Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1901-02-02
TWO KINDS OF sEeRoEs.

TEE Richmond. Va. Tixss. thanks
to it's editorial srticl> OF January goth
and S0th, 1901, has set the pace or
rather provided the rue by which we
may determine when Negro is O gen.
tlensn aud when be is only q sensible
Negro.
According to it's reasoning, when q
Democratic Negro is dead, he becomes
Virgins gentleman and when he is
alive, he is = sensible Negro,
In speaking Of Mr.. wALxER Howard
(colored) it says:
THE death OF Walker Howard (col.
ored }, for macy years jsnitor of the
state Capitol, is q public loss. He
knew the history OF every article of
interest in the historic old building.
and it was his pride ss well rs his
pleasure to describe them in his own
inlmisable way 20 visitors, and gen, r
ally to exploit the glories Of the com.
monweslEh.
he was romancer as we'll as historian
and SC netimes he made statements
which could not be found in the rec
ords. But whether in his narratives he
drew from the pages OF history or
from his own msginstioB, it was all
for the glory OF old Virginia.
Walker Howard wss . good citizen,
. true patriot, o steunch Democrat,
an old fashioned Virginia gentle man
In life he erj yed the respact and
good will of his fellow citizens. and in
death he IL genuinely lamented."
So much for that. We can testi' y
to the worth of this colorpd man OF
the old school. he was type of the
ante bellum Negro, who even now ex-
ercises so much inf lence upon the ex-
slave owners and are virtually the
pets OF the sristocracy Of other days.
But Mr. JOHN E. EPPsdid not except Mr..
HOWARD from the operations OF the
"Jina Grow" Car Bill he classed him
with all OF the other Negroes, and
placed the same restrictions upon the
Offspring OF WALKER HOWARD that he
did upon the sorriest Negro jAil-bird
who appears from time to time in Jus
tice CRUToHFIEID's Court.
Moreover, the TINES has been aivo
eating the Acknowledgement If this
'old Virginia gentlemen"
II has urged the charging Of the
Constitution Of VIRGINIA, the obliters-
tion Of the Bill OF Rights, ard the rel
egsting OF this man and his children
to condition OF slavery as CALLING to
free man as slavery itself.
But, WALKER Howard is dead, and
like "the only good Indian il dead
IRdian," 80 is he when silent forever
an "old Virginia gentleman"
The compliment denied him when
he lived is rendered him wher he il
dead. But, enough about Mr.. How.
ARD.
Now as to the sensible Negro: he
is live citizen of color AMI has not
according to the rule laid down BY the
TINES, reached that Stage of great
mesa, namely: death, where he, too,
can be called an old Massachusetts
gentleman.
But what does the TINES say7 1t an.
nounces that this sensible Negro, WILL
IAN 81, THOMAS, with whom it agrees
then disagrees has written book on,
The American Negro"
Il says:
He is said to be q man of intelli
gence and culture, and his book ia re.
ferred those who have read il in
complimentary terms."
Mark you, WALLER Howard. the
uneducatsd Negro is gentlemen and
WILLIAM Ii THOMAS, the educated Ne
gro is a man.
This is discrimination in favor of IL.
literacy with venge ance. 1t remarks
HE does not care for the political
rights OF his race as long as they are
unable to make any intelligent use oil
them. We may easily admit h
writes, that it was q caricature on
manhood suffrage to invest Ty: ::S civic
functions ignorant beings clothed In
patches, sleeping in novels aud scarce
y one remove in intelligence from
their Ineeparable animal companions
Vi plantation life.
This is argument against our I, rm
u government as much 80 as il If
against the Negro.
WASHINGTON and the signers of the
Declaration of Independence contend.
ed against England for the very rights
and privileges which Mr.. THOMAS and
the TINES denounce.
There were thousand of ignorant, il
lterate white people in the Contin en-.
tai Army, who were clothed in pat ches
and who slept IN novels and scarcely
one remove in intelligence from their
inseparable animal companions Of
plantation life.
The British Generals and the men,
oers OF Parliament did not fail to saw