Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-03-22
SATURDAY. MARCH %, 1890.
The Blair Bill.

When horse running race "Iets
down" he has already lost the race. ms
is what the BLAIR bill did some time ago;
and no one since that time can justly bare
n claim 10 perspicscity upon the fact that
he saw that the race had been already lost.
We are glad that party lines were not
drawn in the Senate in voting upon the
bull. 1t has made Mr.. BLAIR immortal as
tireless and tiresome speaker, and at the
came time has connected his name for
long time il not forever with a measure
which grew in unpopularity as bLAiRs
speeches became more and more frequent.
But neither party can justly charge the
other with the defeat Of the bill. 1t was
defeated by the combined votes of Re
publcans and Democrats, but neither
party caucussed upon it, and so neither
made it party measure.
The two Virginia senators voted in the
affirmative of course. Both had made
speeches in its favor during the present
session Of Congress. They voted as they
had been instructed TO vote by the Legs
lature of Virginia, and as their constitu-
ents had requested them to vote. In this
State both parties stood pledged to the
support of the bill.
We suspect that President HARRISON
was opposed TO the BILL and had minated
ms much TO the senators of his own party.
II is hardly to be doubted that if he had
sincerely favored the bill, and had chosen
10 exercise the influence of the executive
on that side, he could have converted the
vote of 81 yeas to 81 nays into vote of 81
yeas TO 81 nays.
VIII the bill be revived? We think not.
In fact, if we were to say what it seems to
us the future fate Of the bill is TO be, we
should write down that it is as dead as the
scheme for making nation OF RoTHs-
cH11.Ds by the simple expedient OF issuing
an abundance Of fat money.
The negroes will deplore the defeat of
the BLAIR bill; and well they may. Their
Republican allies have by failing to make
it party issue SAID in effect that UNCLE
SAM will not educate the negroes nor con-
tribute in any way to spreading intelli-
gence among them. This manifestation OF
indifference to the welfare of q class of
people WnOlu THESE shiuc OhNo
fondly petted as 1.-The wards of the nation"
ought to open the eyes OF the negroes of
the whole land to the hypocrisy of the Re-
publican leaders. The example thus sst
by Messrs. ALDRIcH, DAVIS, Dixon. FAR
WILL, FRYE, HALE, HAwLEY, HIscocK, IN
eALLs. JONES Of Nevada, PIERCE, PLUMB,
SAWYER, SHERMAN. SPooNER, and WncoTT,
may be followed by southern lawmakers.
We do not say that that example will be
followed in the southern States; but we
do say that If the legislatures of any of the
southern States should need a precedent
for refusing TO tax white men to educate
blacks, they would find one in the action
of the United States Senate on the BLAIR
bill.
MIR. SHERMAN voted against the BLAIR
bill. This vote indicates that he no longer
considers himself an available or probable
candidate for President of the United
States. No civilian of his age has ever been
nominated for that Office; and it is not
likely that one ever will be. We do not
recollect how Mr.. SHERMAN voted on the
two previous occasions when the BLAIR
bill was passed in the Senate.
The failure of the BLAIR bill to pass the
Senate will relieve the Virginia representa-
tives in the lower house of Congress Of the
duty Of voting upon the bill.