The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-12-11
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Letters to The Editor.


 Good Men Only for Registrars. Editor The Advertiser:
 The people of Alabama are just now confronted with an exigency, to mee, which requires a degree of fidelity and patriotism. which can only be found in men of upright instincts.
 A lump of leaven. Is in fact, lump or dough, made of meal, in the first stages of decomposition or rottenness. The leayening process is often fguratively referred to, to Illustrate the idea of cor ruption.
 The reconstruction laws, enacted soon after the war between the States termi- mated, were designed to put the pot tom rail on top," to inject into the body polite a great mas of ignorance and irresponsibility in the persons of the negroes which coupled with the methods the whites seemed forced to resort to, to rid the country of the dangers which would probably result from universal suffrage, make the lump of leaven, op- served at first only in few counties where the people were presented with the option of resorting to methods not desirable, or of suffering absolute ruin; but the lump of leayen has been per mitted to remain so long that 1t has af- fected more or less every well informed and thoughtful man in the State. In this 1t is not meant to say that every well informed and thoughtful man in the State has participated in the methods. Some have seemed to think 1t necessary to self-preservation, but in the manner i'm dicated in the following illustrations:
 It is said tha. a distinguished minister of the Gospel, residing in certain coun- ty, was approached by number Of gentlemen. one of whom addressed him thus:
 Doctor we know you to be a man of unquestioned character. You have resided in this county for a great length of time, and you know conditions here. If these negroes should get control of affairs Tn this county. through their ignorance and profiigacy, we should be ruined, and you know that there are five negro voters to one white voter. Now under these cir cumstances, is it right for us to stuff the ballot box upon them or not?" The Doctor replied, Young gentlemen, I never advised any one else to do so, but candor compels me to say, that under such circumstances as you mention, when I hear that 1t was done, I am afraid am not as sorry as I ought to be-" And so 1t is with all the balance of us-all affected at least to that extent. and yet all know that conditions should be such that when a wrong act is done every man ought to be sorry without any tinge of comfort resulting from the wrong act done. Now then, the people. through the Democratic party, have made it pos sible for conditions to be so changed that the seeming necessity for wrong doing shall no longer exist.
 That the appointing power, as to Registrars are earnest in purpose, to carry out the pledges of the party, there is no doubt but the appointing power. is largely dependent upon local agencies for information in relation to the character of the men to be appointed Registrars. and if any man fails know ingly. to give correct information he will be guilty of .bstraying his party and his country.
 If any man has it in mind if appointed Registrar to enroll the great mass of ig- norant negroes to the intent that they may be used in the future to corruptly influence the result of any election he is | very bad and a very dangerous man, | and if there should be a beginning to carry out such schemes, be Is known | that it cannot be done in a corner and | when once 1t is known, it will be met by other acts of like character in every nook and corner of the State, carried to such stupehdous height that the State which we all love will become the laughing | stock or the country and Stench In the nostrils of all decent people, and the straight Democratic party will become greatly endangered. Numbers of promi- nent men have been heard to say that fl men come upon the stage with knives UT their sleeves Juggling their personal ambi- | tionS and local squabbles along, to in | fuence evil conduct to the defeat of the party's pledges, that the party hence. forth may take care of itself and these are not "antis'' but men who stood | squaEely by the new Constitution an6 worked and strove to secure it's ratifica. tion. To encounter defeat when we art rising the hill of deliverance is a thing so shocking in itself that 1t cannot bt tolerated for a moment, and these sug | ges tions are made in the hope if there is any such purpose anywhere the mer who desire nothing so much as the com mon good of a common country, may come to the rescue, and see to it that none but men with clean hands shall bt commended for appointment. Let no mar who advocated the ratification of the new | Constitution be put in the attitunde oI having vouched for the good faith of z | party which has proven false to it: | pledges. Now is the time for patriots tc speak and to act in commenting men fol Registrars and for jugglers and dissem \ fA nd he