The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-08-24

negro, and by such an argument they
insult every white man they appeal
to.
RACE Or COLOR NOT AN ELE.
MENT
The requirement that the person who
could not vote in 1867 or prior thereto,
and who is not descended from ances.
tors who could SO vote, shall demon
'strate that he possesses some intelli.
gence by requiring him to read anG
write any section of the constitution
Of North Carolina, does not affect
alone a particular race. color or people
of any particular previous condition of
seryitude
1t affects all alike, and there are
negroes who can vote under section ),
and there are those who are not ne
groes who cannot vote under it, 1t is
the incapacity to vote wisely which is
legislated against 1t is true it exists
to a greater extent among the negroes
than Others, but there are negroes In
North Carolina descended from those
free negroes who could vote in 1880,
and these can vote under section ) OF
the proposed amendment. In some
States in the Union. prior TO 1867,
negroes could vote, and if any of these
reside in North Carolina now or move
in later they and their descendants can
vote under section 8. Any race and
any color who descended from an an
cestry who could vote can vote under
section 5.
Those who cannot vote for lack of
an education are not all former slaves.
The foreigner whose ancestors did
not vote in the United States in 1861,
or prior thereto, and who did not so
vote himself. can no more vote with
out having the educational qualifica-
ton required in section 4 than the for
mer slave can.
The discrimination that prevents so
many negroes from voting is on ac-
count of their ignorance and lack of
knowledge how to vote, and for want
OF opportunity to acquire that knowl-
edge and not on account of color, race
or previous condition of servitude.
If the tests of education and inherit
ance Of quality of voting wisely
prescribed in sections 4 and 5 OF the
proposed amendment do, in fact, Sc
lect the qualified and intelligent voters
into and class those who should not
be allowed to vote for lack of intelli-
gence III another class, IL will not do
to say that the Supreme Court will
condemn them because in their appli-
cation they affect more negroes and
former slaves than they do any other
race or previous condition. To take
this ground is to discriminate in favor
of ignorance, if it happens TO be pos
sessed by people of that race and con
diton, It would be to violate sound
principle in favor of negroes and former
slaves because they are such
THE PENDULUM HAS SWUNG
BACK.
The tenaency of the courts is to go to
the utmost limits of the Constitution of
the United States in restricting from
voting those who have been given the
right of the ballot without being pre-
pared to exercise its privileges-to pre-
vent the ignorant negro and foreigner
from voting with our own people.
No one Should be allowed to participate
with the native white man in the affairs
of government unless he can show by
an educational qualification his capacity
to- understand the nature of our institu-
tions and, to some extent, his worthiness
to participate in the affairs of govern
ment. He should be debarred from vot-
ing not ON account of his race, color or
previous condition of seryitude but on
account of his lack of capacity to under
stand and perform the duties Of citizen