The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1904-09-06
A GREAT POLITICAL QUESTION.

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f1kar, mad tried to make itself accept
able to the white men of the Southern
Estates, there would have been a more
perfect union and no Solid South. In
The early days the South had about as
many Wings as Democrats. Clay was
a WING leader and SO were many who
became only less famous than he. On
general principles of government apart
from those affecting race, the South
ern Wings We're in sympathy with the
new Republican party and today the
Gulf States, especially Alabama, are
as strongly protectionist as the North
ern Atlantic States. There is also
strong sound money and expansionist
element there; yet practically all of it
votes the Democratic ticket in protest
against the Republican policy Of build
ing up the political interests of the
negro.
Politically a wiser plan would have
been to leave the negro question in
the hands of the Southern people. But
during the reconstruction period the Re
publicans put the black man in power
and by so doing nearly ruined the
country and gave the Democracy, a
array of electoral votes. After the Fed
eraI troops were withdrawn from the
polls, as they We're some ten or twelve
years after the war, the white men as
serted their right, as the ruling class,
10 manage the politics of the various
states. Then the Republicans Haunted
the bloody shirt through several
campaigns and hopelessly alienated
even the men of the New South of
whom so much was beginning to be
heard.
Things quieted down in process of
years and during McKinley's admins
sration the strong racial prejudices of
the South We're treated, on the whole, |
respectfully with the result that the
solid South began to crumble. Then
came the Booker Washington and Crum |
Incidents of the Roosevelt administra- |
tion-an assertion of social equality in
the one instance and of political SUI
periority in the other, with the result |
thai the South will vote solidly for Par
ker and Davis. 1t has been made a |
sure thing for the enemy.
Is this good politics? Considering
that the Northern States will hardly /
tolerate even a negro policeman, is not
the attempt to put Southern States on
basis of racial equality. conceived in
the spirit of persecution? Or is the
effe.t not the same as if such were
the spirit? 1t seems to US that, as the
white man is the salvation of the South,
his interests in politics should be con-
suited first; and If he objects to a t
negro postmaster or collector of GUS
toms, to treat that objection as final.
No good American, in his heart, de-
states become less than white mans
country. AS such it was organized by
the fathers; as such it has progressed
and as such only can it triumph. BY
law and treaty and social custom the
yellow race is debarred from citizen
ship; the red man has been held at
arms length; the black man was adj
Taifted to suffrage by burst of fana-
ficisrn which the American people of
All parties now regret. What he has
Of constitutional right cannot be taken
from him by law but the South has
hidden him to keep out of politics.
Knowing as all do that he cannot be
put into power again except by the use
of troops, why should the President re-
new the irritation every now, and then
by encouraging the negro to hope that
his day of triumph may come? 1t will
never come. Fast as the negro popuIa-
fion is increasing the white population
Is growing faster and while its majori-
" lasts and grows it will rule. It can
not s.bdicate to Africa and only fana-
tic could expect it to do so. AS the
custodian of American civilization, the
white race must stand together and not
permit its blood to be vitiated or its
control to be divided.
The war will not be over until the
white men of the North and the white
men of the South become united in SYM
patty and in general aims; and that
cannot come until Republican Presi-
dents cease to encourage the negro in
political hostility to the white south
erner.