The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-05-06
JUGGLING THE BALLOT.
TINE SOUTHERN PROJEtT 10 hLPhat
THE FIFTEENTH ANENDHtAf
The Rev. Edgar Gardner Murphy 'me'
Mover In the New southern so'iey, Vu''
lines His plan That Il 10 DO the 'f'ck'

N.rau 80. now very clearly that, ever sine"
1870. when the carpct-bag governments "' W"
southern States we're ovsrthro~n ny \I"''h''
and fraud, the nne objective ~ Juggling WIN
the Democrat or the southern STATES mas
been to destroy the force ana 'H'ct
of the Fifteenth amendment to the fed"thI
Constitution. For "A long tim" they pr"'ccd"o
cautiously, protesting nj eNery step OF 'he way
that all they wanted was home rue, anu
the domination Of property ana lh''l'ReH'r
But they kept -olidly united, and men hy men
gathered 10 themaclveS all the power III the
state and the nation that they could peace
fully when possible. forcibly when necessary
The adoption ~ the Missi'sippl Constitution
vasthe first open and direct blow at tn" Fi'eet'h
amendment, the NEXT came n the adoption OF
tho South Carolina Constitution followed closely
by the adoption Of that ~ Louisiana, each IN"
them 50 shaped in It's suffrage provisions A. 10
make Il "a difncult for an fro-American To
vote a, for n camel to 20 through the eve ora
needle Now Alabama, North carolina ana
Virginia rre clamoring Tor constitutional con-
v%-ntionS to accomplish 10y legal enht'r'nRe
what their sister States have done,
In the debate on the pritrhard resolution IN
the Senate. bearing upon the proposed dls-
ranchi~ing legislation in North Carolina SEN
ntors Morgan ~ Alabama, McFnery OF LOUIS
ana, Money Of Mississippi and Tillman OF
South Carolina sCowled and rallied AT the FN-
teonth amendment all through their speeches.
Speaking ON III" Hawaiian suffrage bill, Senator
Tllman made the GLOWING exhibition of him
self and Of South Carolina. which h" 40 Nplen-
didly miSrepreS.uls. I hope
Finally. after the bsyOn.i had come IN us again,
in 1870, We rose In righteousness and Iigh'. W.
| -. ia. ,,.n, a.. a., la tho ballot hsNnsa We
buudolrd the nirgrrs and We shot en- And We ae
not a>he med oiit The people Of South Carolina, in
their Constitution, have done their Level best to Ire-
vent thr niggers from voting
This is brutal enough and vulgar enough II
50 shocked the diCnifed senators that none of
them had strength or will To reply to IT But The
spirit OF il is the spirit Of Tho southern white
people. This was shown TO he 50 in the DemO-
cratic conventions al Raleigh, \. G.. and Mont
coinery. Ala. recently ahcn every reference TO
the settled denomination to diSfranchiIe The
AFRO American citizen va, answered by the
convention with a frenzy of applause
But N" Rev. Edgar Gardner Murphy Of
Montgomery, Ala, the promoter Of the
now southern Society, which will hold
il. Ar-t meeting at Montgomery. begin
mig on n. Sh Of this month, has
a scheme ~ his own, which ~ elaborated in Il
lecture on The White Mar and tho Negro at the
south. delivered NJ the American Academy Of
Political and Social Science. at Philadelphia.
March :. which has been widely discussed
in the North and South. and will BE- discussed at
the Montgomery meeting OF the Southern So
| ciety William Rourke Cochran. strangely
enough. a New Norkrr and an Irshmau to boot.
