The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-10-31
JUST p CHHT.
BY W. E. CHRISTIAN.

upon as the mobs taking the law into
IS own hands any more than the Legis-
Iature is wrongly anticipated in State
appropriation of $4,000 for yellow f.
yer in New Orleans. Certainly the opin-
on as to the remedy is as unanimous III
one case as in the other.
| I venture that the cause assigned by
most men for the increase of this crime
is the public school education of the ne
/ gro without corresponding develop
ment of his moral sense-if he have any.
Surely, if this be not the case, the com
mon school has put the negro in an atti-
! ude more dangerous to the whites of the
South. And yet it is too late in the day
to make any cry against education for
the humblest of Gods creatures. On the
other hand, however, Bishop Gaines in
/ the midst of his solutions" should not
let race men forget that nine-tenths Of
the money for their education is being
paid for by the whites for the proper
government of whom they seem to be
laying of late such frequent plans. just
the other day forty-eight negroes assem-
bled in Raleigh and issued an address
to the colored Republicans of North
Carolina. I'VE cast" they say, about
10000 votes for the Republican party.
We stir up the colored votes all over
the State and vote them in a solid army,
in some instances for men who have
nothing in common with US and take
every opportunity to abuse us for such
work, and for the 10000 votes cast we
get almost nothing in the way of recog-
milton. The negroes Of North Carolina
give 10000 votes for one subordinate
place. clerkship in the Agricultural
Department, paying $1,000 yearly. This
is the highest recognition the 10000
free citizens of North Carolina have so
far been able to command in the State.
What pitiable showing for thirty years
of schools, colleges and freedom"
Schools, indeed! Furnished them by the
money of Democrats that they may thus
be intelligent to entreat Republicans for
offices over these Democrats. But the
Democrats are not educating them for
the purpose Of fffce-holding-and, GER
tainly not for office-holding in the party
opposed in every way to the Democrats
and to the South.
Again: "As a race we are fighting for
the time to come when a citizen will not
be known by his color but by his charac-
ter. We think the negro has as
much right to hold office as the white
man, provided he is as competent. and
if the time hasn't come in the minds Of
the present party leaders for us TO hold
office, then it has come for us not to
vote for men who put such low esti-
mate on our intelligence. We know
our white friends in the Republican
party and when our organization is per-
fected we shall unite with them for the
triumph of Republican principles, chief
among which we deem to be that the of
fees should, so far as possible, be
equally divided, to the end that the race
equality of citizenship which is the COM
mon right of every citizen OF the State,
! be he black or white"
( Then comes a list of offices held re-
spectively by white and negro Republic
cans by reason of negro votes.
"This list shows 1901 900 that the
white Republicans and PopuEsts are
getting for about $4,000 votes, while the
colored voters get only $4,000 for their
10000 votes-one State clerkship and
ten postoffices, outside of a few places
such as guards of the penitentiary. We
have only one place we might not have
had before. Congressman White and
/ Cheatham could have been elected with
out the combine, and hence their sal
aries should not be charged against us.
/ The fact stands out in bold relief that
we are getting very small part OF
! the pie that was promised. Those fell
! lows are simply making fools Of US and
fattening at our expense, but the ques-
ton is, what shall we do about it? Have
we, as a race, sense enough TO do any
! thing? If so, let US come together and
show it, We have a plan for a
thorough organization fully matured."
| This convention is called in Raleigh
November ON account of these so-called
/ grievances"
| These threats are idle TO the white
/ hyenas who are fattening on these ne
gro votes. They know that negro what
ever disappointment may follow election
| day will always perforce as well as
from instinct cast his vote for the party
Of Lincoln, who set free the race. These
white Adventures will not be phased
with any threat OF dsaffection. But the
pertinent suggestion from this address
seems to be the low estimate put by the
negro upon what he terms citizenship"
Give them office and their ideal of citi-
zenship will have been realized. And
this ideal has been reached after thirty
years of schooling with money earned by
the sweat Of Democratic citizens of this
State. This then is another attitude
which intelligence gained at the COM
mon school has emboldened the negro to
take, conspicuous, too, as accompany
ing other results of their sharpened in
teligence, by as low-levelled an ideal
Of civic obligations as their attitude
toward the crime of rape shows them to
possess toward the sacred character of
the hearthstone. And a paltry few
thosuand malodorous, white, raven
hearted Republicans view the situation
from aloft, cawing, il possible, as with
Goethe's line:
Sweet is the dance and doubly sweet
the lays
When for the dear delight another
pays"
And the Democratic citizens who
stand for and pay for the State turning