The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-11-11
PEOPLE AND POLITICS.
BY AN OBSERVER.

The mass of ignorant suffrage turned
rooea on the South after the civil war
still remains poison in our body poiuc
Rravely. and In a measure successfully,
have the white men OF the South wresueu
with the problem OF negro Suffrage
Many solutions have been sugsesteu'
many have been attempted some sa''S
factory and some anything but satisfac-
,orv The scenes recently enacted In
North Carolina, while somewhat lurid,
vet have a smack OF manliness ABOUT
them and OF hearty honesty that COM
mands the admiration OF all true men
ayorJwhere Those red shirt parades
with the banner boldly thrown TO the
breeze OF white supremacy" has at least
with it the justification of frankness, Oh
oneness and OF honesty. How much pei
ter is this, to have the matter out Win
the negro open and above-board than 10
adopt the methods in vogue IN many Oh
auoPt t,,rr,,,ia counties and towns. The
negro does not rule I'm Virginia as he
has heen doing in North Carolina, but he
remains to-day a constant menace to our
state government and the question shouid
be net openly in q constitutional conVeh-
ton here IN this State. and thai danger
Gus ignorant element eliminated from the
problems that confront free people III
the future This way Of falsifying eiec-
ton returns. Of trucking the negro OF
marking his ballot one way when ne
wants II marked another, OF sWappihs
ballot boxes on him. OF sending III ialsS
returns. and q score Of other metnous .,
manipulation known TO the expert an"
professional politician are almost as dah-
gerous I'm their destructive tendencies
upon the characters of free people as 10
sit under the rule of negro officers them-
selves. These dishonest methods are DC
coming disgusting 20 the conselNallNe
and upright Christian people OF tnis
state II Is r1uch better TO meet TINS
issue once and for all time and have done
with n The characters Of our young
men are being lowered and such methoos
as are in vogue here in virginia seep
through and premeate the whole ha'ure
Of our public life. and 1t turns over TO me
trickster and 10 the constituencies heviel
the entire machinery and manlpula.loil
of our government. Hence the need OF
constitutional convention 10 deal with TINS
question Of negro suffrage In time before
great harm comes from II. If Tor no
other reason, let the white men take III
hand this matter of constitutional CON
vention and settle who shall vote anu
what are the qualifications OF Young ~
Is a species OF political cowardlce 10 DC
sneaklngly cheating the negro out Oh ms
| ballot by a gauzy pretention that ne ha7
voted when every sensible white man Ia
the county knows that that vote Is neYei
| counted. It violates the laws OF me state
as they are upon the statute books ahu
] teaches lawlessnoss and irreverence LOT
| tho ballot 20 every citizen that has any
| thing to DO with II. The negro can never
rule the state OF Virginia and all the
whito men have got 10 do is TO make M
| their minds that they shall not ana CAV
a convention whereby this question Oh
| suffrage can he settled Tor an time I.
come and under which constitution, noble
and pure and manly young Nirginians car
GROW up who do not have 10 soil then
| fingers and besmutch their FOULS IN AL
ways cheating and fooling the negro ou'
| OF his ballot