Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1900-04-21
Should The South Be Represented ;
A DEMAND AND IT'S ENFORCEMENT.
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lever in his hands now let him apply
1t to the fears OF the party and make
this lever an instrument TO prize his
party up to the place Of its duty,
SHOULD DxxAsD HIS RIGHTS.
Let him say to his party, .T only de-
msod Justice / have waited long for
justice &C your hands. trusting to your
sense OF justice but having trusted In
vain. shall no longer trust and now
demand justice; no longer o supplisnt
but with power in my hands to extort
Justice. aNow, prot sct or rather restore
my rights, because I have been ruth.
lessly rubbed OF them, or will vote
against you in those states and turn
them over, and with them the Nation.
nj Governmsnt to the democrats; not
that 1 love Yo less but 1 love my
rights, my liberty more" Let yoar
party see that yo1 mean business sad
they Will fear yor and what you can
not get from their justice. you will
extort from their fears. Yen ara M
essential value to your party, now.
make your party of essential value to
you. II nothing else will answer vote
against it in these three states. You
wall event ally recover the pearl of
great price, your freedom, all else ia as
nothing compared with that, Bs
Diind and deaf and dumb to everything
but for freedom, but be so keenly aliye
to shat that you will be willing, IL nse.
essary to sacrifice your party eternal.
~ in order TO secure it. Be dread faIIv
in earnest. You will then win through
the fear OF your party which gave You
freedom but which supineiy, indeed
cowardly, deserted when one by one
the Southern States robbed you OF it.
WHAT CAN IT Do2
But what can the Republican marty
do, for does not the Constitution forbid
Interference with the States ia electo.
raj matters But 1t will not be nec.
essary TO interfere with the states tha
object in view can be effectual. v accom-
plished in different way thus, When a
party violates . contract that marty
forfeits all the benefits arising from
the contract. Now, the Southern
States are represented in Gong ,eas
simply and solely by O Contract; that
contract kept and their right ia nm
questionable; that contract violated.
by themselves ipso facto lose Ali
right to repsentation. Now, as fact
known to all the World each southern
State made a contract with the United
States to this effect, namely: "If the
United States will allow me rspresenta
tlon in Congress I will ratifg ali the
constitutional amendment, conferrin0
citizenship upon the Negro and forbid.
ding discrimination on account of
race, color or previous condition and
no Southern States was admitted tn
representation until it had rattle this
amendments. Now what ia Oonrressjs
rlght, indeed what is Congress's plaiu
| Cuty, but TO say TO the Southern renra-
! sentative, your tstes have violated
the contract whereby alone Won ait nm
This body you have thereby forfeited
ALI right Ito seats and we therefore Gie.
ny you admission or il YOU have bsen
admitted We expel YOU. Nothing can
De plaiaer, nothing more reasonabls.
nothing more equitable. As the case
nov stands the Southern States are
reaping the benefit OF their own viola-
| ION OF contract which is contrary to
sne fundamental principle of equity.
southern representatives hR va no
than they have to representat;on
In the British parliament, or those
members Of Parliament to seats in
| Congress.
On such tirm, solid ground, the Ma.
gro stands where he demands of his
party, justice; where he demand fad
eral Acknowledgement OF the South.
not from enmity to the South, but on
the best way of obtaining justice for
himself, namely his restoration to cIti.
zsnship.
TIE DisFRANoHIszMKNr OF THE souwu
Again, the Negro may demand of
his party, federal disfranchissnuenta ~,
the ground that the Southern Ststae
are oligarchies and not republics: onr
governments being q Republic oii9sr.
cnies have no standing in the Oonrrsss
OF ne Republic. A republic is a gov.
ernmen by the people; an oIirsr-
ny IS governments by few of the
people. The Iuthern States have
practically disfrsnohised all of our SOL
CONrtETrrp oxy