The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-02-18
A HISTORY MAKING DAY
Continued from First Page.)


votes in the State. the disfranchisement
Of the negro would take from the State
four of its nine Congressman.
',Then it will rob YOU of all political
capital You can't talk about Niger rule
any more. There is many brilliant
Democratic face i'm this hall today that
wouldn't be here but for that. There'l
then be nothing in the field but white
man and white party.
white mans party beats white SUI
prcmacy. White supremacy means white
rule. white party is a step higher in the
supcrlative degree. ULaughter)
II warn you as man who knows
The future 0aughter.) | warn YOU not
only for my races sake but for your
own sake: You are fixing a way TO yet
rooted out yourself.
The King of Persia put to death
some Ct the royal family and put out
the eyes Of others Alright. He had the
mower. But what followed! After awhile
the thing reacted and 100000 Of his peo-
pie were put TO death.
This is the most vital thing that has
happened since the war. And yet you
amt seen no Republicans caucusing
over it. Why? They know why. l
know why: and you ought to he wise
enough to know why. 1t will put you
in hole.
The roses are red: violets are blue.
but if you love the colored race after
YOU disfranchise them. like the color
You disfranchise them, like the the color
cd race will not love you. no two edged
sword in all the land can ever be found
10 cut this antagonistc love in two
MIR. Speaker if the skin that cover
my flesh. that cleaves to my bones is
black. in our beloved land. though this
he the home of the noble and great
vet virtue and honor count but little
Remember it was the great God who
made me black
My heart might be snowy white in
purity and my soul might reflect the
Holy Ghost as given to us in the eternal
alteration of the living God: and yet. if
/ belong to the black race | am in this
world friendless and always in hope
less minority. and appear to be in the way
of the great Anglo-Saxon race of these
United States.
Il do not hesitate to say: If your
: mothers and sisters who know all about
the trying time of 1861 62-'63. its woes
and it's sorrow, could come back from
heaven this minute and speak to you. you
would be changed at a twinkling of an
eve: because you would hear a still
heavenly voice from her saying: Son
stay thy hand. For Uncle Tom and
Aunt Harriet were faithful and true to
me and the children when YOU were far,
far away from me and my dying declara-
ton were never to hurt or wound the
feelings Of ,ncle Toms and Aunt Har-
riet. nor any one of their race"
The speech of Eaton. of Vance, anoth-
er colored member. made a deep impress
sion. It was perhaps the best and
strongest presentation of his side of the
question that could have been made.
He began by saying that he was Meth
er prophet nor the son of a prophet.
and in that respect the member from
Craven had the advantage of him. lie
wanted to give the members his views,
though he feared it would accomplish lit
tie.
He contended that the proposed amend
ment was Unconstitutional: that 1T
abridged the right of the colored man to
vote without affecting the white man.
The intent of the statute, he argued,
was certainly to disfranchise the negro,
and that in constituting the law the courts
would apply this test.
..This is primary rule for the con-
struction of statutes-to consider the
spirit and object of the passage of the
law. Isn't the avowed purpose of this
low to put an end to negroes voting!
Don't your newspapers acknowledge
this? Didn't you come here to secure
white supremacy!
.sThen there is the educational quail
fication. The law says no man shall
rake advantge of his own wrong. Why
is the negro ignorant? Is it not your
fault? Wasn't there a law ON the books
in 1881 making it 4 crime for negro
to learn TO read and write!
The young negro who is so offensive
is not disfralichised because he can
road and write But the old colored
servant is the man this law hits--the old
man that loves the white race better
than his own race He it is who feels
himself honored for you to come into ms
humble hut He will set before YOU the
hest he has and gladly eat the scraps
Won leave. Consider how he has toiled
for Won. and for y0nr father-cared for
those at home while you were in battle
or thrown no breastworks for you to
fight behind to keep him in slavery"
He argued that the negro was steadily
becoming more intelligent and If the ne
GRO were givens another trial as citi-
zen he did not think the future would be
so disappointing as the past had been.
-,ihe negro has not been responsible
for the past four years Of misrnle in
North Carolina. 1t is unjust, therefore.
10 make him the scapegoat to bear into
the wilderness the sins of the Fusion
combination. This law puts him with
the idiot, the insane, the criminal and the
infdel-company no man wants to be i'll
and all for no fault OF his.
cit is contrary TO Anelo-Saxon Gus
TOM and tradition. The Anglo-Saxon
race Is noted for being the uplifter of
The oppressed and down-trodden. When
il has violated this tradition it has had
70 pay for it in blood.
..This talk of inheriting the power of
se,f-goyernment is nothing but revival
Of the doctrine of the divine right of
Kings. 1t was this doctrine that cost
lanes ii and Charles ! their heads and
sent others into exile. As it has
brought woe in the past, so will 1T IN
tho future. The doctrine of this coun-
try is that all men are created free and
equal. This doctrine must and VIII pre-
vail"