The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-08-21
COUNTY GOVERN ENT.
THE EAST CAN NOW BE PROTECTED AND
THE WEST ELECT lis OFFICERS.
Major Guthrie Reviews The Supreme Court
Decision and Says it VIII "ReIisve
the Vexatious SituatiCn."
Durham, n. c., Aug. 10

To the Editor: At last september tcIi'l
l of our Supreme court an opinion was
handed down which, outside of the legal
! profession and outside Of the locality in
, which the case arose, has excited but
little, if any, general public interest But
| in its far reaching political consequences
if is Il case of the very highest import
ancc. | refer to Harris vs.. Wright re-
ported in III \. c. Reports, lI2. The
/ opinion was written by Chief Justice
! Faircloth, and all the Associate jus
! ticcs concurrcd in the general scope and
result of the opinion of the court de
livcred by the Chief Justice, although
, two of the Associates Justices filed Sc
parate concurring opinions i'll order to SET
| themselves right personally ana aNoIu
I the aDpearancc even of crltIClSlng au-
yerscly the legislative department OF the
State government. But the whole court
unanimously cOncurrCd in the result OF
the decision in that case and Ill up
holding by judicial Interpretation the con
stitutional and legislative authority which
authorized it. Broadly stated, the doc
trinc is established i'll that case that IN
dor our State constitution as amended In
1873. the particular kind of municipal
government which shall be established
for all municipalities shall be whatever
the General Assembly may i'll It's own
unlimited discretion prescribe. And the
court holds that this is so, for the rea-
son that it is 50 written in Article Vii
of the Constitution itself, which article
is entitled "AIuncipal Corporations.
New it will be noticed that Article VII Of
the constitution embraces counties and
townships rs we'll as cities and towns. 1T
is true that the particular legislation III
Harris vs.. Wright which was before the
court for review and to be passed upon
as to its conStitutionality, related only
to the city Of Wilmington as municipal
corporation But the scope of the deer
sion must from necessity apply equally
to each and every county i'll the State as
municipal corporation. standing on the
very same footing under the very same
constitutional provision.
The court upholds as constitutional the
present city charter of Wilmington,
which allows the voters of that city TO
elect one Alderman from each ward and
the Governor to appoint one alderman
from each ward, and the Alderman, (both
those elected by the people, and those
appointed by the Governor to elect
Mayor Under this decision the General
Assembly has the absolute power to pre-
scribe one kind of county government
for one county and another entirely dlf-
fcrent kind of county government Tor
another county or the other counties III
the State. For instance. the General
Assembly might prescribe that the voters
should elect all the county and township
officers in the counties of Wake. Dur
ham. Chatham, etc, and on the othef
hand provide that the voters of Halifax,
northampton. Edgecombe. Craven etc,
shobld elect II part only, or elect none
Of the county and township officers
those particular counties. For in this
matter of municipal government. there *
no restriction or limitation in the conStl-
tuition which requires uniformity through
out the whole State in county and town
ship governments. And as above point
edout counties and townships stand pre-
cisely on the same footing with cities and
towns in this particular, and for the real
sons stated by the court in Harris vs..
Wright--becausc the constitution Is so
written Then. why should not the white
counties of North Carolina send enough
patriotic representatives to the next Gen
eral Assembly who will put the general
interests of the State above all mc"e
PARTISAN considerations and themselves
elect good men for the county offices, or
frame such Il system of appointivC local
county and township officers (aS well
as city and town officers to take charge
of the affairs Of such of our eastern
counties as are unhappily for both races
cursed with Il continual wranglc and
hroil about their corrupt and inefficient
local municipal governments? Why not
eliminate the negro question to this OK
tent ut least from State politics, and
while laying Il legislative restraining hand
upon the cOlorcd citizen for his own
good. thereby protect the material in
tcrestS Of all races in these exceptional
localities. without at the same time do
ing any violence whatever to the rights
C the citizens in the white counties "a
elect their own county and township oil
iicerS. as is now being done, and to man
age and control without restraint Their
own local municipal affairs. The dcci-
sion of the court in Harris vs.. Wright
hazcs out the road for our lawmakers to
travel. if they see fit to do it, and clears
away all legal doubts as to the conStitu-
tionality Of laws such as | have sug
gCStcd. to relieve the vCXatiOus situation.
Let the people next November elect an
honest and patriotic legislature, and
something on this line will be done to
set nt rest the negro question in the
| local politics of our eastern counties. AMI
give those counties decent local govern
mcnt so long as the white people in the
rest Of the State desire it to remain so.
Can any man who really loves our
State wish to see anything else but good
government in each and every county Of
the State? What affects one county in
some way, to il greater or less extent
must of necessity affect every other
county taking the State as Il whole, and
in this matter of good local municipal
government every voter in the State is
concerned, or ought to be-
Yours truly.