. On the programme to speak III advocacy
Of tho repeal Of the Fifteenth. amendment. Or
course Mr. Cochran Is not ashamed OF himself.
as found when ] discussed tn" matter with him
recently. in COMPANY with other Rcntlsncn
Here i. The presentation q Mr. MnrEhy,.
cnI4amen, ~ dT the HS' &i fi}RiEp f" 'E coni n.itrSi,,
soldier In ever clvl,za'lGn ther" Is a
fought in the armle, Of the ~ ate OF course tn.
ignorant black and white soldiers who fought IN
the armle. Of the MON thousands o. whom
/ considered IN the same breath with Mr. Nlr-
phys Confederate soldier
Mr., Murphy thinks that a. to tho internal
IN" need. increasingly. Tor a limitation OF tho
franchise b. an educational and rro,,rriy
and itcr.te Of both races. But under the
provisions = tho Fifteenth amendment 'Ntlcha
test cannot technically re oncr"d 70 IN. enc
| element Of the population without hrtnE offered
10. the other. However. through the intro
dlctlcn Of understand ng clauses and through
other suhrerfuCr~ Of legislation, such di.cre-
tiCunry over j. given to The Judges 81 "l-'-
: tcu. in No Stat'~ which have adopied II,
hat IT." test in 'ts eni"r."m"n'
The all. ol'r surrcm,W o' intelligence and
propert secured through = ~nnrng. test,
ihat shall h- event, 'nd equally ,apLicahi" N
th.ory and IA fact 10 white and BLACK lli'
will be- the ultimate solution e the South Of the
whole vsyrd problem Of politics privilege
AID low Gnn he S"n!h S,GoWp!i.h III,
! tho question from hiS point # vioe
How ma We Obtain tho legal and working eH-
preston of Thu idea Of Justice iof both races,
gcther without hesitation through. md only
through, the parts modification e he fifteenth
amendment to the constitution. Of the United
States. That provision has made The cnus" of
the negro civil rights the caus" ~ the Federal
authority, and has thus o%rerated to wenk and in
part to destroy that sense Of local responsibility
which il, practcall and N the last analysis,
the sole arbiter Of his. political fortunes. do
not suggest rs reversal IN such , sense n.would
~ terms destroy, that potential .cLtIlerehip of
The negro 10 which | have referred. but do sus-
gHst such modification Of. the amendment rs
nay m@kt TIE question Of the definite condl-
H lo'dsy q forget aTs , bear bear. tho SS. .Haf Of P tS! @5%.n M nat.
"'a@'Trn, . irn1asni. afs' f I f,o, , Io nim i..ne. III, FIT.
teenth amendment il imperative to-day except
a. an irritation 1t does not enfrnnchiS"
chi~es It docs not give any man q vote 70
whom the local sens" Of the public welfare re-
fuse the privilege OF, the ballot. 1t il n dad
l'lNl III Nv 'IkNlIN NV " ltIt NbIHllNr Nv
understand ny clauses and tho grandfather
provisions of the state law ARE ALREADY adequate
70 arnul ia intended '%nNucnc" and 10 liml' the
negro vote wherever that vote. through the over
V%halnln- number or an III terata and shIftless
electorate. would involve the country or tina
stat" y social, civic and commercial ruin do
not believe in legislative slibterfu.cs. bu, the
legislative snhterfnge represents = higher
morality than the dominion Of the brutal and
irrcsIonsihlc illrtcracv. The dominant vnr'y
ufth- rcconstruction period, rejecting the saner
"ounselS Of Mr. Lincoln, made us try the lat
Ter method, md It's memories have burned TO
he very bone. The Fifteenth amendment
broke down al the south under the odlm Of its
military enforcement.
The Southern white man can never deal with
this problem in truest Justice 10 him eli until
the negro stand. before him not as tn. ward VI
the General Government and therefore Of an
nlcn Federal authority hut n his own care.
The negro. a. To his political rights. ia in fact
and under tho actual conditions Of Southern
lie i@ ward the problem 81 negro suffrage IL
in fact within his hands, . . . Not until the
franchise IL made "A local issue can there result
that division Of parties NJ the South and that
re-aliCnment Of political forces which will
secure 10 the negro, tho white man. theISouth
Luz ~