The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1907-05-24
The Fifteenth Amendment.


As far as we can gather from the
reports Of the speech Of Hon. John
Sharp Williams in Jackson, that
gentleman holds that all efforts to-
ward ameliorating the race issue
question through advocacy of the
repeal Of the tfteentk amendment
are puerile, ill-advised, impractical
BILE, if not whole silly.
Mr.. Williams takes this KEW be
cause. as we understand, Mississip-
PTS great men and the great men
Of other States nave not been lack
ing in urging the repeal Of this
amendmen in the past; all, how
ever, i'm vain, and succeeding only
in hardening the majority party :
determination to continue the
amendment i'm full force and vigor.
His position Is of course upon eX-
pediency, not upon the principle
involved; for, if we mistake not, he
admitted a hostility on his part to
this fifteenth amendment, but in
sisted that the South simply threw
away time when seeking its repeal.
1t Is not like Mr.. Williams, nor
the South in general, to give over a
fight simply because, thus far, it
has not prevailed. If the with
drawal Of citizenship from the ne
gro by the nation would tend to
benefit the country by ameliorating
the race question, then our public
men ought not to cease their en-
deavors toward this end merely be
cause their predecessors had failed.
Failure should but stir and stimu-
late to further and more strenuous
action, keeping every man on the
Qui vive to take advantage Of any
change in conditions that offered an
opening for attack And, indeed,
there is now just such a condition,
which argues, in spite of Mr.. Will
iams' assertion, that total failure
in this respect may not be charged
against the great men of the South.
Never before this present year
have Northern writer's of renOwn-
writer's whose names are towers Of
strength-touched upon the negro
question with anything like the fair,
scientific and impartial criticism
that is now being given it. 1t is
significant, too, that the more IA
nous of these writers have reached
the same conclusion-th conclu-
sion entertained by the South,
namely, that negro mentality is 50
radically different from white men
tality that simple justice to the
negro REQUIRES a code Of laws regu-
lating his civic conduct quite differ
ent from the laws passed by white
law makers for The government Of
the white race. Thus Northern
scientists have been won to view the
repeal of the fifteenth amendment
not only with patience, but with
satisfaction, and as a measure to be
desired, not only as beneftting the
whites, but as the means
of preparing the way for wiser and +
better government assistance to the
whole negro race.
Mr.. Williams, Of course, knows I
the calibre and sentiments Of the
public men at Washington as well, .
if not better, than any other South
ern man. His assurance that the
attitude Of the great majority of
these public men forbids sensible
folks from advocating a measure /
upon which Southern experience
and Northern scientific theory find /.
common ground for agreement must I
be taken as conclusive But with F
all due respect to everybody, we I
submit that the reflection IS not
upon the advocates Of this measure, +
but upon those public men who in
sist upon their hide-bOund prediu-
dice. And we submit. too, that
while prejudice is difficult Of pen
atration, still, when weapon is be-
ing fashioned by Southern expert
ance and Northern learning, it needs
only a little more sharpening to cut
away this prejudice with an effec-
Gveness that will prove rather as
to some who now rely
upon it as the strongest portion of
their armour.
Thus, the expediency in urging
the repeal Of the fifteenth amend
nent is not so hopeless, nor
90 absurd, as Mr. Williams seems
@ think. At any rate, advocates
If this repeal are not yet prepared |
20 give over their efforts simply be
,ause they can secure qualified re-
suits from State legislatures; for
qualified results will not suffice. To /
10 real good, both to the whites and
o the blacks, there must be federal