The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-08-17

to subject my life and property and the
| fate of the whole country to the vote OF
q man who does not know enough TO
read his ballot or to count it, much less to
tell the tariff from free trade just look at
Louisiana, with more than half her people
colored and more than half her voters un-
able to read. And suppose they could read
in the spelling book How much would
that help them in gathering facts and com.
pretending issues which involve good
| government and perhaps individual ana
national life -
This staggers me, and should think it
would Mr. Lodge and Mr.. Reed and Mr..
Spooner and Mr.. Hoar, and guess it does.
Any way, this question staggers the repub-
lican party and it will kill the life out OF q
answered or some way is found to fix the
to vote. We can not enforce
a law which provides. that fools
shall play with fire in powder magazines.
We shall not make such law unless we be
beams out of our own eyes in order that we
may see clearly.
But right here catch up the southern
democrats who object to the election law
and bother them great deal. l ask them
if they know that more than half the white
and refer them to the registry lists of tho
| state.
''Why do you object to negro citizen
voting because he is ignorant when you in
slst that the white ignOramus shall govern
the country? You don't object to ignor-
negro, not because he is ignorant, but be-
cause he is black republican,
They can not answer this, but they are
just rs stiff as ever and begin to load their
guns. That is their way. don't mind it
because live SO far north that they won't
hit me; but can't help plying the poor
negro, and should sincerely regret his kill
ing, but for the fact that the outrages may
help along the elections up here where we
can read the accounts in the newspapers.
"He rnaketh the wrath of man to praise
Him, and the thirty thousand black pa
triots who have been murdered since the
war in the effort to enjoy their liberty by
voting the republican ticket, have not died
in vain. by their blood they have saved
many northern and even national cleo
ton, and if they are to fall in future as in
the past around the ballot boxes of the
south or before they get to them. let US
hone for continuance of the some blessing.
But this is tough philosophy.
1t does not leave my conscience easy to
silence the southerner by proving that white
voters are Ignorant, too. So far ms l am
concerned, all citizens are of the same
color.
We have been in power for thirty years.
save four of painful memory. Why is one
third of the southern suffrage and one fifth
that of the whole country disqualified by
ignorance? Save only the demented and
those of mature age at the close of the war,
there should not be a male citizen in the
United States unable TO read intelligently
and ought not to have been for the past ten
years. Could not the same power which
conferred the suffrage also provide for its
qualification! Can the power exist to make
a sovereign of one who knows not how to
rule unless along with the sovereignty ia
given the means to fit the king to reign?
The American citizen il n king. 10 educate
the child is the primary duty of govern
ment among free people. The right to
things only to those who are qualified to
govern. If this be not true, why are idiots
disfranchised? Why should not brutes be
citizens? OF what consequence is ii
whether an ass walks upon two legs or four
The republican party has been pledged
means for educating the people by nationa
aid wherever ignorance prevails. A specific
measure has been pending since 1881 and il
still pending to which we are pledged ove1
and over again. Its work precedes that
of national election law, 80 that the
suffrage which we guarantee, if need be
by sword, shall be competent to bless anC
not likely to ruin society. Do you now
propose to enact the one yet reject the
other? You cannot enact national cleo
ton law and defeat the election bill. A tri
tie of money yearly extended in the statet
efforts would have removed the Ignorance
of the vote: and have rendered the cleo
ton law, which is new feature in our ma
tional existence, wholly unnecessary. In.
telligence can and will protect itself, mol
from intelligence is there any danger, and
| if bo xyhifa md O01nrar
were enlightened he would himself become
a source of safety, and all pretense for the
suppression of his power at the polls would
disappear.
We may enact both measures: we may
enact Il law for education and thus redeem
| the necessity of an election law. If we pass
! the election law bin without providing the
means of education it will prove to be ca
, lamity to the south and nuisance at the
t north.
) knowledge is power, and an intelligen,
. voter will protect himself at the polls
With intelligence at the polls no national
Q election law is necessary, Without educa-
a ton there should be no voter there. Tc
t protect disqualified sovereign in his
t sovereignty is tyranny and will Justify rev.
s olution. Hence we must educate, and to
+ neglect longer to pass the education bill is
| a terrible wrong. TO enact national law
to protect ignorance ut the polls is an act
: of tyranny which will justly destroy the re-
publican party and Its enforcement will
, ruin the country.
| We ought to have passed the education
1 bill before now. and our minister says that
, God will make us trouble about it. But
D am not SO familiar with all His plans as
some are. wish was. I am satisfied
2 that He is opposed to all this Ignorance ant
p violence and crime; but won't undertake
3 to say just what He will do about it.
8 thing hadn't gone on SO before shouldn't
3 have supposed that they would go on s,
d hereafter. Perhaps He will work it out al
IS right. He can do it if any one can, and
]. always trust Him when get discouraged
t as 1 often do There are SO many thing
y that l can't do myself, although I thin
y I'm pretty smart-had to be to get int
e the senate from New Hampshire. NJ
S mother always used to trust Hin
It and she said it was the best way
: But sometimes ! get out of patience an
Il try to set up for myself. So far have ha
poor luck and am on the whole inclined t
e think that in the end the judge of all th
I | 4 & pat for N