The Washington bee., 1896-11-21
A DEFENSE OF THE LEADERS.
WHAT WE CAN EXPECT IF WE Sup
PORT THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY-Is
Mr.. FORTUNE RIGHT?


Mr.. Editor - Knowing as do that
the press is the greatest mOulder OF
public opinion, and that your eS.,mable
joufnal is among the first in the CONN
denCe of our race, beg to contribute
the following:
/ here has been recently circulating
through the public press a series OF
communications, born in the brain OF
discomfort and matured in the air OF
blighted aspirations the sole purpose
OF which seems to have been to attack
the republican party together with our
Negro leaders OF natiO at fame. he
author of said communications is pur-
ported to be Mr.. I. Thomas Fortune,
the able editor of The New York Age.
While we can not b lieve that man OF
Mr.. Fortunes standing and lntelli-
gence could really have penne1 SIM
gle word of the articles attributed TO
hlm, still ne has not contradiCted their
authenticity publicly.
The republican party stands as 1t has
always stood the representative OF the
principles of right and justice. An
honest dollar, equal rights for all, and
a power vested i'll supreme court TO
enforce all men to accord those rights
to each other.
The democratic party stands today,
as it has always stood, for deprecla-
ted currency and he annlhilatlon OF
the supreme court, the one common
tribunal wherein the humbleSt citizen
i'm the land can have accorded to him
all the rights of the most exalted. In
this fight the minds of men will soar
beyond the narrow limits of personal
greed and see only the broad expanS =
of right and humanity. For the con-
scientiouS loyal American, white or
black to leave the republican party IN
this hour }. national peril for the sake
of political distinction, under the false
deception that notOriety brings respect
would be as unloyal as unScrupulous
as though a private in ranks should
desert his com AIDES, that he be pro-
NOTED to generalship on the side OF
the enemy. We gam respect by re-
specting ourselves. He that sacrifices
principle on the altar of gain stoops
beneath the level of manhood There
is nothing nobler than manly man /;
nothing grander than Self-reSpect.
The present contest is a struggle be-
tween cowardice and bravery, honor
and Reputation. An experienced
statesman of world wide fame repre-
senting the one, and boy popocrat
| whom no one but an archist would &C
cuse of being an orator on the other.
A gentleman who when asked his opin-
| ion of lynch law replied in substance,
"This is a sectional question and while
| haze lynch law, hate still more the
| crime that actuates lynchlng.
| Vooflan1on (oCSUnlnU MIR
| Fortunes name) is in favor of our old
| co ored leaders remaining in the back
ground and young colored men COM
| ing to the front. The American has
| always recognized genius OF whatever
age or condition. The fame of Doug.
| lass, Bruce, LangstoI and others never
| clouded a single star of Booker I,
| Washington fame. RevelS and Bruce
| in the Senate, Langston in the House
| have not intcrered in the least with
many young men who have since won
h nors by even the assistance OF these
| men. The fame of George Washing
ton never dimmed the lustre of Perry
| or Grant in war nor Lincoln In the ex'
ecutive chair, but only held out all ex'
| ample Of wonderful possibilities. II
perchance {. colored leader younger IN
age than those of the present and with
more ability than according to the law
of survival of the fittest the luminous
stars of the present will fade into sig
| nificance before the greater light. But
as long as the flower of liberty is cher
ished in hearts of men, the self-sacri-
fees, the struggles for the uplifting. OF
| down trodden race, the victories
more against the greatest odds on the
track OF fame which characterize our
leaders will be remembered, honored
and respected. Erase the names of
Douglass and Langston and no history
of Afro American freedom can be re-
corded. Blot from memory the names
of Bruce, Lynch and Pinchback and
you destroy the stars Of hope in the
horizon of possibilities and leave the
canopy black. Let us stand by the
party that stands for right. Lett fol-
low in the least of foot steps OF expe-
| rience, OLIVER F. GRAY.