Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-07-10
Secretary Taft Asks That Solid
South Give Fair Hearing to
Republisnism
CONGRESSIONAL. CAMPAIGN
sscretary's Speech Regarded as Open
ing Gun in the Coming Campaign for
Election Of a Republican House of
Observation-Disclosures Of the Ad-
ministration.

Greensboro, n. c., July 1O.-Secre-
4ary of War Taft last night, before a
meeting of North Carolina republicans.
on the eve Of their state convention,
delivered speech that was generally
anticipated as the opening gun of the
congressional rampaign of 1906. The
speech dealt with the current political
questions and, opening with advice to
the rank and ti'e of the party in North
Carolina and the south particularly,
referred to the achievements Of the
party in the session of congress just
closed. The opera house was packed
to overflowing by throng eager to
hear the secretary of war. and hun
dreds of persons were turned away be-
cause of the limited size of the hall.
The secretary was warmly APP
plauded thruout his speech.
Mr.. Tart left Greensboro last night
on the 10: 81 train for the north, en-
route to Put-in-Bsly. O., where he de-
livers an address July IL before the
< ONO bar ASSOclatlOT.
Secretary Taft in opening said that
when he was invited to address this
meeting the committee advised him
.that the political situation was sue i
that II proper effort was made at
the coming election 1t would be pos
.sible to carry the state for the repub-
1 lican party The secretary added:
II believe that nothing that could
Z happen in the politics in this country
would work greater advantage to the
country at large and to the south in
particular, than the breaking up of
what has been properly known as the
solid SOUTH say this in no parti-
san spirit for / am not one of those
who think that tkis result would nee
essarily Increase the probability of the
continuance in power of the republican
party. The solidity of the south has,
in measure, furnished it's own anti
d0te In restraining many voters in the
north who might have left the republi-
can party but for what they regard
as the injustice ard danger OF south
ern political conditions.
"The south has been kept solid by
the spectre of negro domination and
B by stirring up racial prejudices and
arousing unfounded alarm over an i'm
possible return Of reconstruction days.
After along struggle the negroes vote
was made to count for nothing and
s-kflen the political leaders of the donlin-
ant party came to realize that dreadful
decentralization of all society that fol-
lowed in a government if law was
tfiouted and fraud was to consulate its
basis They cast about to m IKE the
law square with existing conditions by
property and educational qualifications
which should exclude the negro. They
4 adopted amendments to the state con-
stitutions. with the, socalled "grandfa-
Their clauses" intended to apply the new
qualifications to the negro, and not to
apply them to the whites"
Exclusion Law.
The secretary said 1T is impossible
to frame law establishing an educa-
tional qualification for suffrage which
will stand the test of the fifteenth
amendment, and which will not operate
ultimately to exclude impartially the
negroes and whites from the ballot who
lack educational requirement.
A policy in the south, he said, which
excludes from the ballot impartially
the black and white, when ignorant
and irresponsible, cannot be criticised.
During the past decade, Mr.. Taft
pointed out, period of unprecedented
prosperity has come for the fair south
ern states. "Under the circumstances"
he said, 'sit is not to be expected that
the sensible, clearheaded business men
OF the south do not perceive the tre-
mendous disadvantages under which the
southern states labor in having only
- party with any voice in their state
governments, and in being herded to-
gether always as the hidebound sup
port Of the democratic party of the
country, no matter what wild fallacies
It may adopt in its, platform nor what
candidate it may put before the coun-
! try.
1.-THE effect of the change of indus
trial conditions in eliminating the cry
OF negro domination from the politics
OF the former slave owning states has
manifested itself first in the border
states West Virginia has become per-
lnanently republican, and Maryland
and Missouri put themselves in the re-
publican column in the last presiden-
tial election, while Kentucky nearly
brought forth works meet for repen-
tance in the first Mckinley campaign"
The question which should address
itself to the greatest business interests
OF the south, the secretary stated, is
how much longer "the spectre of things
past" is to hold them to political al
1egiance that does them no good in ma
tional politics, and deprives their COM
munities of the "inestima,ble benefit of
the presence in local politics of two
parties, each of which, if it does wrong.
has real chance OF being punished for
Its misconduct"
MIR. Taft contended that if the south
ern people had kept up with the
times: had they at the ballot box ex-
pressed their sentiments on the loving
issues of the day instead of allowing
themselves to be frightened by a spec
tire and shadow of the past their po-
litical Importance as communities and
the significance OF their views upon
measures and men would have been
vastly enhanced"
Continuing. he said that only year
and four months have elapsed since
Mr.. Roosevelt took the oath of office
after his election tn 1904. "and yet in
that short part of his term of office the
republican party in congress of the
United States. inspired by Mr.. Roose
velts recommendations. has adopted
railway rate bill which greatly in
creased the power of the interstate
commerce. and which taken together
Y