The sun., 1896-09-06
"ERA OF RECONCILIATION"
THE AFRO-AMERICAN's PAST AND
PRESENT POLITICiL STIIUS

ana, one OF the most self-teliant Afro-Ameri.
cans produced by the abnormal conditions OF
the reconstruction period. and one Of the few
men mentioned by me In the article published in
Tar SUS OF July % as having lost his political
grip In the ST. Louis Convention. has taken sx.
ception to my presentation of the matter. He
thinks that am all wrong In my conclusions,
and that instead Of being eliminated from polit.
lcal activity and consequence the old leaders of
| his and my race are still on deck, with just as
much marrow in their bones and gray matter in
their heads as In the days when the Afro
| American was rea, power before as well as
after election.
In concluding his review OF the situation.
Mr.. Pinchback says:
"Why all this contention about the negro be-
Ing not in II '; and this unBcemly haste To retire
| gentlemen who were not retired. and have no
idea OF retirlngy Is 1t not possible that tho
| wish is father to the thought with soms OF the
| gentlemen who have been rejoicing over the al
legged retirement of the old leaders, May
they not think tina. with the old leaders cat Of
| the way their chances will Dc bettercd to secure
official preferment in the event OF Republican
| success?"
make this quotation to show how narrow
| and personal are the views OF one OF the most
intellectual and self-assertive OF the old 4 fro
| American leaders. aud how little they realize
| the tremendous revolution in American politics
which has taken place since the Electoral Com
mission decided in the case of Hayes against
| Tilden that heads the white man wins, tails
the black man loses" This has been due
primarily to the narrow and personal opinions
and conduct OF those Afro-AmerIcnns who were
| singled out by the unusual circumstances OF the
! times as representatives OF the masses, of whom
| Mr.. Pinchback was n conspicuous example.
| II is said that man standing at the bass OF
| mountain 10 unable because OF the proximity.
properly to estimate the massiveness aud
| grandeur OF the peak: equally true is 1t that
| men are unable 10 estimate correctly the in
| ertnblc revolution Of conditions IN which they
are have been influencing participants. II
must remain To tho historian OF subsequent
times TO do justice to the subject. Certainly no
man has MS yet written free and correct his
tory OF the Reconstruction policy and the causes
| and extent of its failure. From 1888 to 1875
WAS one of the crucial epochs In American his.
tory. The success of the Reconstruction policy
would have reyolutioniZed the relations OF the
Federal Government to the States. snlarginE
the powers OF the former Mt the expense OF tho
latter. exalting the citizen of the Federal Gov
ernment above the citizen OF the State. re-
versing tho uniform policy OF the Government
from its foundation.
Tho statement that the Afro-American had
ceased to be an issue in politics, as shown by the
tnconspcuous part played by him In the st.
Louis Convention and by the treatment by the
partisan press OF those planks in the platform
intended TO cover his case. and which has been
and is being thoroughly discussed by the Afro
American press. WAS shown 10 be q correct fore
cast by the pronounced position upon the sub
ject taken by Mr.. Mckinley In his letter ac-
ceptinE the Presidential nomination He does
SS hs"e ~. eI he o dGfs s mot
crysIaliZed into pubic upinion ,ince 1876. the
turning point i the fate OF the Reconstruct n
an nal 10 nrp ma M f.,f
what he considers to be the desires OF the ma
jority opinion of the republic. He says:
total oSftrrstioa Of ..e.onHi lines which Tor 50
se free as O. ss yGs
its psrt,ion into Two ssparste Go;rTnneni. ny ne
% nnd ana
n snu an
the .rction. is everywhere vanishing, let us hope
Noihns ia beter calculated to give srenst tn to tb.
as1oa and the @ and %a
our rrn than sss m Of cordial
Of Geioved country itcali-d by the .uGrsses OF
r; 9fs
IN o. the u hs shda
"r ss ana G ss r.pnse ns OF every section
IL. an G drsssr hss : s
south no ka,, no w.; naI common country: il
~ to advance the cause OF good gov.rnment by Pre-
SO Essential 10 our prosperity and hsnplnrss 6y
SnnS m%s sear II al pr9p TO
10 2Sr @ earl, history characterized all The people of
w"gd be EIaa to 60 !trIoats toward binding in in
Which ha ."
pathy and Int rest, to weld them together more
TrS.sd world ths, tn" NotS and the soaSh G" and
Of "mins .eparatsd @ bee"a.s of sestIona or pasy
nut lsnS IorT s.n, 9TSr wa @ Are not
fully and cordially cooperate under the approving
na sadsd %S u co"as
m eps SHa S sToS
ments on earth.
This is a sufficient repud lation OF the entire
policy OF Federal Interference In the local Affairs
Of the Southern States to satisfy the most invet-
crate opponent OF II and to discourage any who
pressed BY Mr.. Mckinley before entering tho
or sanction tho reverse Of them after he had en-
tered IT, He accepts the conclusions OF ths
and void every supplementary act Of Congress |
based upon the war amendments. and the YER
ffa s ps3%Rs 3 and the the odss nS
lions e "na that we nHys Ieafhsd
and what Gem Grant 'is sighed foP @G
when he said. let ps have psaee."
ship which viii hesitate to accept the conclu. |
sion Of the long contention, In the Congress and
out of IT. for the exaltation of the Federal power
over that Of the states In the regulation and |
control of the local Affairs OF the States, hut a |
majority OF the people. OF whom am not one. |
will have TO submit. and those vitality con. |
cerned. the frO.American citizens. will have |
to look to the state Legislatures and not TO tho |
Federal Congress for the redress OF such grew |
ances as they may have. That 1t will b. best for
them and for the country In the END that they |
DO this um fully persuAded. while still be-
lievinR that the war amendments confer upon |
the Congress adequate powers tn coerco tho |
States into giving 10 AL the citizens OF tho |
states the equal proiection Of the laws In all |
matters OF citizenslip as guaranteed by those |
amendments. Wenrc to accept the policy as |
defined by the supreme Court. however. SIMPLY |
because there Is no appeal from It. What we |
want and what We can get arc two very differ |
ent things.
The conclusion OF this matter. which has agi- |
tated tho republic for thirty years. and forms |
witbal one OF tho bloodiest and most corrupt |
chapters in American history, will servo TO em- |
phasize the fact that tho Hon. Rescue Conkling |
stood firmly for the nolicy OF coercion being the |
stalwart OF tho sta warts, insisting in his last
publ 10 speech upon the maintenance OF the Re |
publican policy in this respect, to he su bordinR-
ton of al economic questions. lie wished and |
labnred for tho exemp plicntOn In our ad dminis- |
trative policy of the spirit as well as the |
letter OF the war amendments. Mr.. Blaine,