The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-06-06
OF THE SOUTH.
Described by DR.. RikdF--only So
luton of the Race Problem
LIES IN GRRSTIENIZING EFFORTS:
Why the South Dlsnanohtses the No
Gro...The immortality Among the
Latter Race--Despite Drawbacks 1t
is Advancing in5civilisatlon.--Ho@i
to Better tho condition Is Afrairs. I,

to Better tho Condition. f Antaira a
AT yesterday mornings services at
tho Fourth street Methodist church
Rev. DR.. Riker, the pastor preached a
sermon on the problem Of the South. A
good deal Of comment was heard about
town on the sermon.
The problem of the South, Dr.. Riker
said, is the problem Of educating and
equipping the ignorant masses for the
responsibilities and duties Of citizens
ship, and also Of convincing the white
man that the black man lisa man and
that not Of an inferior race
1t is an exceedingly Ihnytticsse and
complex problem. s 1Ss.l, r
The white people of the south re-
gard the colored race as inferior. The
portion OF the whites contains the
i'poor white trash" while the col
ored man scorns that same class, The
"poor white trash" is obsequious to the
OIle anu uaJee bll6 OgteE WIN al AhI0f
erate hatred. The spirit Of caste syery
positive. The ignorance and desrada'
ton exists upon the part Of both races,
the great mass Of the colored race being
in most deplorable condition, while a
large number of the whites have an
equally unpromising outlook.
The population OF the South is by the
last census shown to be about q, COX, 900,
of which II, OO0,0 900 are whites and !, 000,i
900 blacks. ar.E ~ cGal
The number OF blacks is not as large
as was supposed, and the ratio OF their
increase as compared with the increase
in the white population, is constantly
decreasing since 1850. There are a3, \
100000 llliterates among the black
and 100000 illiterate among .2the
whites in the south, To- make
the problem more difficult the
black man in his ignorance and without
experience has been given citizenship
by the nation, because he is a mans and
he has been practically distranchised
by the south, because he belongs to
what they believe to be an inferior race
and because he is wholly incapable Of
performing the functions Of his new es-
tate. The North is outraged by such
conduct The South contends that i, 10
right. ="
Those who attempt the solution OF
the problem should have two
objects in mind: l. Christian phil
anthropy. 2. Patriotic craftsmanship.
The Rrst means the redemption Of tile
individual, the second the enlightsn-
ment OF the masses. The two are one.
The solution is to be reached on
Christian grounds. 1t is the mission OF
Christ to qualify men for citizenship in
two worlds, Every Christian should
be stirred by the first, every patriot,
should DO moved by the second. THE
interest the whole county has in the
problem is shown by the fact that,
while every one OF these disfranchized
men is counted in making up the con-
gressional representation, he has
no voice in the solution. This gives
tremendous power to those whoseyoIce
is heard in the control of affairs.
Out OF S2l congressman 1877 arc from
Southern states. Out of lightweight
senator's thirty-two are from the South
ern states; 1888 electoral votes are from
these same Southern states, more than.
three-fourths enough to elect aprest-
dent.
Now, in. studying the problems let
us look at the relation Of the black man
to it, and then OF the illiterate white
man, and have our eye upon the ruling
class while studying either. ~
While our thought has been directed.
again and again to the vast progress of
the colored man land / will refer to this
in moment), let US not forget that the
degradation Of the mass Of them is still
almost incomprehensible to those who
never saw them. ~
Iwish had two addresses would
spend the time Of one in discussing the
conditions of the people. l trust that
while hold the glass to your eyes for
second you will catch the vision OF the
whole field of life toward Which 1t Is
pointed. a..'7 80 -
l point ~ to the field of the ancestry
OF the race; (2) to their poverty; ~
10 their homes. The home idea does
not exist among them, nor does the
reverence for ancestors, because they.
did not know who they were. M. :,
OTs Qlh0E AoloIIOu w VIC hlVShtuk iuiz
morality Of the negro IN the South, his
ignorance, andhis religion, a mixtureof
fetichism and christianity. The negro
had been slave to the white race, and
neither race had forgotten it. The
white man, he continued, was deter
mined to dominate the black man, Tor
the reason of the natural prejudice
against the black man, felt all over the
country, and the fact that the white
man believes that the colored man is.
naturally inferior TO the white, and only!
fitted to be newer OF wood and drawer
OF water. Another reason grew out OF
the actual incompetency Of the negro.
As an illustration he cited the fact, that
under Republican rule in South Caroli-
ma, from 1853 to 1875, the cost OF the
public printing was 5,666 per month,
against $Sl4.S0 per month under the atl.
ministration of Governor Hampton A
gentleman, born and bred in Ohioanded
ucated in IN Ohio college, had said, that
such was the villainous administration
of affairs in Mississippi, thatwhilo he
could notendorse the shotgun policy, he
voted with those who practiced 1t.
Henry Watterson had put the whole
position in nutshell, from Southern
standpoint, in the following words 49,
Nobody denies that the colored man
is disfranchised III the South. Every
body sees that the republic cannot stand
with portion OF Its citizens disfran-
chised. Bad ne the situation is, | believe