The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-06-12
NEGRO QUESTION IN ALABAMA.
Gov. Jones's Article is Warmly Com
 mended.
Chicago Record-Herald .

0ov. Jones's Article is Warmly Com | mended.
 Chicago Record-Herald.
 Booker Washington deservediy calls
 attention to 8, letter in The Montgom-
 cry Advertiser by ex-Governer Thomas
 G. Jones on the difficult question Of the
 negro suffrage, which is being consio , cred by the Alabama Constitutionai Convention. The ex-Governor, wno
 was a gallant Confederate soldier ana who made a fine record for honesty, | ability and courage when he was at ! the head of the State, is disinclined 10 pursue any devious or doubtful course | now. He prefers to meet the question frankly. having regard for the spirit and the letter of the National Consti- | tuition and laws.
 Speaking as a lawyer who has made
 a careful study of Supreme Court oe-
 cisions, he says that "the brains Of man
 cannot conceive of qualifications which, without violating the Constitution, VIII
 shear political power from the negroes as a race and at the same time confer
 the right of suffrage upon all white
 men save those convicted of crime. If, as some propose, the colored people
 should be openly disfranchised in so
 many words, such an act would amount to notification and revolution, ana IL
 would be promptly defeated By the
 Federal authorities.
 So, too, if the Convention should adopt some skillfully worded plan
 which was fair on its face but essen tially fraudulent both in it's intent ana practice the Supreme Court would de- clare it unconstitutional. No classifi- cation for example, which amounted to a race classification would be allowed, and referring to the case of Williams vs. Mississippi, which he declares mas been misunderstood and mlsquoteo, MT. Jones says:
 The Court in fact decided only that the Mississippi law was fair on its face' and that there was no evidence in the case before 1t that 1t had been wrong fully administered. AS if to guard against misunderstanding, it cited and quoted decisions to the effect that laws however fair on their face ana impartial in their appearance. If ap- piled and administered by public au- thority, with an evil eye and unequal hand" fell under condemnation, and concluded it's opinion by saying that the Mississippi Constitution and statutes did not "on their face discriminate be- tween the races" and that it had not been shown that their actual admins tration was eVil-only that evil was possible under them"
 Having thus disposed of schemes to violate the Constitution, the ex-Gover- nor refers to the educational and prop erty qualifications, and declares that they are not feasible because of the pledges made by the dominant party Tn the State. The inference is that the pledges have been given to the poor and illiterate whites. Proceeding, MT. Jones then says: 50, many of us con sider that requirement of a small amount of taxes should be the qualifi- cation, making provision that the voter who had no property may qualify by contributing a small sum to the school fund"
 Other features of this plan are nom .naticns of electors by the grand jury, the names to be voted on by electors already qualified. This is suggested for expediency's sake to cover certain cases affected by previous pledges. and there Is a reference of the educational test to the Legislature for future ac- tion. considerable number of ne- groes would be admitted under the tax qualification, but. says Mir. Jones:
 T do not believe that it is for the good of either race that the negro should be shut out from all hope, and that every individual of the race, no matter what his good character, intel ligence and interest in the community. shall be forever barred from Quali- flying himself to vote in a government which taxes him. punishes him, regu- lates all his concerns. and in case of need would demand of him to give his life in its defense"
 The tone of the whole communica- tion is admirable. the legal points are very clearly stated, and the moral obli- gation to consult the public sentiment of the North as well as of the South is honestly fulfilled. Ex-Governor Jones has shown a decent respect to the opinion of mankind which might be profitably initiated by some other Southern statesmen whom we could