The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1893-06-29

/ between them.
On ratio Of one To five Mississippi
has iO7 80 white voters. If we count
every vote returned last year as icing
cast by a white mxn, Mississippi still
has 55. I3i white voters who did not go
to the polls. Thus the state government
represents only z8.s per cent OF the white
voters in the state.
On the same ratio Arkansas has 1885,
303 white voters. II we count Ceye-
| lands and Weaver's vote as white and
( Harrison's ~ colored, Arkansas has g.
63S white voters who did not vote, or if
we connt every vote returned as being
cast 10y white man the state still has
/ 1914 white voters not going 10 the
I polls
The same Is true in regard to South
/ Carolina and Florida. the former having
81 .246 and the latter 0.43i white voters
more than the total vote returned at the
/ last election.
/ am not familiar with the local in-
! fueDces which have produced this con-
/ trast between the voting population and
/ the actual vote cast. Within the last
| decade a portion Of the press and some
Of our public speakers, though first
limited at, but now openly, proclaim for
restriction Of popular suffrage This
war was first declared against the color
| ed voter in the south and the foreign
| immigrant in the north on the ground of
not knowing how to use the ballot for
their own good. but of late years this
movement has become more formidable,
and its advocates boldly declare for a
restriction Of popular suffrage and de-
mand:
Tristan educational qualification.
Second-A property or tax qualifca-
ton
AS regards the first of these demands,
Mississippi, in her revised constitution,
is the first state which has taken a de-
cided stand on this question. G. w. Boil
ton in letter says:
"A voter must be able to read the con-
stitution or explain it when read to him.
The judges Of election are to be the
judges Of this. The party in power, who
control the machinery, require Demo
Gratis to read easy or explain simple sem
fences, while all others will be given
difficult ones TO read or explain"
Think of the power vested in the Judges
of an election! Armed with such a law
they can disfranchise 90 per cent of the
voters, because not more than one half
the lawyers in a state can properly in
terpret the intricate parts Of constitu-
ton, still less the farmers and laborers.
This law explains why ia Boliver county,
with total vote of 5000, only 295 votes
were polled at the last election.
1t also explains why the governor at
tended the Richmond conference and
made al appeal to turn the tide of white
immigration to his state
No state has moral right to take the
ballot from man who lacks an educar
ton unless the state has done every-
thing in its power for at least a genera
ton to give him one.
In Georgia and some other states a
poll tax system has been introduced. No |
one Is permitted to vote unless he can |
produce tax receipt The payment of |
this tax is not compulsory. The law saws
to the voter. You can have your choice
pay this tax and be permitted to vote, or
not pay it and lose your citizenship"
Mr.. Arlnistead, in the Atlanta Constitu-
ton. Sept %, 1892. said, Fulton county
has $4,000 voters, but only 1904 have
registered" In reply to the question why
they did not all register he answered:
1t Is because their taxes are not paid.
Those who aren't registered don't get
this far. Ii man returns any property.
he is bound to pay the tax on it. but if
it's only poll tax we can't make him
pay it."
This law has disfranchised thousands
OF voters. Originally it was doubtless
intended for the colored voter, but hard
times have caused its hand to be laid ON
the white man as we'll 1t has often
oeen SAID that "a man without property,
paying no tax, has no moral right to
vote, because he don't assist in support
ing the government" This is true when
applied to nonproducers, as gamblers,
usurers and kindred professionals, but
not so when applied to the laborer. Ev-
cry dollar of tax paid. regardless of who
pays it, is the product of labor. IF
own farm and employ some one to Gull
tlyate 1t, his labor contributes as much
toward paying my taxes as my property
This is also true of every other branch
ot industry. Labor, whether it owns
property or not, is the creator of all
wealth" and ultimately pays every dol
ar Of tax.
40 not mean to convey the idea that
man because he is a laborer should lse
exempt from paying his tax. Its pay
nent ought to be made compulsory, ana
not used as pretext to disfranchise him
ma thousands of others. This blow at
popular suffrage regardless of the sources t
rom which it emanates, or the ground t
lpon which it is based, is the most dan. :
5erous tendency Of our time. Think of ,
government whose financial policy has
oeen dictated by the bankers of New
ork and Europe, and that for a quar-
er OF century has done little else than
PASS class laws and legislate the wealth |
u the many into the Golfers of the few. /
hereby reducing large portion of our /
population to wage slaves, now telling
he laborer. You shall not vote because a
,ou don't help to support me-" This is q
IKE robb1ng man and then killing him :
because he has no more to give.
There are but two ways by which a 2
nan can speak to the government and Il
make his wishes known-one through b
ne ballot and the other by revolution.
You rob him of the former, then You t.
pen the door to the latter and make a h
lhilist of him.
II 1t is true that 1.-The power to govern :,
must be derived from the consent Of the
overned," as the heroes Of the revolu-
ION declared, then it is equally true that D
men the government DISTINGUISHES a a
otter, dlsowns and abandons him polit- b
ally, the voter has q moral right tn q
bandon the government.
suppose the 1915 per cent of the voting y
'fensth of Mississippi, who are prac- }
caiiy dlsowned by the state, should :,
Ike this view Of the case and declare. 81
ke their forefathers have done. that h