The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-07-22
Now is the Time 70 Ac..

NOW ID the 1lILe 70 AC-.
The MORNING News publishes in another
column of this issue a communication from
Day street merchant in which the business
men Of the south are urged TO exert them
selves to the utmc st 10 induce the business
men of the north 10 use their infue &c to
prevent the passage of the infamous federal
election bill. The communication IS a timely
enc and is on the right line. The business
men Of the south are altogether too Inactive
with respect TO the election bill. They can
do great deal to prevent tie passage of it.
Now is the time for them to act. If the bill
should become a law they would bitterly re-
greet their inactivity.
The NORM NC NEWS has beer urging fer
weeks the business men Of TIE south to
speak out boldly and strongly through
their commercial bodies against the bill.
and to appeal to their business friends in the
north to do the same thing, because the
business men of the north are almost as
deeply interested as those of the south in
preventing its passage The Savannah
Board Of Trade followed The advice Of the
MORNING NEWS and passed strong, but
conservative, resolutions against the bill,
pointing out its dangerous character, the
disorganizug effect it would have upon
labor, and the damage it would do to bust
ness of all kinds. These resolutions. en-
bodied in a circular, have been widely dis
tributed, and some very encouraging re-
sponses have been received from them. The
FLOWING from large business firm in st.
Louis is a specimen of the responses:
GENTLEMEN-Ihe circular you sent US
on the subject of the election law congress
hopes 10 perpetuate Oh the American people
is a good document. The Republic Will
doubtless have it IN print In Uo-morroN's
issue. The Republic is the most promi-
nent democratic paper in Missouri. We If
the west and south are getting a little
weary of being nagged by the legislators
for the benefit of eastern manufacturers.
We confess we have been i'll the past repUb-
licdnS but our views have changed.
Here is a conspicuous instance of what
well directeI effort will do. Let the
business men of the north and west under
stand fully and clearly how the business
men of the south feel with respect to the
bill, and the south will have efficient help
from the north. Unless the business men
of the south speak out emphatically, and
that, too, through their commercial organ
zations, the business men of the north will
be apt TO think that only the politicians
in aud out of congress, are interested in the
bill.
II is rather remar kable that the COM
mercial bodies in all the other cities of the
south have not followed the example set
them by the Savannah Board of Trade. Are
they so occupied with other matters that
they have failed to see how important to
the whole south it is that the passage of the
election Till shall be prevented. Do they
not know that the passage of that bill
would be followed by condition of affairs
that would partially, if not wholly, paralyze
business OF all kinds and bring
industrial u d9rtalinss to standstill!
And the business men Of the north would
feel keenly this paralysis. They have an
immense trade with the south, and also
vast sums invested in southern enterprises.
therefore, if not a sense of
justice, would influence them to take q
stand against a bill that promises to do 50
much harm, if they were aroused to the
Of action on their part.
1t would be too late to do anything to pre-
vent deplorable condition of affairs in the
south after the bill became law. The
south might refuse to have further CONNER
cial relations with the north, but that would
not prevent the enforcement of the law, nor
the consequences of its enforcement Now
is the time for southern business men to act,
and to act vigorously, carefully and wisely
on the line marked out by the MORNING
News and followed by the Savannah board
of trade.