The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-07-31
some Republican Votes.

The northern republican leaders and or
gans pretend u believe thai tue black
voters Of the south are denied free ballot.
They endeavor 70 create the impression that
these voters are very intelligent, and loudly
protest against the injustice 10 which, It is
alleged, they are subjected As matter Of
fact there is not one black voter in ten in
the country districts who knows anything
about any public question. They are
deDsely ignorant. aud are entirely under
the control of those leaders who succeed IN
gaining their confidence That these lead
ers frequently deceive them is a fac. that
will be generally admitted.
There is political campaign in progress
among the republicans in the Seventh IN
gressional district in South Carolina The
two great leaders of the blacks il that dis.
trict are Robert Smalls and a man named
Whipper. The latter has recently besn in
Jail for some offense or other. He Is smart
and shrewd and wants to be probate judge
OF Beaufort county. Although the electi N
for probate judge is Sill a good way of
Whipper Is electioneering for it. Smalls
doesn't like Whipper, and besides. he would
like to succeed Col. Elliott in the House Of
Representatives. He is, therefore, canvass
ing the district and is doing what he can TO
defeat Whipper by trying to make him
odious to the people.
The speeches OF Whipper and Smalls
would make interesting reading-for those
who are wanting in decency and self
respect 1t seems. however, that they draw
pretty large audiences of blacks, to whom
they make all sorts of alarming statements,
knowing, of course that the blacks are too
ignorant to know whether or not they are
true
Whipper talks about the force bill. He
tells the blacks that the purpose of it is to
force the blacks to vote, aud, of course, he
means the republican ticket. No doubt the
main purpose of the bill is to force the
blacks to vote. but Whipper tells them that
if they don't vote they will be put into Jail
for six months. No doubt the great ma
Jority of the blacks who hear Whipper
make this statement believe it,
But what must intelligent people think of
voters who are so Ignorant as to believe
such statement? And it must not be for
gotten that it is not made by democrat,
DuI py republican leaQer. lneSe are tle
kind of voters the republican leaders hope
to influence by the force bill. The repub-
iican party must be greatly in need of
voters. If it were not it would not make
such an extraordinary effort to pass the
force bill, the only purpose Of which is to
get black votes in the south.
Whipper and Smalls know, of course, that
they are deceiving the blacks by false state
ments. But they are willing to do that
provided it helps them to carry out their
programme. 1t is not to DO wondered at
that Smalls and Whipper deceive the blacks,
but it is outrageous that the republican
leaders in Washington should strive to do
the same thing in order to keep their party
in power. If they wanted to do what was
right they would let the ignorant blacks
alone, knowing as they do that the great
majority of them are not yet fit to act
intelligently upon any political question.
They will not let them alone, however, as
long as there is a chance of profiting by
their votes