The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-07-05
FIFTEEN DOLLARS POLL TAX

Senator Pritchard and Representatives
blackburn and Moody, who recently voted
to impose a poll-tax of fifteen dollars
upon every Filipino before allowing him
to vote. have been almost shedding
tears because in North Carolina electors
are required to pay their two dollar
poll-tax before being permitted to vote.
And yet-(would you believe itO-these
three Republican members of Congress
voted within the past few days for a
bill that permits no Filipino to vote I'M
lesasils pays a poll-tax of fifteen dollars
The Asheboro Courier, in a sensible
editorial upon this matter, says that lin
the South negro can get employment
to pay his two dollar poll-tax but the
Filipino cannot easily find employment
and wages are lower than here; the SIS
tax was intended to and actually does dis
franchise the great majority of the new
class of American citizens whom the
United States purchased from Spain at
two dollars head and are now spend
ing millions of dollars to keep in sub
lection.
The Pittsburg Post, discussing the in
consistency of the Republicans says:
The provision of the Philippine bill
regarding the suffrage, enacts substan-
TALLY that none shall vote there except
such as can read and write the English
or the Spanish language, or who own
$3.50 worth of property, or who pay SIS
a year in taxes This amounts pract-
cally to a denial of the suffrage to the
masses of the inhabitants. few of whom
can speak either the English or Spanish
language, or own $3.50 of property, or
would pay SIS in taxes for the. privilege
of voting il they could In the course of
the debate Senator Spooner interjected
the remark that this is a little better
and fairer than the grandfather test
in the North Carolina Constitution. That
is the best the apologists of the suffrage
enactment for the Philippines can say
for it. It is little better than the
electoral amendment of some Southern
States, which they necessarily denou4ce
for its lagrant violation of the political
rights of citizens Yet the highest poll
tax in North Carolina, Mississippi and
tionai restrictions on the electoral fran
chisc is 50, and in the Philippines it is
SIS a year Republican organs and ora
tors have violently assailed this 81 poll
tax in Southern States as 9 practical
denial Of the suffrage to multitudes of
voters, but they are quite dumb cor
corning the SIS poll-tax in the Philip
pines.
But in these Southern States every
negro can qualify himself for the sHf-
frage by learning to read, and as educa-
ton shall spread this Southern educa-
tional test Will entirely cease TO AFFECT
the colored race. There is similar
test in Massachusetts, and it is favor
cd in other Northern States, and no doubt
in time will become the universal re-
quirement.
1T IS true that in the South there are
exceptional requirements intended pr
marily to affect the coloreG people, but
IN the Republican legislation fer The
Filipinos the race distinction is clearly
recognized. and if right in the Philip
pines it cannot be wrong in the South
crn States. The common sense of the
American Teoplc has long conceded that
the grant of universal suffrage to the
colered race was mistake. The only
thing to be done is to correct that mis-
y take within the limits permitted by the
4 Constitution. We would not tolerate
negro suffrage in Pennsylvania were the
condition ard numbers of the race
relatively the same here as in Missis-
1s'pi or South Carolina"