Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-07
WANTS THE VOTE DIVIDED.
How Coiored Democrat Thinks the Race
Problem May BE solved.

| DR.. jerome r. Riley, who has been elected
president of the John NJ. Palmer Club of this
| city. a club Of colored democrats, in his inau-
| gural address to the club urged division OF
the celored votes if negro suffrage was to be.
come. not to say popular, but even tolerable.
The worst feature of the negro's trouble has
been, he said, from a false rating which has
been given US by our would be friends, valuing
US by our future possibility, or judging the
whole by few Jumps of leaven within our fold
who have made most remarkable progress in
| learning, literature and even craftsmanship.
thus they were placed in a position where
more was demanded of them than should be
expected of them. In their unity. he said. lay
| their weakness. The leadership of the men who
have been prominent among the colored people,
he claimed, has been mischievous, misleading
and disastrous. These men had read history to
very little purpose not to know that lntelli-
gence and wealth dominated legislation and
! commerce the world over.
Our friends tell us" he remarked. that all
white legislators not statesmen. Pre-
cisely SO: but the white record is made. Theirs
ls the civilization of the realm; our traditional
and universal record was that we were ignor-
ant. incident and would steal, and therefore
were incapable of self-government. The con-
trary IL what We had to prove and refute this
accusation, a fact not vet learned, or If learned
problem Was wholly in our own hands. In the
south 1t had to be solved, the essential condi-
tons being more favorable there than any
where else. The first prerequisite was peace
and mutual confidence, there being COM
mingling of interests between races. The
whites were ready to receive fair proposals
rather than dictate terms at that time. In our
poverty and ignorance we we're not prepared
Tor war. not even friction with our white
neighbors. although We were often hoodwinked
to believe to the contrary. We cannot deny
the fact that the general government itself was
not more than prepared for war with the
south. These suggeHtions apply with equal
force today. peace basis was our only hope
to secure to us apublic sentiment which would
insure minority representation of valne
that would be lasting and permanent. 1t was
our misfortune and not our fault that we were
Ignorant and poor, yet nevertheless true, and
this should have been taken into account dur
Ing that period. Even now this matter will
Dear the close attention OF our race. In a
measure we were unable to appreciate the dig
nifty and sovereignty Of citizenship and that the
safety Of a state depended upon its sovereign
use. we were swayed by passion and senti-
ment rather than reason. TO US party WAS
sovereign rather than the citizen. We emerged
from bodily to intellectual slavery. Our
actions, the policies of our leaders. often en-
tangled us In the meshes of trouble from which
there was no escape. The white people of the
sonth nave their shortcomings, as you and
ana all have; but the same sentiment of hui
manlty actuates them as other people the world
over"
He argued that the colored voters should not
continue az a-menace to the peace and pros
perlty of the south by refusing to divide their
suffrage. The value and dignity of agricultural
labor, lie said, had been kept in the back
ground. While dealing with politics they had
neglected matters that develop the character
Of the race.