The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1894-09-12
SARGE PLUNKETT.
The Negro as "Problem" In Southern
Political Matters.
ARanta Constitution.

| POLITICAL mAtter6s
atlanta Constitution.
The lawyer and the negro as "prob
lems' in Southern politics is the mat
ter that Brown and myself are ham.
mering upon since we took trip owe,
into Alabama last week.
We had decided that the negro was
not "problem" and that all agitation
upon that line should cease. Wise
men change their views-we have
changed. In the course Of our triE
over to Alabama we had opportunity
to get the opinions of others and to
study as we rolled along behind yoke
of old-fashioned oxen. The comforts
of palace car are nothing to taking
journey in good covered wagon with
plenty of fodder to lay upon, big
cheese box full of provisions and a
team of oxen that will keep in the
middle of the road from morning until
night without touch of the lines OF
crack of the whip. After we cross,
| ed the Chattahoochee at the little
town of Franklin the road was lone.
some for forty miles and I think our
good old oxen were as glad to meet the
Albanian as we ourselves and would
stop every time, without being told,
as Brown would raise the wagon sheet,
peep out and say, "Good morning"
The average Alabama countryman is
rather in the attitude of the fellow
who wondered whoit was that Struck
Billy Patterson they stand amazed at
the defeat of Kolb and wonder for the
cause that brought about the finder
ing Of their third party hopes. Of
course, every fellow has his own no
tion as to the cause of the defeat.
Some think there was fraud in the
election, while these have class to
combat who claim that such an admis-
sion would be reflection upon the
intelligence and courage Of the party,
''for," say these, eve are able to take
care of ourselves. The greater num-
Der do not charge fraud and Brown
and I Joined these to seek out the
cause of defeat in philosophical way.
We have decided that there is diff
ference in negro under the shadow
of night time and the lightness of day.
No great party can be established in
the South which invites the negro to
its ranks and gives the negro place
in it's councils. If the negro has not
sense enough to scatter to the four
winds in the matter Of politics the
white man must have sense enough to
ignore him in the councils of the
party. These Alabamians say that
the "grand old party''-the Demo
crats-has not only defeated the Third
Party, but that they will defeat the
devil if they can get his majesty into
an open daylight association with the
negro. These Alabamians-it was
the mountains we were among-want
to wipe out everything in the way Of
platforms and start new with just one
plank, to-wit: ''No negro need apply
"a party of white men"
Brown and I have been of this opin-
ion for some time, and awhile back
when some of "the most prominent
of the ''grand old party drew very
closely to the negro bishops in mat
ter Brown chucked me in the short
ribs and thought his Third Party had
EN-, but nary time-they'll use them
and get every vote from them that
they can, but whene' = you see a
Democratic Convention dotted with
negroes please let me know. | am Of
the number who has long thought that
"solid South was not the best con-
dition, and few times / had hopes
that the negro would learn enough to
divide up and that the greed for office
among the whites of a new party
would suppress itself until a party
could be builded, but my hopes are
mighty weak now. The result in AL
ALBANIA is the natural result that will
attend any effort in the South to
break what we know as "solid" till
the negro is out of the question ex-
cept as "foater.
While the negro must be dispensed
with the lawyer is indispensable. No
use talking about running party
without the lawyer. Hang EN-
give up. I have spent the best part
Of my life trying to beat the lawyers
out Of matters and things in general, ,
to at last resolve in good faith that
nothing can be run without them:
They loom up in everything and
everywhere. Me and Brown quit the
"grand ole" just to get rid OF the
lawyer and in less than week we had
to quit the place to where We had
flown, thence to the Alliance and the
Third Party, and now we are backed
up in a corner with swarm OF law
yers all around us cussing each other,
and no matter which way the fight
goes a lawyer has it. We cuss en- at
home and strive to create such pref.
udice that they dare not enter oul
door, but let one come along and
chickens are killed, preserves that !
dare not touch are pressed upon them
and babies are named after them il
there be any to name. We cuss EN-
at Church and at the cross roads store
but let one visit the settlement and &C
out to the debating society and We are
not in it. The president of the club
will say something about our "distin
guished visitor" and then the school.
master will arise and move that "oul
distinguished visitor be heard from,
and that settles the night. Folks like
| me and Brown, who have studied on 8
speech the whole week through, arc
suppressed and everybody listens tc
the lawyer, laughs with the lawyer Of
cries with the lawyer, just as the case
may be. Of course We cuss them al
in a general way, but individually
they capture us and collectively they
run the world. So, suppose, mt
and Brown will waltz up and put II
our little vote for Lawyer Hines, o.
the third, while, 1 guess, Lawyer At
kinson, Of the "grand DID," will get
the office, and together they will pas:
many jolly day at the capitol mex
summer, telling jokes about the cam