The colored American., 1901-06-29

llonAl conventions IN A 2OknA tnu
Virginia are morally certain that the
XVIII Amendment " IL be Tepes a
aud every one of them is Sgresd that 1t
ought to lie But Lot tn9 of Them
Will remember the DAY Gr the hour
when this event even tustes IRE XVI
Amendment is q part Of the & JnstIlu-
tiOn of the UHited 3 ates Of America
aud remain q part f the Constitute
as | Dng a. TINS government s0TTiY-s
The progressive states that were / va
TO the fig and to the Constitution,
when Alabama, Virginia and a few
other dlsfranchising sections we're fly
ing at the ,hTOst Of the Nation in The
attempt TO dest o =, it have no. as YET
expressed desire for the repeal Of the
XVIII An endmeut or the disfraDchise
meut Of the Negro The disfIauchi ed
white men OF the Sou whose ire 81 II
40 acts aud utterances prior to aud
aftec the War OF the Reb IL on made
them persona non grata tD the Federal
gOvernmeD', which Ihey C lDld not de
strOy, were very glad, sUme of them, to
subscribe the oath OF amnesty, and TO
hide behind these Amendments, NH
XIV, XIV, In order TO get Office and
standing in their respe ctive states
The Legal wisdom % which is emitted
by the back ooOs lawyers in these
CONSTITUTIONAL G Inventions the South
IN the Sttem pit 10 Iriangnlst9 q scheme
for getting sr, u1d the NVlh Amend
mendmenL aud pulling the Negro out
Ofbusiness as voter Is not dangerous
1t is only noisy. There is not a white
lawyer In the South but knows that
the supreme & Jurt will not sustain the
Ion - l.
or attempting TO appesi any part OF the
organic law Of the land. II is not with
In the province Of state to psss upon
the censtitutiOnalily Of Federal law,
this Is the business OF the Supreme
Court OF the Unite d States. But the
country lawyers in these G. inventions
seem TO think and btlieve that states
rights Is not q thing Cf the psst, and
like flock Of chstteriDg J ckda VS., they
have been filling the air with noise
ever since Constitute n Al { Jnven ions
to disfJanchise Negroes were invented.
The silence Of the great North on
THIS mOmentOus question which IS ex-
citiOg the learned ard able COnStItu-
tion thinkers Of the luth is yeIy mean
ingfuI aud significant.
1t has hardly occuIed to many Of Us
that the southern states with an area
originally much larger thsn the north.
with population nearly as dense and
with greater res urces Of Dationa
wealth have, after eighty years or more
seen the poorer section grow more rap
idly, SO ranidly ss to double in wealth
and population, the originally richer
one. There must be reasons for III 8,
they aie 70 be found IN the IDEAS
which govern the respective sections.
The ideas of the southern states have
been and sull are, t some txtent, in-
1mlcal TO the Negro. The ideas of The
southern ststes are conducive TO his in
divtduaI and racial prosperity.
No 81 q hern state conseuted TO sc.
knowledge his freedom until Congress
Og Its power COMPELLED themto soaIter |
their respec tive co lstitutiOns as 8 con
dition precedent TO their re-sdmissiop |
into the Union. These states, some OF |
tnem are now attempting TO ter then /
Constitutions again by eliminating |
from them the sections snd Paragraphs |
which COpgr So compelled them to in
corporate IN them before their states
could receive the boon of statehood
msgn snImOuSly conferred upon them
by the then v.ctcr:ous Nor b. Congress
then nxed the status OF the Negro citi
IN ana IL Is the only power in this
country that can add to or take swav
Irom him any o. the rights which ii
then voluntarily conferred upon HIM
as CITIZEN The NVth Amendment is
the Negro's shield aud buckler. Can
. q.