The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1904-09-14
DEFENDS THE SOUTH.
Ex-Goy. Chamberlain Maintains that
EXPERIENCE AGAINST THEORY.
Negro Rule Is Misrule.

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He Declares that His Administration
inthis State Proves His Charge
and in Fact Remains
the Same Today.
To the Editor Of the Boston Herald:
wish toofer few observations oy
way Of reply to your several editorial
articles on my open Letter." to Mr.
James Bryce, published in the Char-
lesion Is. C. News and Courier OF the
1st. inst.
The News and Courier having
charged you with discussing the ne
gro question with fatal narroWness
Of spirit and plentiful lack OF real
knowledge. l assume that by this
was meant narrowneSs fatal to wise
or fair and valuable discussion. This
charge you resent with warmth, and
on the point of lack Of knowledge you
liken the negro question to the tariff,
in that the latter is "a more intimate
and poignant issue in some States
than Others" Do you mean that the
tariff changes with change OF locality,
that the rates Of schedules OF the
tariff are adapted to different States,
that the rates for New Orleans ano
Louisiana differ from these for New
York city or State? II not, what do
you mean? The negro question is 20
question at all, except fer academic
consideration, in States that have no
practical question. Another thlng:
the tariff is law, a written law, q
method and theory Of revenue which
ran be as well understood in Yer
mont and Arkansas as in Rhode Is
land or New York. The negro ques-
tion can only be practically OF Vitally
understood by those who on the spot
have seen it, have known it's workings
and effects by actual observation. You
cite your familiarity with newspapers,
addresses OF Southern men, and de-
bates in Congress. All this IS well as
far it goes: but the negro is human
being who can be but very imperfe city
known except by actual contact. Al
most the only valuable knowledge OF
him must come from ones own con-
tact or the testimony OF other actual
Observers. The former / assume
you have not had, as you do not men
tion it. Your discussion will, there
fore, be, as it is in fact, theoretic,
which is to say Of little value. You
can no doubt Argue about the negro
and what ought to be done with him
and for him far better than can, but
when you come to practically hand
ling him, so to speak, you baVe what
The News and Courier describes as
"plentiful lack OF real knowledge OF
your subject"
Again, as to s'narrowness OF spirit"
You show it, probably unconsciouslY,
in talking about the negroes being
human" that they should have
''citizens' rights, privileges and op-
poruunities equally with other citizens
upon conditions that do not unfairly
discriminate against them because
they were not white men," AS II
anybody anywhere, who is Of any con-
seq ouence, at the South denied all or
any part Of this! Who denies that
the negro is human, or that he is en-
titled to fair and equal treatment
with white men in all rights, privi-
leses and opportunities which are the
GIFTS or subjects of the law? DO you
know, or can you point to, any In
stances OF practical or theoretic de-
NAL OF all this? No, you cody as
sumo that such denial is the condl-
tion in the South, and on this unwar.
ranted and false assumption you pro-
ceed to condemn the Southern whites
and bemoan the cruel fate OF the
Southern negro. First, give yourselt
q basis Of fact, and then construct
your argument according to the fact.
Not to do this, as you do not, call
fatal narrowness Of spirit" Again,
YOU talk Of 'disfranchisenent in
order to secure white supremacy"
Cite your cases. Tell us where this is
done or attempted. You are wiser
than I-no violent suppositioD, I ad-
mit-if you can do it. You probably
refer to or have in mind certain pro-
visions placed in the Constitutions OF
some OF the Southern States bearing
on the suffrage. Every one Of these
provisions bears equally On whites
and blacks. Cases to test these pro.
visions as to illegal discrimination
have been before the Supreme Court
of the United States. Has any one
of these provisions been set aside?
Not one, I say, therefore, that SO
long as the South acts within its le-
gal rights in rgard to the suffrage, it
IS not censurable. The fact that you
do continue to ceDsure the South for
this is another evidence Of fatal mar
roRneSs Of spirit
You say you try to encourage all
liberal Southerners. - Who are they?
And how do you encourage them? So
far as I can see, you do it only DY
stimulating, il you have any influence
there, a desire or effort to overturn
laws which the Supreme Court will
not o7erturn OF set aside. This, too,
I call fatal narrowneSs Of spirit"
You ask if the Alabama peonage
cases we're takes" I am glad you
alluded to thcsc cases, for they will
serve excellently well to refute your
whole attitude toward the South.
The Alabama peonage cases were not
''fakes;;" and they were tried IN a
Court in which the Judge and district
attorney were both Democrats. They
were quickly and effectively tried and
peonage was killed in Alabama at one
blow. The Judge and district attor-
ney are among the very few, almost
the only, Democrats appointed by
Roosevelt to any high Offices in the
South. This is a pat illustration, not
only Of what can be done, ought to be
done and will be done bY the best