The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1891-03-07
Delinquent Tax rHIsrl ana BhQuaIiIsa
Voters.

who failed to pay their taxes bv Feb.
ruAry lst and are thereby disqualified
from voting III the next election
NleEsburg and NsteheI papers have
noticed the matter with some feelips
as was natural. In Natehex 500 voterS
We learn, have not paid up but the
proportion Of white and eolored has
not been given. In Harrison county
the vote will be cut of $50, about 500
OF whom are whites, some OF them
prominent men; so said Sheriff Seal
the other day TO a It'd. reporter. In
shls eosnty about 400 voters viii be
debarred, very few of them whites
Woodville Republican.
1t is noticeable that the chief
complaining over the disfranehise-
ment marked by the tax delin-
qnency, comes from persons or papers
whose discomfort with the suf.
firsge restrictions of the new Con-
stltution was that they were too mod
crate. While the convention was con-
sidering the article, the tax and other
qualifications finally adopted, were
derided as Intellectual shifts. Nothing
less than property and educational
tests would satisfy many who then yo-
ciferated wisdom from the house tops.
The present complaint Of the unrepub-
lIcauism and hard,hips of the tax pro-
vision from such source, bears ito own
comment.
1t is timely, however, now that this
tax prerequisite is undergoing test,
TO place 1t and It's workings in a
fair light before the readers of
the TINES. Indisputably, in logic or
reason, the principle of tie tax re-
striction is sound and true. No one
will maintain that persons, white or
black, who do not contribute so much
as the poll tax to the State, which goes
to the support of the common schools,
the base and warrant of manhood suf-
fragc, are unjustly barred from
the polls. 1t IL neither harsh nor
unfair to assume that any one
who refuses this tribute, this duty
of citizenship, is no loss n q
factor in popular government. Then
in technical motive, as well as in
terms, this and the other suffrage
sbridgements adopted, are free from
the unlswfulncss OF race discrimi-
nation. All are truly measured
by merits of cltizenship-not race. 1t
10 undeniable, nor is there any care to
deny, that the architects of tho Fran
chise Article, those who have what they
conceive to be the real good Of the
State at heart, expected that these
restrictions would disfrsnchiss thous-
snds more of blacks than whites
Believing in the moral and intellectual
superiority of the whites, II was ineyl-
table that = very large proportion Of
those who failed In the tests ofssffrage
required by Mississippi's new Consti-
tuition would be negroes.
The full verify Of this expectation,
that the polling lists would be purged
of a mass of unfit aud unworthy
electors, cannot be judged until
oil are eIacted-until there has been
the registration. But enough is known
to afford practical confirmation OF the
effectiveness OF the system. SO far as
we have had information, the black
counties, except Bolivar, are about as
wilkinson, "very few whites debarred."
This is the report we have from Sun
flower, lssaquena, Lehore and Yszoo.
Exact figures from Lowndos are whites
dobarred 40, blacks 1874. In Warren
the whites are reported to be in the
majority, which means thousands OF
blacks aud few whites cannot vote.
In Rankin, where the whites and
blacks are closely divided, private
letter informs US that about IL
whites are unpaid tax payers, to 300
negroes. In Tate rs whites and 1874
negroes. In Kinds 2I0 whites and
1880 blacks. In Washington county an
extreme estimate does not place the
white delinquent tax payers at exceed
ing 200, and over 5000 negroes. In
this and other counties hundreds oil
negroes paid poll tax under the i'm
preston that the repealed mis-
demeanor provision still held. In
brief, the expectation is being verified
that this tax requisite, joined with
others. would give Mississippi a major
ity of whites in the electoral enumer-
alton. and thereby take away the
renroach of election frauds; In all OF
the counties aud districts, except where
the whites are disunited BY strife aud
faction. remove the danger or necessity
OF recurrence of, or return to, obnoi-
ious political methods. This may not
be the result of the registration OF this
year. but we are confident that 1t VIII
in that succeeding. 1t may be safely
assumed, at least, that the State. can be
so re-districted as to give white major
ily in all of the Districts except this
And after all the ordinations over
the tax disfranchisement we much
doubt if the actual vote cast will be
any less than hsretofors.
There were, and are some Misssis-
s,nn;ans who from earnest and deer
seated conviction opposed any limita-
ton upon manhood franchise, except
those obtaining in the old Constitution
II ought to be sufficient to NEE
the objections of this class to re
mind them that the state Of society
:, - .A...lo~d and low mOtiVi