The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1901-07-18

and forty.four of them are serving q
second term. Thirty are serving a
third term and few fourth and
fifth term. They scom to like it. One
thousand and twenty of these convlcts
are from three countics-Fulton, Chat
ham, and Bibb. AS Thomas Jcifcr-
son said. "Thc influence of cities is
pcstllcntial TO good morals" 1t Is
especially 80 with negroes. The large
majority OF the negro convicts are
from the cities and large towns.
Twenty years ago there were 100
negro convlcts and 80 per cent of them
were wholly illiteratc, could NJ :"
read nor write. Now we have
negro convicts and 81 per cent tun
read and write. How is that? Does
education lessen crime or increase it?
MIR. Stetson, the State statistician of
Massachusetts, says it /" increases
CRIME not little, but immensely"
ana he proves it. II certainly docs
among the negro race in Georgia.
IL IS curious to note that we have
two counties in the Statc-Whitc and
Gllncr-that have NO representative
among the c0nvicts. There arc four
counnes-Towns, Pickcns, Banks and
Dawson--that have but one each.
There are three couuticS--UniOn, Muir
ray and Rabun--that have but two
each. How is that for good morals in
oul most Northern mountain counties,
where the school master has not been
abroad in The land to any alarming ex-
tent?
N -, hnt Il, e
itself neither lessons nor increases
crime. ltdcpends on the moral train
ing that the boy gets either from his
teacher or his parents or his early as
socrates, but if his environments arc
bad his education makes him Il more
dangerous citizen, for it. enables him
TO cover up and conceal his crime or TO
escape from punishment in some way
1t is like throwing pearls before swine
to give the vile and vicious an uuura-
llon, but we can't plck them before
hand and 50 all must have Il chance.
But IL / was Il lawnakcr | would
put some penalties upon bad citizens,
upon the idle and vicious, whether
white or black, We do not allow them
to have their names in the jury box
They cannot try man for crime nor
set in judgment upon his civil rights.
Why shonld such men be trusted with
the ballot? Why not let tho same
commission that makes y the Jury
box also make up the \ box? If
some good negroes got . md some
bad white men were left { it would
be rcwarding merit and \rulting a
penalty upon bad citizens. Alabama
and Virginia have this question before
their conventions and we hope they
will consider it wisely and give en-
couragcmcnt to good citizens, whether
they be white or black. Good conduct
should be the test. 1t is more impor-
tant than education or property. Let
us purge the ballot box Just as we do
the jury box. Purge it once year.
Put such colorcd men as Gassett and
Joe Brown and rriLblc in ami leave all
such white men us Pat Banks out. |
Don't shut the door forever on good |
negroes.
BY the way, | wish somebody would |
hunt up our cook and send her home
She is not a "scttled 'oman," and IS
just gall,vanting around till her spell
is OF. | have to get up before | feel
like it and fire up the stove and then
call the girls and they get q good
breakfast in half an hour. Biscuit
and coffee and hominy and fried eggs
ami beef steak are good enough for
anybody. but will have to discharge
our cook and hire her over again and
leave out the spell privilcgc...
BILL ARP.