The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-30
Attempted Modification.

|t'At AtkGIuVvCQ hNultIIICubIOHs f'N'
The acquiescence OF the country in
measures taken by the Southern states
to exclude illiterate voters from the
polls has encouraged at least two states
to proceed to lengths that involve q
plain attempt to nuliify the constitution
OF the United States. The desire Of the
commemorative where there is heavy
negro vote Is to disfranchise 1t. On the
surface, they propose to purge the elec-
torate Of Ignorance; practically the pro-
visions said to be adopted to that end
are 90 construed that not illiteracy but
the color OF the illiterate Is the real test
for admission to or exclusion from the
right Of suffrage.
An educational qualification as a con-
dition preliminary to the right to vote
Is not in itself unconstitutional. But
It must be applied without Partially
OF discrimination. 1t has been the GUS
tom in some states Of the South to
establish as this test the ability to read
ton. or ITO understand 1t when read"
This latter places the registry list who'll
ly In the hands OF the registration ofii-
GERS, who decide at their discretion
whether an applicant understands what
Is read to him or not The rambling
! comments of the white illiterate are ac-
cepted as sufficient while those Of the
no more ignorant colored man are re-
jected as insufficient. 1t is by this
means that the total vote of the state
of Mississippi has been reduced to less
than that Of many single congress
sional district in the North.
The success of this scheme has en-
boldened other states to take a step
farther. and to save themselves trouble
by a general rule plainly in contraven-
ton Of the constitution Of the United
States. A constitutional amendment
about to be voted on In North Caro-
lima contains the following provision,
similar to one already accepted by
constitutional convention in Louisiana:
mo male person who in January, 1867,
was entitled to vote unoer the laws of
any state where he resided. and no lineal
descendant of the person in question.
shall be denied the right to register and
vote at any election by reason of his fail
ure to possess the educational qualifica-
lions prescribed in the preceding section,
provided he is registered prior to Decem-
Der !, 1908"
The purpose Of this cannot be masked
or explained away. It Is intended to
exclude negroes from the polling booth,
while holding 1t open to all whites, edu-
Gated or illiterate 1t is an open at
tempt to nullify the constitutional
amendment which forbids the denial Of
the right of suffrage on account of race,
color or previous condition of servitude.
It cannot stand for one moment after
it shall have been brought before the
supreme court Of the United States; and
1t is the duty Of the minority in these
offending states to institute proceedings
and carry them up without delay.
The people of the North have been
more than lenient with those Of the
South in this matter. They have real
ICED that the South has it's own prob
lens to work out, and have stretched
point in tolerating things repugnant
to their sense Of Justice. Today con-
gresham from the South represents
only from one-half to one-tenth or
twentieth as many actual votes as his
fellow from the North. In as far as
this denial of suffrage is according to
general rules without discrimination,
those who do not believe in 1t have
not attempted to overthrow 1t. But
propositions like those that we have
quoted tear off the mask. This IL not
designed to raise the standard or quail
fcations OF the electorate, but to shut
out the negro from the polls because
ne is a negro, while admitting the white
man because he is white. 1t is nulli-
fcation. The American people will not
sanction or permit it.