The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1906-09-06
"The Negro In The South. I"
Charlotte Observer.

Under the above captain the New
York Sun taking account of the
trouble in Texas over the rowdyism
of negro soldiers garrisoned at Fort
Brown, in that State, expresses such
sane sentiments and arrives at such
sensible, logical conclusions that lit
tie Or nothing is left to be said on
the subject With the Texas sit
uation in mind the Sun says:
'It Is not the practice of the War De-
partment to maintain garrisons of ne
gro troops in Southern States. They
are usually sent to posts in sparsely set
tied regions of the West and Northwest,
where there is no antipathy to them on
the part of the white people.
"a negro in the army uniform is al
ways stalwart fellow and has very
good opinion ofhimself. Helooks down
on the plantation negro and brooks no
interference by the white man with his
movements and amusements when on
leave. In Southern community east OF
the Mississippi he would be regarded as
a negro and not as a soldier and his in
dependence and his turbulence at times
would be resented. Moreover, his
influence on the town and plantation
negroes would be baneful to the rela-
tions existing between them and the
whites. On the whole, the War Depart
ment deems it the part of wisdom to
keep him out OF the South. Detail
ing him for duty along the Texas from
tier is the nature OF compromise. 1t is
q half-breed as well as a white mans
country, and he should fit into the en-
vironment.
But Texas does not want him sober,
and it will not have him in liquor, when
he is turbulent, defiant and careless with
his weapons. The protest against his
retention there in garrison which has
been sent to Washington by members OF
the Texas delegation in Congress cor
rectly and feelingly represents the senti-
ment Of the white people. To the old
abolition centres in the North it may
seem outrageous that officers of the
government, such as Senators and Rep
resentatives are, should object to the
presence of regular soldiers in their
locality on the score of color; and theo-
retically it does seem all wrong. But
the country isyery big, and if the negro
soldier is better off in part OF it where
his presence does not engender race feeling
why should he be sent to a district where
his behavior provokes COLLISIONS with the
whites, who are better off without him?
1t is not a case for for ramming prin-
ciple down the throats of a community
but q case for the matured judgment OF
experience. The negro soldier is not as
signed to posts in or near Northern cities
for his own good as well as the welfare
OF their mixed population. If the negro
soldier is not wanted in Texas there il
no sound reason why he should be gar.
risoned there except in an emergency"
1t is a matter for serious thought
if, after all, the government has not
made a mistake in maintaining regi
ments of negro soldiers in the regular
army. They serve no purpose to
| which white troops cannot be ever
more successfully put and there neveI
seems to be a serious lack OF white
recruits. In the mobilization ant
movement of the regular troops fo
any purpose, the War Department
is not infrequently embarrassed b,
having these black elephants on it
hands. North, South, East or Wes
the Caucasian blood is the same and il
the regular army establishment tn
brother in black is a iarring, discor
dant element.
No one would buy a sailboat with sal
that could not be reefed. There is alway
that possibility OF little too much win
that makes a cautious man afraid to go ul
provided The thinking man. whose stomae
sometimes goes back on him, provides for b
stomach by keeping a bottle of Kodol FL
Dyspepsia within reach. Kodol digests whs
you eat and restores the stomach to the col
dition to properly perform its function
Sold at Parker's Two Drug Stores.