The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1890-08-26
A MODERN MIRACLE.

something hardly short of the miraculous
Is what the Boston Journal regards the ac-
lion Of the Mississippi Constitutional Con-
yeution in seating a negro delegate. linen
that Radical sheet proceeds to apologize LOT
a half sarcastic commendation OF the Douy
by calling II packed Bourbon convention
There is a school of Biblical criticism
which would assign accounts OF ancieh'
miracles 10 the field of mythology, or would
attempt TO explain them upon naturai sclen-
,i6c grounds. While the Journal may not
AGREE with that school in every particular
il would do well 10 apply that schoois
methods 10 a study Of what it regards
Mississippi miracle. ltwould discover hrs'
Of all. that the myth theory could not De
sustained. Melchior and Montgomery, the
negro. are both Republicans, and they both
occupy seats in the ''packed Bourbon con-
yention." The negro is real being about
fifty years old, an eX-slave, now land
owner and merchant, and from the speech
no made against a Democrat being given
his seat. showed that he possessed a ialr
amount Of education, and was
pretty fair speaker lie moved talked, ana
had his being, and hence was no puppe',
except that he was a Republican. In this
respect he was no more of a puppet thah
other negroes of the country who allow
Themselves 10 be used by the Republican
party for campaign purposes, and for cam
paign purposes only.
| The Journals miracle then must have OIL
cinated in the fact that Montgomery was
black. Well Neither he nor the packed
bourbon convention" was responsible for
this. lie was black because the ancestors
of the Journals constituency captured ms
ancestors in Africa, and sold them TO the
ancestors of the members Of the Mississippi
Convention. No miracle in that. Only
New England rum, wooden nutfnegs, or
gimcracks.
The miracle after all is that tine Journal
having at its command all the modern iacil'
tiles for collecting news, should not avail
itself of them. This miracle may also be
explained upon materialistic grounds. The
news is probably edited by a blind-iold man,
a man who has been blnd-fod for a quarter
of century Let him remove his band
ages, take an express train to the
south, and study the negro situa
ton with the aid Of the rea
friends of the negro. lie will discover
that in sections where the Radical agitatol
has not penetrated with his poison, The
white people and the blacks are living upon
perfectly amicable terms. He will discover
that of those negroes who are sufficiently H.
terested in politics to avail themselves o.
the provisions of the fourteenth amend
ment not few vote the Democratic ticket
and not few more will vote it hereafter.
"Another miracle he will probably say
But ii is not miracle. The following
figures Will explain the situation. Property
owned by negroes, according TO the AT
lanta Constitution. amounts to $4,000, 10 II
Alabama. $S.O10,3lj in Arkansas, S1,yOO,0OO
in Florida, $l0.4lj,33O in Georgia, $500,
j2S in Louisiana, $5,9OOOOO in Kentucky
Sl3, 4OO.2l3 in Mississippi, SS,90O,73j ii
Maryland, $n,OlO,6j2 in North Caro-
lima. Sl2,5OO,0oO in South Carolina
$lS.O1O,5l5 in Texas. $lOlOO,2n in Ten
nessee, S4,0OO,O 900. and in Virginia, Sj,01.7 -
Owners of so much property cannot afford
to vote for a party which proposes to pass
and enforce a force bill even if they do live
in the South.
ON his way home the editor of the Jour
nal might spend a few days talking witt
his negro friends in Pennsylvania. anC
they will tell him that at their convention
at Lancaster a few days ago they indicted
the Republican party for manyreasons, anC
particularly because they were discrimi
mated against in factories, by labor organi
cations. and by the chartered benefit com
pahies Of the state.