The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1906-08-17
Mr. Tatt's Effort to Repubr.
canize the South

Some months ago Secret.,u
of War Taft went to A son,t,a'y
city and made an address ueIa
burden of which was 70 .ne
effect that the Solid Sontb lug 5ue
too long adhered to its hn uaS
ocratic heritage, and thar bana
forth it should be liberal a11
vote the Republican ticket I ua
and his party did not want ,,
see the continuance of the So,iJ
South. and between the Iin" u
could be seen little threats sn"E
as that proposed by Represents
tive Crumpacker to cut Off sontL
ern representation in pronortion
as the suffrage was restricted ~
the South. The Washinotom
Post makes the following pointed
comment on the speech and ~
probable effect: w
From his standpoint, there 10
much wisdom in the address S.o
rotary Taft delivered before Tho
assembly of North Carolina Ro
puOlicans. 1t is manifest tho,
MIR. Taft has no exalted opiniOn
of your Southern Republicans
and in his speech he blurrs riybt
out what he thinks of them II
is equally clear that for tho
Southern people the Secretary
has not only respect, bur adm.
ration; not only good will. bnt
sympathy.
He cannot, for the life of him
discover a sound reason for q
solid Democratic South; bnt that
same South cannot for its life
find a good reason for ANYTHING
else. Mr.. Taft and the South dis.
agree as to the premise. They
are equally sincere, equally pa.
triotic. The Secretary assumes
that Republican policies work to
the advantage of the South. the
South does not think so. The
Secretary cites the prosperous
condition of the South; the South
answers that it is in spite of,
and not because Of Republican
policies. The Secretary assumes
that the present tariff is making
the South immensely rich; the
South retOrtS that her chief in.
dustry is the growing of cotton,
the price of which is fixed in the
free trade market of Liverpool:
but that when she comes to buv
she is restricted to the protected
market at home.
Thus the two are far apart.
and not likely to get together in
this generation. (When the first
William Pitt had concluded a
great speech in the English Com,
mons. the celebrated orator and
statesman, Carteret, began his
, reply with this sentences "When
we are as well convinced of the gen.
tleman's infallibility, as the gen.
tleman himself is, we will follow
him." That is the way that the
South feels towards Mr.. Taft
he must convince the ruling
classes down there that he is
right and that they are wrong.
That will be difficult. They
are very nearly agreed as to the
negro. The Secretary has the
same horror of Ben Wadc'S South.
ern policy that Tillman or Car.
mack has. But the Secretary
forgets, or does not attach Sutfi
cieDt Importance to, this phase of
human nature-we forgive iujur.
les; we do not forgive Insults.
That is Southern; that is North.
ern; that Is Eastern; that is West
ern. Long, long ago, the south
fOrgaye the North its victory;
it has not. and it will be gener.
ations before it does, forgive the
North the humiliations Of the
reconstruction era. There is
nothing else like it in history,
ancient or modern Christian or
pagan, civilized or barbara. 1t
is one case in the ,.nnals of man.
kind where brave, a proud, a
magnanimOus people were made
the subjects to their former slaves.
Let us be frank about it; it is
the best. That humiliation is in
the gizzard of the South this
generation, and it will take gen
erations to eradicate it. In his
earlier administration, Mr.. hoOse'
welt opened and irritated, and
angered, and inflamed this sore
anew, and this was unfortunate.
1t is all very perverse, all very
uncharitable, all rather unCbrls-
tian; but it is enormously human
and mOnstrOusly Southern.
And hence we say that Secre'
tary Taft is on a wild goose chase
when he goes on an expedition to
vitalize the Republican party at
the South-he is barking mp
tree that there is nothing H.
His party there is a bread-and'
butter affair, and Mr.. Taft cannot