The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1898-11-03

Lie NOrJH OdrOllnd CflSlS grows more
serious daily, and there is little hope,
from present prospects, that bloodshed
will be prevented election day, Nov.ssS.
Fuel has been added to the fame by
the Incorporate utterance by a member
of the cabinet, Attorney-G acknowledges
Senator Pritchard wrote a letter to the
President setting forth the gravity of
the situation, and suggesting the send
ing of troops into the State to preserve
the peace on election day. This in it.
self was unwise, since the Governor, a
republican, had not asked for troops.
This letter of the Senator was made the
subject Of discussion at an informal
Cabinet meeting and entire charge of
the matter given to Attorney General
Griggs. In answer to the query of a
Washington Post reporter "Will you
send Deputy Marshals to preserve the
peace?" Griggs replied:
"Marshals have authority to appoint
additional deputies if necessity arises,
and [ will approve such appointments
when made"
He further said:
"The people Of North Carolina,
South Carolina, California or New Jer-
sey may as well understand, now as at
any other time, that when riot or vio-
lence is threatened and Governors ask
for troops of the government, they will
be sent, and when sent they will pre-
serve the peace if they have to over
run the State. Order must and will be
maintained there"
In view of the conditions, the white
people being on the defensive, and the
negroes and the vicicious republicans
being the aggressors and the disturb
ers of law and order, this was also an
unwise and uncalled for remark-cer-
tainly not n calculated to pour oil on
the troubled waters in tina old North
State.
AS a sample of what the white people
have putup with in that unhappy State
we find in the Raleigh News and OBJ.
server, Ben AsHew, a negro %jailor, and
chairman of the Republican Executive
Committee of BERTHE County, reported
as saying:
"Ihe white folks after the war haG
white caps, and now the negroes have
numbers enough to have black caps"
On the anne page of the same paper
is a sworn statement of a young lady
schloo teacher that a negro school com
mitteeman visited her school this year,
and while there was so drunk he coulC
hardly hold up his head.
The position Of the decent republic
cans of the State is shown by the Letter
of Hon. W. II Chandbourn, postmaster
at Wilmington, appointed by Presiden.
Mckinley, and a man Of high stand
ing:
here is a greater feeling of unres
and uncertainty about the maintenance
of order than | have ever seen, anC
many, even the most conservative, fee
that a race conflict is imminent. thar
which nothing could be more disas
trous, not only to this city and county
but to our party in the State, and rath
er than have riot, arson and bloodsheC
prevail here, l, republican though ]
am, advise giving up the local office,
in this county, as there are no nationa
. political principles involved in this con
test.
81 had thought at first that it il
merely the usual political cry and til,
fight for the Offices, but l am now con
WINGED the feeling is much deeper thar
this, as it pervades the whole communi
/, ty, and there seems to be q settled de
termination on the part of the property
3 owners, business men, and taxpayer
/, that they will administer city and coun
ty government"
, The Washington Post, commenting
: on the deplorable condition, says:
apparently, the white republican
: have gone too far in their efforts t,
keep control of the North Carolin,
patronage. They have simply repeat
ed the malign and sinister performance
of the carpet-beggers of '6S'76, and in
yited a similar catasthrope. The South