The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-04-16
A LEGAL Figh. on the Color Line.

From the tone OF the northern republican
newspapers one would hardly suppose that
there would be any objection in the great
republican stats of Kansas to the admission
of colored children into white schools. It
seems. no xever, that there is. 10 the town
of Olathe, in that state, the school board
refused TO admit colored girl, 0 years of
age. into a white school, According to our
dispatches yesterday the parents Of the girl
applied for writ of mantamus, to require
the board 70 snow cause why the girl should
not be admitted, and, after hsaring the
case, the maudamus was male psrenpt0ry.
The matter is not settled. however, because
the board has taken an appeal to the SUI
preme court
It does not appear that there is a colored
school in Olathe, and even if there is it is
apparent that the objection to the girl is
her color. She is black, aud, therefore, she
is denied TIE right to enjoy. in the same
building with white children, the educa-
tional advantages which the state provides.
We have no fault to find with the board
of education of Olathe IL has done just
what any board of education in southern
state would have done. Ia the south public
sentiment is against mixed schools, or any
sort of social equality between the black
and white races. In the north. however, 20
judge from the tone of their republican
newspapers in discussing the race question,
there is little or no race prejudice Those
newspapers constantly crIticise the south
ern people for drawing the color line. And
yet there is it seems. the same race preju-
dice in Kansas as there Is in the south.
The difference between the northern aud
southern people in this matter of the races
is that the northern people pretsnd to be
free from race prejudice, when, as matter
of fact, they have it in a greater degree than
the southern people, The southern people
very frankly admit that they have a race
prejudice, while the northern people would
like to have it understood that they haven't
Recently an eminent preacher in Boston
delivered sermon in which he took
the southern people severely to task
for drawing the color line. The
editor of the Boston Globe publish ed an
open letter to the preacher, in which he
pointed out that the prejudice against the
blacks was just about as strong in Boston
as it was any where in the South, and sug
gested that if ne were really sincere he
would devoJe himself to the work of rem " =
ing the color line in Boston, where there ara
only few colored people, before meddling
with the color line in the south.
1t is somewhat remarkable that would-be
reformers seldom see their own sins, failings
or shortcomings, but are quick to sea tho ,
of Others. Doubtless the majority of the
people Of Boston, Kansas, aud in fact of
the whole north think that they have no
prejudice whatever against the blacks, and
they are greatly disturbed by the thought
that there is color line in the south. The
most of those who visit the south, however,
and study the relations of the races, return
home fully convinced taat the treatment of
the colored people in the south is just exactly
what it is in the north, and that there is no
more disposition to lift up the colored peo-
pie in the north than there is in the south
not as much in fact-and that the north
offers no more encouragement to the col
ored people than the south.