The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1893-12-19
THE BLACK DISTRICT FIGHT.
AN EFFORT TO PLACE CHARLES.
TON IN LIMBO.

TON IN LIMBO.
Interesting and Acrimonious State
ments Concerning the PASTA
Serious Contention Between Two
Reformers.
The bill to rearrange the Congress
sional Districts of the State, which
placed Charleston. in the Black Dis
trict, excited spicy debate in the
House Of Representatives, from which
we make the following extract:
When the bill was called for its Sec
ond reading, Mr.. Weston move to
strike out the enacting words.
Mr.. Magill, chairman of the commit
tee which reported the bill favorably,
spoke in it's favor. He declared that
it was u measure that ought to pass,
| as it would give the State seven Demo-
cratic Congressman instead of six.
| Mr.. Weston opposed the bill in inc
speech. Its object could be clearly ex-
pressed in these words: ga bill to
put Charleston in the black district"
But he had confidence in the intelli-
| gence and fairness of the members and
knew that they would not take revenge
on. Charleston simply because she had
failed to vote for a certain man for
Congress. That part of Richland from
| which he came was in the black dis
trict, but he would rather it remain
there than see Charleston, full of his
torical "reminiscences, disgraced by
having a negro represent her in the
| National Congress. One gentleman
| had stated that her resources and poll
| tical ingenuity could overcome the
large negro majority that she would
encounter, and blushed for shame that
such sentiment should be expressed
on the floor of the House. Resources
and political ingenuity used to count
in this State, but by the decision of the
State canvassing board that the negro
| George Washington Murry was elect
! ed Congressman from that district in
the last election notice had been serv-
ed to the people that those days were
over. Murray had made the most
bitter speeches against the South ever
made in Congress. He appealed to
the members not to disgrace Charles
ton, the leading commercial city of the
State, and to which the State owed so
much. He had heard several reasons
for the passage of this bill. Chief of
these was the alleged opposition of
Charleston to the dispensary law. but
Charleston should not be singled out in
preference to the other places which
were not less guilty, if her action could
was that she had refused to vote for a
certain man for Congress.
Mr.. Watson disagreed with Mr..
Weston. He said that he had the
highest respect for Charleston, but
Charleston was not in line with the
Democracy of the State When the
new regime took charge of affairs in
1880 they announced Il platform, and
the man who represented Charleston's
district in Congress was not on that
platform, and did not represent the
let nj of
had been denounced as Populists. and
his bosom swelled with indignation at
the thought. If Columbia and Charles
ton would just come over and stand on
the platform all would be we'll, and he
would bid Godspeed to anything that
they might wanta
Mr.. Tatum advocated the bill. He
thought that tho negro majority in the
Seventh district was harder to over
come than If Charleston was put in it,
In the last primary Charleston cast
5000 more votes than in the general
election. The other districts had
pollod their full strength and did not
have anything like the reserve
Charleston had. With this reserve
and her usual political ingenuity it
would be an easy matter for her to
carry the election.
Representative Rivers, the colored
member from Beaufort, opposed the
bill in good speech. He said the
cOlored man was here to stay. He had
been put here by God, and he and the
white man must live together He
appealed to the House to>fegislate for
the benefit of the colored people in his
section for whose special benefit that
district had been set apart. What
was it proposed to do with the colored
vote in that district? How was it to
be overcome The negroes had been
quietly submissive to everything i'm
posed upon them, but the time was
coming when forbearance would be no
virtue. The negroes wanted one Con-
gresham, and they had it under the
present districting The negroes of
his district did not want the change,
neither did the people of Charleston.
He appealed to the House not to take
them out OF the district whereby they
would lose all representation in Con-
| gress.
Mr.. Blease got fiery in regard to the
remarks of Mr.. Weston, constituting
that he had attacked the State board
of canvasscrs, and of which he (Blease)
| sinuation that the board had acted
dishonorably in regard to the seating
Of negro in the Seventh district last
year. 1t camp with bad grace from
the gentleman from Richland, who,
| while protesting his love for his coun-
ty, had not returned single vote
against the negro Congressman. The
members of the board were hight toned,
honorable gentlemen who had done
their duty and he "hurled back the
| insinuatfOn in the teeth of tho author"
Mr.. Weston appeared very cool and
collected when he rose to reply to this.
He said that he wanted the gentle
man to understand that insinuation
was not his method, but that if he had
had anything to say derogatory to the
members of the board he would have
said so squarely and not by any in
nuendo. He left it to tho House to
Judge whether he had attacked them
| The Speaker took hand at this
juucture, interrupting Mr.. Weston
and voluntarily remarked to the House
that he had heard nothing offensive in
his (Westons) remarks, and that they
were rather complime to the
board.
Mr.. Moses asked Mr.. Blease was it
not q fact that the county board had
| thrown out the returns from Mr.. Wes-
ton'ssdistrict.
Mr.. Blease replied that he did not
know. All he knew was that there
was no return of the votes made to the
State board.