The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1900-08-10
THE NEGRO PROBLEM.

The Constitutional Amendment,
submitted to the voters of North Caro-
lima last week, practically prohibit
ing the negro to exercise the right of
right of suffrage, and the overwhelm-
ing ajority by which it was adopted,
is now the subject of earnest discus
sion throughout the United States.
OF course it has been received with
different views in the several portions
of the country. The narrow sectional
newspapers of the North seized upon
it, eagerly, as an opportunity to again
fiaunt the bloody shirt in the faces of
the people of the South and in their
mad endeavors to re elect Mckinley
some of them have gone so far as to
revive the Civil war issues. To this
class it is our purpose to devote only
passing comment and snub their
effort with the contempt it deserves,
by entirely ignoring the fact that such
narrow and bigoted ignorance still
exists.
In what we are about to say, we do
not wish it understood that there is
not among this inferior class many
worthy colored people, who have hon
estly endeavored to take advantages,
which have been offered them by the
whites, to better their condition and
it is far from our intention to wound
their feelings in the remarks We are
about to make. And it is not inappro-
pirate at this juncture to say that they
too realize the truthfulness of the as
sertions. The race will be treated as
a class, not as individuals.
In the dark days of the War, when
the alleged friends of the negro were
in full control of the Government,
they in their mad desire to make the
victory more complete, and, if posi-
BILE, sting to the very heart the van
quished foe, and at the same time,
make their party stronger at the polls,
adopted an amendment to the Consti.
tuition giving the inferior race the
right of suffrage. Many of the best
men In their party at that time SER
iously urged that this rash step be
not taken, as it would result in a
boomerang upon it's creators. This
wise counsel was not needed and the
negro today stands enshrouded
around with the constitutional right
ofsuffrage. The result we all know. In
the Southern States, the white peo-
pie without regard to any other rea-
son or political issue vote the Demo
cratic ticket. The negroes, led by
few irresponsible whites, constitute
the Republican party in these same
sections. 1t is these leaders, and we
say it to their shame, who are the
cause of great deal of the troubles
which the race issue has brought
forth. We saw this plainly illustrated
in our neig hboring city, Baltimore.
For four years, owing to internal dis
sentions, the Republicans were in
control of that place and the negro,
urged on by the statesmen, which cir
cumstances created, became terror
Hall was infested with them and it
was not safe for any lady to walk the
streets in day time for fear of assault.
1t was the brag of many of these
ruffians, as they openly detied the
police, that they cared not for arrest
as they had sufficient pull with the
powers to escape the consequences Of
the law. If this was the case in Bal
more, what was it in the South where
the negro largely predominates? The
blood which has been shed emphati-
cally answers this question. The
whites were compelled to combine for
self protection. They were outvoted
by the blacks and in North Carolina,
while they paid ninety-six per cent.
of the taxes, were not able to control
the appointment of a single constable
or magistrate to aid them in enforce
ing the law protecting their wives and
daug hters from insult. Then came d
general uprising. The superior race,
almost as q unit, took the matter in
Ju0lT own udlus. LAW, hs lDIeTpToGeu
by the negro Justices and their white
allies. who were no better, was set at
defiance and at the next election the
negro was notified to stay at home as
the Democrats were determined to
elect a white Legislature. This they
accomplished and it was this body
which passed the Constitutional
amendment which was so overwhelm-
ingly adopted last Thursday.
This introduction will lead us up to
the point, as to what is the true con-
dition of the negroes as u race today,
and has experience shown that they
make good citizens. We answer most
alphabetically that they do not meas
ure up to the standard and on the
contrary have deterierated materially
since their emancipation. Education
has as rule only made them more skill
cd criminals and a0t one-tenth Of