The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1890-09-12

give over to the Republican party the
control of any southern state. People
from the North who have come to the
South to build up their homes and
fortunes, will never submit to any legls-
lation on the part of the general gov
eminent that will elevate the negro to
that unbecoming station in life, viz:
| Governing the people of the South be-
cause they are numerically stronger"
| It would take an army of one million
men to execute the Lodge bill, whereas
today no army is required, and the
negro can and does 60 to the polls and
votes with es much freedom as any
American citizen. There are no more
ballot box frauds perpetrated generally
in the South than there is in New York,
and if the Republicans of the North de-
sire to keep control, let them be IS
wide awake to prevent fraud at home
as they are to force bill through con-
gress that will precipitate the whole
South In financial rum, and engender
the bitter feelings and hatred of the
whole South. Do you suppose that
northern capital will continue to pour
into the South, if the government of
the people is to be given over to an in
ThCG, WuOSC Auu1UOl6 OAi1 ChOlC1C
them to sit upon the bench, administer
upon estates, fill the legislative halls
and without the first idea of the effect
of their actions, promote legislation that
would ruin every industry In the South?
We northern capitalists desire to hazard
their money in such country?
The negro problem is the great prob
lem to deal with In the South. The
problem will solve itself if a Republican
congress will act with wisdom and not
aim at the passage of any bill that will
inf1ict upon a particular community an
element that has rot the power to
scarcely discern the difference between
right and wrong, but seek through the
aid of the South some method of lifting
up the negro and educating him to at
tam high standard, then something of
q tangible nature might be accomp.
lished.
Intelligence will always predominant
over ignorance, and SO long as the negro
is ignorant he Is at the mercy of
demagogues, but educate him and he
will soon distinguish for himself his
political creed. The scum of either
political party in the North have be-
come an eyesore to the true American
citizen, why then take measures to put
LhC CCu1l vi UlC loOpoOl4Soh POI W III thO
south IN the ascendency? A majority
of the negroes are mere citizens, so far
as intellect is concerned. Teach them
to read and write, to apply themselves
by constant labor and prepare them for
citizenship and intelligent action as
voters, let such measures as the Lodge
bill alone in congress, abandon any at
tempt to keep alive distasteful issues,
and the South will develope to such an
extent that the negro will be employed
and become conversant with mechanical
principles, and when he learns that the
most skillful mechanic, who receives
the largest wages, is the most iptelli-
gent, then will he, of his own volition,
take hold, but if the idea becomes fixed
in the mind of the negro that congress
10 legislating in what is apparently in
the interest solely of himself, he will
become arrogant, and be above the
earning of his own living.
No portion of the country is 30 rapidly
being developed, nor becoming prosper
GUS as the South, and if the question of
the negro ,s ever solved, it will be by
the people who mingle with the negro
ever day and not by hot headed news
papers or BLOODY shirt politicians. The
prosperity of the whole country can
hCfCI UO OIOuSub dOOuU NY laulCdl 1OSlO'
Iation. What is needed is more bust
ness end less politics in congress-, and
the dozens of members of congress who
voted for the passage of the Lodge bill,
who have never been south of the
Mason and Dixon line, did SO from
political prejudice and at the dlc'ation
of party caucus, and if they continue
to legislate for the whole country, they
should intelligently inform themselves
on all public questions and not know
the South only, as the "SoIid South"
The days of the 'Sol;d South" will be
numbered as soon as the "negro prob
lem" is dropped by the politician, for
the negro will, as he advances In in
telligence, divide on political issues as
he does in his religion (?)
The hundreds of thousands of white
Democrats In the South, who are Re-
publicans in principle and Democrats
in prejudice and voters, simply because
the negro is not worth associate, or
to be trusted to govern, will divide up
on economic questions when the negro
vote is intelligently divided and not 30
easily purchased.
do not write this from a political
standpoint, but from a conservative
business view, and the language may
seem little strange coming from me,
but | desire the development of this
portion of the country, and hope to see
some of my old Mankato friends NOV
ing into the richest country in the
world, and l don't want them to be-
lieve that they cannot come here if
they are Republicans.
| received a letter from my old friend,
George Clarke, which informs me that
he is at Mankato booming Florence.
ANYTHING George says about Florence, |
propose to double discount about
Nottingham, and everybody knows that
George and myself never stretch the
truth. 1t is pleasure to read the FREE
PRESS again. Very Respectfully,
FRANK N. MERRILL.
A Beau of 1929.