Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1890-03-05
An Empathie Answer.

from Inc new YORK Herald.
A correspondent writes u.s.
In your editorial, "Stand from Under"
in Fridays Herald, you express the belief
that law to control federal elections, and
the attempt in general to get out the full
negro vote in the Southern States would
cause such serious disorders in that section
of the country as would be ruinous to its
industries and make Improbable or bring
to loss the Northern capital invested in
those States. You suggest, therefore, that
Northern public opinion should be aroused
70 oppose such legislation Now l want to |
ask you whether, if the negro has the vote.
Congress is not right to pass laws which
will secure him this right?
We answer our correspondent:-In the
article which be correctly describes we did
not discuss the right or wrong of the negroes
political situation. We undertook to warn
the Northern owners of capital invested in
the South that if the Republicans carry out
their announced Southern policy they will
create such general disorders in the South
as will make life and property insecure, and
interrupt aud PROSTATE all industrial enter
prises and ventures in that region, and thus
Gauge very great and ruinous losses.
About that we have no doubt. The at
eempt once more to put the heels on top;
the deliberate scheme, by laws which will
require troops to enforce them, to subject
intelligence and property in the Southern
States to the control of banded and organ
ICED ignorance and poverty, cannot succeed
without finging that unfortunate section
into such disorder as would bring ruin on
every enterprise and put stop to its indus
trial development
In the years Immediately following the
war, when the negro, under carpet-bag
management, misruled 10 the Southern
States, the North had nothing at stake
Northern capital and Northern enterprise
had not then gone down there. Matters
have very greatly changed since then. The
South is now the promised land of Northern
enterprise and capital. A great many mil
lions have been invested down there in
mills, mines, railroads, factories and works
of all kinds. A great many thousand Eorth-
ern men are either there or pecuniarily in
| terested there. No great calamity can
nowadays overtake the South without being
| very seriously felt all over the North.
The South was at peace for eight years.
President Arthur and President Cleveland
had no ssSouthern question" in their mes
sages to Congress The races we're getting
along quietly with each other until the Re.
publicans came in again and began at once
to stimulate the hopes of the negro dema-
gogues for new return of negro rule. The
negroes in all the South are banded togeth-
er politically, with no relation to the wants
or policies of the States in which they live.
Their attitude is not that of citizens, but of
outsiders, looking solely to their own selfish
interests-their ambition to control for their
own advantage. IL is combination of the
ignorance aud poverty Of th ose States, in
seven or eight of which the colored men out
number all the other voters. The Republi
can scheme is by laws which, as we have
said, will necessitate the use of troops-ba
cause without troops the negroes will not
! stand their ground TO incite and force this
combination OF the ignorance and poverty
of those States to take control Of the State
and local governments; to lay and spend the
taxes in States and counties, to make the
la VS., to administer courts.
We say confidently that this policy will
bring on race troubles in the South which
will make life and property insecure, will
disturb and PROSTATE the industries Of that
region, and will force 10 this way great
calamity on the whole country. We believe
this will happen if the Republican program
is carried out, because the people of New
York. of MASSACHUSETTS, of Ohio or Iowa,
would not stand quiet and see themselves
aud their property swampad by combina
tion of voters representing the banded ig
norance and poverty of these States.
Therefore we say that for the welfare Of
the North as we'll as of the Southland of
Northern interests even more than of South
ern interests-it is expedient for Northern
public opinion to make itself heard in op
position to the Republican program.
Our correspondent asks whether Congress
ought not to pass laws to enforcs the me-
groes' right to vote. We answer no. To
do so is only to encourage the blacks to
band together against the public interest
and welfare. Congress ought to leave the
negroes alone. 1t has nothing to do with
them as negroes. When the federal power
turns its back on them, and not till then,
will they become citizens in the true sense
and begin for the first time since freedom
and citizenship we're bestowed upon them
to vote as other men do-with regard to the
general welfare, and MT as self-seeking
''combine."
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