Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1901-09-06
TIE Negro To The Rear.

That is the slogan of the white
Repu blIcans of Virginia this year.
They are engaged in an effort To
make their party respectable, and
they are doing this in a manner
very offensive TO the cOlored brother
and likely to ALLEVIATE him from the
Republican fold. It's well known
that in the late Roanoke convention
the negro was conspicuous by his
absense' True, there were a few
negro delegates, but they were
compelled 10 take back seats, and
when one OF them wanted to rise
to a "p'int of ORDER" he was made
to sit down. Several white speak
ers congratulated their fellow
members that this was the most
respectable Republican convention
that ever met in Virginia basing
that assertion on the fact that there
were so few cOlOred delegates.
What is to be the effect Of all this
on the fortunes of the party9 1t
Is manifested that the negroes feel
that they have been insulted IN
the house of their friends. We are
reliably informed that's prom inent
and intelligent colOred man of
Roanoke who witnessed the prOcee-
dingS of the convention declared
that his race was outraged by the
treatment accorded the colored
element. Moreover, he said that
in the approaching election many
negroes would refuse to vote at all
and others vote the Democratic
ticket. They feel that the slight
put upon negroes is nothing less
than base ingra;itude. They have
adhered with remarkable fidelity
to the Republican organization ever
since they were enfranchised and
furnished a large majority of
votes to that party IN this State
and now the white leaders are
turning their backs upon them for
the avowed purposes of making
their party more respectable and
winning a few more white. votes.
The prospect Is that for every white
vote they win in this way they will
lose two negroes aud so weaken
in stead of strengthen their party.
For the last five years there has
been madifest tendency among
Virginia negroes to abstain from
voting. They have learned some>
thing by experience. They have
discovered that the white leaders
only want their votes TO promote
their own personal schemes and
they are tired of being used as mere
TOOLS Tor the benefit of others. 1t
has taken them a long time to dis
cover the seltishness of politicians
and protested champions of the
negro race, but now that they made
the discovery they are likely to
act on their Information and with
hold cher support from those who
deserted them. The Republican
leaders as rule are opposed to
constitutional revision. They pro-
less to see III the expected action
io1 the convention an opportunity
to create division In the Democratic
ranks and win with recruits and
that is the reason they are giving
the cold shoulder to the colored
brother. They are grasping at a
shadow and in danger of losing
the substance of solid negro sup
port. Intelligent negros know that
the white Democrats of Virginia
are their best friends. The desire
TO withhold the ballot from the
ignorant, and venal element is no,
promptedby any feeling of hostility
towards the negro race but simply
Tor the purpose to purify politics
and insure good governments in
which the negroes are as vitality
interested as the, white people,
Lynchburg News