Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-11-24
The Race Question.

There is the usual rush of resolutions
from Northern religious organizations and
political bodies protesting against the race
conflicts 10 the Carolinas and calling on the
Federal Government to intervene. But il
is peculiar that in these deliverances there
appears no reference to the race conflict In
Illinois, in which Governor Tanner took so
prominent part. Our Northern religions
advisers especially don't look into matters
in their own section but only see wrong
doing at the South. The offence Of the
Republican Governor of Illinois was OF a
more grave character than that Of the
Wilmington mob, because in the one case
it was that of lawless citizens, and in the
other of thssbiggest official OF the third
State of the Union. The New York
Evening Post explains -
The outrages committed in Illinois last
month had demanded such Federal inter
ference far more loudly than those 10 the
Carolinas last week The latter were at
worst only aggravated cases of such rows
and riots over elections as have always
occurred in all parts of the country, and II
is questionable whether the President csn
take any action about such rows and riots,
On the other hand, Tanners action openly
denied rights guaranteed by the Constitu-
ton OF the nation to the citizens of every
State-the right to move at will from one
State into another aud the right to work
in any State, and not only the power but
the duty of the Federal executive to
intervene for the restoration of these rights
was too plain for argument.
Governor Tanner drove from his State
black citizens of the United States who
had come there from Alabama to take the
place of some white strikers, and he sub
seq1ently announced that he would shoot
to pieces with Calling guns" any others
who would attempt to enter Illinois for the
same purpose. An officer of the State
troops, acting under the Governors orders,
said If lose every man under my COM
mand, no negroes shall land in Pana. +"
This attitude of the Republican Governor
of Abraham Lincoln's State towards the
race which he emancipated produced q
profound impression throughout the South,
and that impression was depened when the
Republican President at Washington, by
his inaction, sustained Tanner. 1t is now
found necessary to keep the negro voters
loyal" to make a demonstration against
North Carolina, but nothing Is said by
those in authority of Illinois. One defiance
of the Constitution and laws was by mob
acting under great provocation. The other
was by the chief executive offices of State
sworn to maintain the Constitution. All
these happenings are important in their
relation to the race problem. Governor Tan
ner's action was approved in Illinois, as
was that of the Wilmington mob through
out the South and largely at the North.
Does this not indicate that the North is
reaching the point of acquiescence, if not of
approval, and that the Southern view of
the negro question is the correct and newt
able one Senator Tillman. of South Caro-
lima, said in an interview the other day -
There has been a great revolution in
sentiment at the North on this subject, as
is shown by the annexation of Hawaii
without any pretence of consulting the
colored races there, as well as by the atti-
tude of Governor Tanner, of Illinois, in
refusing to protect the imported negro
miners at Vinden and Pam. Blood is
thicker than water in Illinois and, l be-
lieve. in nearly every other State at this
time"