The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-09-08
Tho Republican Party Abandons tho
Negro.

When, about two years ago, Mr.. ELIHU
Roof said frankly at the Union League
Club in New York that the experiment
OF the precipitate admission of the eman-
cipated negroes to the suffrage had
proved failure, he expressed senti-
ment which now prevails throughout
this country among both Republicans
and Democrats.
Moreover, Mr.. Roor merely recog-
nized a fact. In practise the expert
ment OF giving suffrage to the emanci-
pated slaves has proved unsuccessful
1t has broken down completely. In the
South, where are nearly nine-tenths Of
the negroes, laws and State constitu-
tional amendments have practically dis
franchised them yet the Republican
party, which gave to them the suffrage
and fortified the gift with an amend
ment to the Federal Constitution in
flicting the penalty Of reduction OF
representation in States which "in any
way abridged" it., has looked on and
done nothing to protect its negro fol-
lowers against such discrimination, and
it becomes more and more evident every
day that it will do nothing in that direc-
ton When Federal troops were with
drawn from the South as protectors of
negro voters at the polls, and when the
Force bill failed Of enactment, negro
suffrage was doomed, at least for the
present generation. The attempt of the
Republican party to assure to itself for
all time the electoral votes of Southern
States by means Of negro suffrage not
only failed utterly, but was also the
means of assuring Democratic soldity
of the South which will probably long
continue.
At the Maryland Republican conven-
ton on Wednesday, presided over by Mr.,
BoNAPARTE, member OF the Cabinet
of President ROOSEVELT, the platform
adopted contained this declarations:
"The Republican party Of the State Of Maryland
favors no social equality among the races, favors
no negro domination over the white people here or
elsewhere. and can be depended upon to guard
against the establishment Of either OF these con-
ditlons here In Maryland"
1T is understood, too, that Secretary
BoNAPARTE had chief hand in the con-
struction of this platform. 1t is notable
also that there were only eight negro
delegates in the convention, though at
the convention Of two years ago their
number was ten times as great
This is Of capital Significance. It
indicates that the Republicans have
found negro suffrage to be an intolerable
incubus on their party rather than help
to it, at least in the Southern States.
Moreover, the negro population of
Maryland was less than fifth Of the
total in 1900. OF all the States in which
slavery formerly existed, with the ex-
ception Of Delaware, Kentucky, Missouri
and West Virginia, so largely Northern
in character and political sentiment,
Maryland has the smallest percentage Of
negroes, and reason for dread of negro
domination" would seem to be small
there, IL not infinitesimal; yet even the
Maryland Republicans are forced for
self-preservation to come out squarely
against social equality" for the negroes.
This declaration, made by Republican
convention presided over by a Cabinet
officer in Republican Administration,
reaches out in its principle to the great
body OF negro citizens in States Of the
North where they now exercise the