cal problem in American politics.
"N0w, what Is the practical inference from
all l have said, assuming the conditions to b
be as have stated? You must grant the
be, and as believe it to be In this case-to
settle the negro question, with the negroes
except as far as kindly help In the
matter Of education may go-and try TO di-
vide them on questions having no relation to
the negro. In the matter Of education /
think we ought to do all we can, even over
the protest Of their own leaders, to make
lighter the crushing weight OF ignorance
that rests over the entire Southern section.
Now, the views which have expressed, may
strike Northern Republicans to be so blunt
as to be brutal, and as having In them not
enough Of the spirit Of our constitution. 1t
may be also that some Southern Republicans
for reasons which l at this time do not care
to 20 into, may assail my statement Of facts,
and so show that my conclusions are at least
without value. / have dealt at your request
with one of the most intricate and disagree
able topics ia American politics, and have
to suggest remedy. In all the
years since the war, have not heard the
suggestion of better one, though we have
applied the most heroic Of remedies, and
with absolute. failure. The solid South can
be split 1t remains to be seen whether the
Republican party has the wisdom to do IL.
"You will permit me to add that In West
Virginia we have no negro question. Our
colOred population is comparatively small. 10
votes the Republican ticket, and its vote Is
counted. Our State Is, as you know, very
close. We are hoping to carry It this time,
and IL we do, we shall get It, For am glad
to say that in West Virginia elections are as
fair as anywhere else in the Union. More
than that, we do not carry our politics into
our social or business relations. Every man
says in public and in private what he wants
to say, and we all get along comfortably as
good friends"
"What effect upon the success of the Re
publican party JOuI Oldbcs
like Mr.. Chander's bill to supervise South
ern elections, and the waving of the bloody
shirt in the North have?"
"They hurt. Why? Is something of this
kind needed to fire the Republican heart?
every Republican In West Virginia will
work Just as hard, though we never hear
anything more Of measures OF this eharac-
ter viii they draw from the other side?
This question answers itself. We are max
ing inrOads ON the Democracy Of West Vir-
ginia, most of all on the tariff issues. And
the farther we can get away from those Is
sues which Southern men regard as
WAR ISSUES,
the more rapid and the greater the inroads
we shall make into the Democratic forces.
There is never a Republican convention,
great or small, in West Virginia in these
days, in which we do not have
as delegates men who have not
YET polled their first Republican vote.
Some of these are men who have long been
voters, others young men of Democratic fam
lilies who are about to vote on age. In all
these cases they have experienced change
of heart. They are taken at their word, put
in the effective fighting force, and, II may
change the figure little, given front seats In
the synagogue, Necessarily these occasions