The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1890-02-26
TO SUPPRESS IGNORANCE.
How to Wipe Repubiicansm Out of Ex-
istence in Mississippi.

istence in Mississippi.
Senator Walthalrs speech in the Sen
ate on the question of suppressing Re
publicanism in Mississippi calls for 6
remedy-a remedy of practical politics
against the supremacy of ignorance
and irresponsibility.
The remedy is obvious and so simple
that it can be stated in a line-an educa
tional qualification and a poll-tax re-
striction on the suffrage.
In Missouri and in every other State
in the Union large amount of igno
rance and responsibility are expressed
at the polls, but intelligence and re-
sponsibility can deal with them in the
main without qualifying the suffrage
though the evils incident to unqualified
suffrage are apparent and great. When
they become so great as to be remediable
in no other way, the remedy in practical
politics is the one we have indicated
above.
1t is not disfranchisement. The poll
tax of dollar or two dollars makes the
Miss issippi Republican voter tax
payer and gives him a certain degree of
responsibility which his compliance
with the educational requisite of suf-
frage may enable him to appreciate.
There would be no injustice in Mlssis-
slppl in requiring that every voter
should be able to read the State consti-
tuition. Ability to read the bill of
rights is not an unreasonable nor is it
permanent restriction of suffrage. ANY
person of common sense can learn the
alphabet in week, and to read intelli-
gibly words of two, three and four syl-
tables in six months. If this restriction
We're imposed in Mississippi next week
every adult of sound mind in the State
who does not know how to read the
State constitution could know, if he so
desired, before the next election. And
there is no person in Mississippi so poor
that the payment of an annual tax of
two dollars to support the State would
be real hardship.
Why are so many speeches made; why
IS there SO much unnecessary and wild
theory on one hand and so much lust
resentment of it on the other where this
plain remedy of practical politics is al
ways at hand?
The State of Mississippi can, if it
chooses, adopt these restrictions of
suffrage; it can at the expense of only
few thousand dollars print the con-
stitution in pamphlet form, with the
alphabet as a preface; with half dozen
Introductory pages of the syllables
forming words in the constitution ar
ranged as in a primer so that a little ap-
plication will enable every illiterate
person of sound mind in the State to
learn to read the constitution without
other books and with only such teaching
as any one may obtain out of schools
without paying for it. Such pamphlets
can be issued by the thousand at an ex-
pense of not over two cents COPY.
They will remedy all ignorance that
cares to remedy itself. The payment
of the poll-tax and ability to read the
constitution as tests of fitness to vote
will hold ignorance and responsibility
that does not care to remedy itself in
complete check.
There is no theory about this It will
work. 1t will completely suppress the
Republican party in Mississippi and
keep it suppressed until the party be-
comes so ashamed of its own ignorance
and responsibility as to entertain
there the same jealous desire to reform
itself that it shows elsewhere, and in
fact everywhere, to reform other people
before it reforms itself. And it will not
reduce the States representation in Con-
gress. If there is any reason it should
not be adopted it is a local reason, and
not reason which weighs against the |
fact that one way to suppress Republic
anism everywhere is to make some de-
gree Of intelligence and responsibility
a test of fitness to vote. When all other
ways fail, this remedy is always at hand,
always practical and always sure to pre-
vent ignorance and responsibility from
taking control of the State and democrat
izing it, as they did in Mississippi when
the Republican party was in charge.
St. Louis Republic.