The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-02-21
= = =
: Mind, Not Money!
Makes q Nation.

BY OPIE READ)

tBY OPIE READ.)
Author OF a Kentucky Colonel" Etc
copyright 1901 by ". r. Hearst)
AT the last Ashland fellowship meet
ing President Tyrreu of the Ashland
ciub made this statement: Negroes
should not be allowed TO vote because
taey prefer not 20 exercise -the voting
! privilege Further on he added that
me negro did not know enough to vote
lhtehlSently and should not be entitled
/ 20 vote IN & community of white peo-
pie.
/ lively discussion followed, during
Which Mr.. TyFreu stoutly maintained
ms position. Those who believed that
/ all men were born free and equal held
mat the negro had a right 10 vote. And
under the law he has and does, in many
instances, but just how many Of his
votes are footed up in the returns is
another matter
statesmen now agree that the sudden
right of suffrage was an imposition
upon the negro. It placed him in an
tagonism TO the whites: it made him
tool of men not too scrupulous. The
! carpetbagger'' carried him in his
satchel, elected himself to office and
complimented the darkey on his work.
ne taught the "coIored brother" that
craftsmanship was trick and that
pohtics was graft" And when the
carpetbagger" found himself helpless.
standing at the end Of the long lane
OF reconstruction. a lane which at one
tlme seemed TO have no turn, the ne
gro was left alone, an incompetent
memory of corruption.
He did not believe that to sell his
vote involved a moral wrong. And in
THIS he was morally superior to thou
sands Of white men who were aware of
the crime and who sold their ballot,
perhaps not for cash, but for position
In voting the negro was about as ire
SpohslDle as he was concerning the OBJ
1ect OF the pension office, which he be-
lleVed TO be a bank opened for the in
dlgent An Old bench-Iegged Sambo,
Weather-beater. but with the uncon-
scious humor of his race. went into a
pension Office and said:
Dis we're de place whar da's gibin'
out de pensions?"
Yes, this is the pension office"
Wush you'd tar me off erbout $50.
Man levied on my mule an I got ter
git out from under it"
Have you been examined"
Use been vaccinated, eff OATS whut
You means
Have you been examined as to your
title TO a pension?"
Huh. he grunted. If er man what
needs it amt Titled ter it, l like ter
know who is"
Were you in the army?"
Vas. sab. wuz"
Whose commando"
Il dean know nuthin bout de CON-
mand.
Were you wounded?"
Right we're" he replied, showing a
scar on his forehead.
And you don't know the name of
the commando
NO, sab
But that scar doesn't incapacitate
you for work"
No. sab, an OATS de trouble-it
makes me work. Eff it want fur dis
scar I'd be a preacher. but de congre-
cation it lowed dat da doan want er
preacher all SCARED up like I is. vas.
san; an l WuZ IN de army 70 de fust
gun wu1 fired. l went out wild my
young ma~ster."
With your marster? Then you were
in the rebel army
Vas, sab. But do dat make any diff
Well. rather"
1t oughten ter wuz hit right I'D
on de head wild er skillit."
But the government has nothing to
do with that especially when you
were serving the rebel army"
Gobernment got nothin' TO do wild
1t? Wy, sab, it wuz er guberment
skillit de man hit me Wild
he was just about as intelligent as a
voter as he was worthy of q pension.
He had been taught TO believe that
everything that he could get out of the
government naturally belonged to him.
Old Gabe Moss. candidate for justice of
the peace, came into the sheriffs Of
flee at Little Rock and said
We'se got ter count deze niggers
out. Da's getting too fresh
Why some one replied, when YOU
ran for Office some time ago you COM
pi4ined of the crime of counting out
Yes, sab, but WIZ on de udder side
ien"
The right to vote ought to be gov
arned by intelligence. It makes no diff
ference how white man is, he should
not be permitted to vote unless ne fully
Understands the nature Of his own suf-
rage. Some men declare that there
should be a property qualification, but
this would be wrong, since il is mind,
rather than money, that makes a ma
ton great. The scientist. the discover
er, the statesman may be poor. A pig
headed plunger may acquire property
-S~Hs-S