Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1900-05-30
PROBLEM that SURVIVES 81.

B TodaS me nation is honorlnS the
memories of its fallen heroes who gave
up their lives in the service of their.t
country, who fought and died 10 save
the union. But yesterday and tomor- !
row the. nation was and VIII be sn
crossed with many civil and social
problems which have come 10 1T as a
heritage of the great struggle Of 81. !
During the dark days of that awful
period the noble heart ofsa great man.
Abraham Lincoln, was harassed By the
question of what to do With slavery.
After days and months of elaboration
his conscience inaueed him to free the
slave. 1t was a coneessionto the senti-3
mentalists Lincoln We'll knew and
feared because of IL, butt was also am
act of righteousness az We'll as Of en-
pediency. II dealt a severe blow TO the 4
nations enemies While carrying out
God law that a man is man. never
chattel. Nevertheless the sentimen
talists realized their victory aud Mere
a short time the black man was given
the franchise, made an eleetor regard
less of his fitness or ability TO exercise
the privilege and forever asterward a
third of the states in cur unien haze
been virtually prosecuted with the
problem of the negro Vote. The inl-@
mediate result MAS disastrous. The
quiet unassuming, enid Ike slave Who
had never known anything but kind
ness from his white master found the
entire white population turned against
him. his mortal enemy and when The
political freebooter came down from
the north to prey upon the country by
means Of utilizing the black vote the
Ku Kiux Clan sprang into existence to-
terrorize whole counties and set at
naught ali forms of law and order,
With the passing of the carpet bag g
from the south, but the negro vote ard
an imperturbable democratic majority
among the whites remained, since
then the intelligent white population Of
the south has grappled with its politi-
cal curse in vain. Negro domination
has been averted by a resort to Trick
\ cry, Intimidation ana every ruse iifai
could be conceived by desperate peo-
B pie, but it has only been recently that
satisfactory method has been hi
upon that could claim the respectable
lily of legal form.
OF recent years several southern
states have adopted amendments 10
their constitutions providing property
and educational qualifications which
have effectually shut out the ignorant
and irresponsible class of black voters.
Politics have been purified thereby and
constant menace removed, so that
what was once a blind stubborn politi-
cal party, voting with a single purpose.
the prevention of negro domination,
has become an intelligent electorate,
on local issues according to tfeSdictates
Of its judgment. The hide bound dem.
ocracy of politics in the south prom
ises to disappear, but good government
4 will be the gamer.
Only a week ago the people Of yir-
y ginia, by majority of 10000, decided to
: have a revision of their constitution
] for the purpose of depriving the coll
ored population Of the right of suffrage
50 far as can be done without conflict
inS with the constitution of the United
Etates; and 1t is a curious fact that the
counties in which the colored popula.
tion predominates gave the largest ma.
jorities in favor of constitutional revis.
ion and that the white counties gave
D the largest majorities against it, Thi.
b Is eAid by Virginia politicians to BIZ
due to the fact that the colored voter:
n ia the black counties, being iliiterate
j allowed the judges OF election to mari
their ballots for them, and also because
the people In the white counties feal
s inst the elimination OF the negro from
elittcs VIII cause 4 split in the demo