The Savannah morning news., 1904-12-04

effort been more marked and deter
mined than at present.
Negroes in Important Omces.
The two most important offices in
Georgia under the Executive Depart
ment of the Federal Government are
the Collector of the Port at Savannah
and the Collector of Internal Rev
enure in the state, each of these Of
fees is held by negra.
The most important ONCE in an ex-
ecutive department In Washington
held by any one appointed from
Georgia is that of Register OF the
negro.
In a recent issue of the Augusta
Chronicle l saw the following state
ment of the number of negro federal
| officeholders in three cities: Savan-
nah, AZ; Atlanta, "a; New Orleans, 108.
Doubtless they are represented in the
offices in the other cities in the South
in similar proportion. And so evidences
without number could be given that
the Republican party seeks to put the
negro in positions of authority over
the white man, and the so doing is
the practical essence of the overthrow
of white supremacy and the establish
ment of negro rule.
The Crum Case and others.
The case of Crum in the Charleston
Custom House is too notorious to re-
quire comment. The same is true of the
Indianola postoffice in Mississippi,
where the postoffice was closed for
months in order to force white COM
munity to take a negro woman as
postmaster. The Indianola case had
a counterpart in Hogansville in this
state, where in order to compel a re-
q po6nad Wbffn
munity to mail their letters in the
Hogansville postoffice, and thus to
do business with an offensive and
Objectionable negro postmaster, all the
railway postoffices were instructed to
receive no letters on cars when pass
ing Hogansville. In each of these
instances absolutely violating the law
in order to force upon white people
negro as an officeholder. And these
acts of the Executive Department,
and hundreds Of others which could
be mentioned, forcing negro office
holders on the white people of the
South have recently had the emphatic
endorsement and approval of the Re-
publican party in the declaration In the
Republican platform in favor of reduce
ing the representation of the
Southern states in Congress I'M
less the negroes are allowed, pro-
vided they have the numerical majori-
ty in any states, to take the dominion
and control of such states. Such a
proposition could have no other
purpose and design than to establish
negro rule over white people in the
South.
Negro OmcebOIding is Negro Rule.
1t is true that there are many
white Federal officeholders In the
South, but most of them are in charge
of postoffices where II would be i'm
practicable for one reason or another
to place negroes. 1t is also true that
in all the Republican administrations
there have been special instances
where in response to urgent appeals
whites have been appointed In the
place of negroes. But modification
of the practice Of negro officeholding
does not deny the principle of negro
rule, and IL is only a question Of
time when the practice may be made
again well nigh universal. And the
practice of negro offlceholding is
negro rule. In this connection the
possibility is not to be overlooked
that the bestowal of Office upon few
favored white men may be adrotly
and skillfully used as a consideration
by which our people may be con-
ciliated into an abandonment OF their
opposition to the party practicing
negro rule.
But although much remains unsaid,
time and space will not permit me 70
further elaborate the proposition that
the Republican party Is not the place
for one who favors white supremacy.
and who opposes negro officeholding
and negro rule.
Those who desire 10 divide the
whites say that there Is no negro
question and that therefore the whites
can safely divide The negro question
IL not actively In evidence in our local
policies simply because the whites are
united
Division OF white Party Means Dis
aater.
A division among the white people
means the negro with one part OF tho
whites, lighting the other part OF the
whites, or the two divisions Of the
whites nRhting between themselves for
the control of the negro vote. In eth
er case disaster must follow. Equal
ity in political association tends. how
ever slowly, nevertheless certainly 20
social equality ana social equality
leads m Inc end Inevitably 10 miHce-
Rennfion and amalgamaiion.
While there are many dNfercnCnN, the