Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-10-21
special Correspondence.

special Correspondence.
Bridgeport, o., October 2C.-A fea-
ture and factor in the Ohio campaign
this fall has been lost sight of by the
Republicans. Heretofore they have
counted as that much good wheat in
the mill the entire colored vote Of the
State. In return for this vote, which
has always been very large percent
age OF the Republican strength in the
State, they have from time to time
given colored man a place on To-
cal police force, a janitorship in some
public building, or some other mental
position in keeping with the degree of
respect felt by the Republican leaders
for the colored people at other than
election times.
admit it freely, that their best friends
the year round are Democrats They
get more private employment from
Democrats than from Republicans,
and their troubles are listened to and
alleviated more frequently by Demo-
Gratis than by Republicans.
But the Republican politicians have
always posed as the friends of the
negroes at election times, and that is
the only time that a negro or an I'M
naturalized foreigner finds himself
more an object of consideration than
white American citizen. Hence they
have been deceived into the belief
that the Republicans were their
friends. But the negroes to-day are
wiser set of citizens than they were
few years ago. Education is having
quite an elevating effect upon the
negroes, just as it has upon the white
people. Nearly every negro to-day
who is under thirty-five years old
reads and writes, and knows tbout as
we'll as the average white man what
is going on in the world at large, and
in politics especially. They have
learned that the name Republican and
democrat merely stand for parties
that represent ideas and policies in
government They have learned that
the negro has as much interest in pol
ltics as his white neighbor, and that
his white neighbor mas no better
means of informing himself upon
these questions than has the negro
They have learned that the party OF
"Massa Linkum" is not what it was
when they learned their first lesson in
politics and that. they owe nothing to
the political buccaneers of present
times. They know that the interests
OF the negroes generally, they being in
frequently wealthy enough to belong
to the bondholding community, are in
the same party and on the same lines
with the poor and moderately pros
porous white people. They know that
silver is the poor mans money. and
that the hard times, depreciating
prices and the increasing barriers to
the accumulation of a competency are
all due to the decentralization or that
metal.
Under such conditions it is but nat
ural that they should in time see the
fallacy of following the Republican
fetch, cut loose from all allegiance
to any party, and vote as common
sense dictates.
Although such absolute independ-
ence will not be seen in this cam
paign, the movement in that direction
Is marked and will show greater
strength than ever before. The con-
vention held in Columbus some weeks
ago for the purpose of nominating a
ltraight negro ticket was a big ad-
rance from any previous position
:aken by the negro race. 1t heralded
a second emancipation, an emancipa-
ton from political slavery and SER
Witty.
Republicans have professed to be-
lieve that the negro votes will all go
to their candidates, as usual but there
is every reason to believe the negro
ticket will get a very good percent
age of the negro vote. The Republi-
cans have ridiculed the move as
mere scheme on the part of its pro-
motors to secure a cash consideration
for their influence and strength. Now,
however, Republicans are beginning
to see it's force. The men at the head
of the State movement are too well
known, stand too well with their fel.
lows in the communities that claim
them, for Republican money to buy
them out, and, even if they were for
sale, they would not be able to take
the negro voters with them.
If the movement is in as good hands