The Seattle Republican., 1900-06-01

rebels and traitors, it was plain to be
seen on their determined faces that
the work that they had done SO
we'll in the many battles, in which
they were engaged, would never be
undone by their voice or vote.
The sons of those old veterans let
it be distinctly understood, have
altogether too much respect for
the memory of their dead fathers
and brothers to ever raise their
voice or vote to undo a work
which cost them both their lives
and their fortunes. "In respect to
the memory of my dead father,
who now sleeps the everlasting
sleep in the swamps of the South,
| would suffer to see my right arm
severed from my very body, yea,
[ would prefer death itself Of the
most ignominious type, rather
than do one thing toward destroy
ing the effects of the Fifteenth
Amendments, a document SO dear
to their hearts" would be prayer
that every Son-of-a-veteran of the
Great Civil war would utter,
should he be called upon to vote
for the repeal of that war Amend
ment.
Memorial Day in the North is
as sacred as Sunday itself, and, in
the minds of many, even more SO.
In every town, hamlet and COM
munity in the Northern states the
people assemble each year to do
homage to those who fell in the
cause of hnman liberty. So sacred
has the tie become that on such
occasions it would be dangerous
for any one to suggest the repeal
of the Fifteenth Amendments. A
speaker advocating it would be
torn from the rostrum and it's
advocacy on the part of an ex-
rebea would mean instant death, so
great would the Indignation of the
assembled crowd be. 1t would be
wise for the Southern hot heads to
deal gently in that particular or
the wrath of the 'boys of blue"
would be stirred up against them
as it only was in 1868, when, ION
to Richmond" was the watch word.
Since the shackles of bondage
practically fell from the limbs of
the black people in this country,
when Lee surrendered to Grant
and the Southern Confederacy's
star set to never rise again, the
progress of the Negro, who was
turned loose to battle for an ex-
istence, with every body's hand
against him, and even his own, the
one unfriendly to others success,
he has done remarkably we'll, yea,
he has done exceedingly we'll. A
step further might be successfully
added and say, that no race under
the face on the earth, according to
the records of ancient, MEDIEVAL
or modern history has made such
rapid strides as has the American
Negro and that too in the short
space Of thirty-five years. He is
doing today what it took the white
races hundreds of years to learn.
Instead of travelling by gradations
as other races, the Negro goes by
boands and leaps, which have
startled the world. The slave of
thirty-fve years ago is in open
competition with the master of
that time. He not only competes,
but surpasses for this he must do
to gain any recognition at all.
In the Negroes struggle for
foot hold as a human being be was
opposed by his old master and their
sympathisers. And this was done
for two reasons, first because he
was a free man and not his chattel,
secondly, that after years of at
tempted citizenship ON the part of
the Negro they could successfully
declare that, the North had made
sad mistake as the Negro was
incapable Of becoming civilized
human being, and to use such
argument as a leverage to induce
the North to again reduce him to