The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-01-22
TUESDAY, JAUARY 22, 1907.
MIXING MATTERS

In a speech in the Senate last week. Senator Carmack said: There Is no man in this country today, not even the Sen- nfor from South Carolina, who is so universally hated by the negroes, as the man who abolished the Indianola post oface and dined with Booker Washing ton. All that he has done for the ne gro, all the evidences of friendship he has shown in the past, have been ut terIy forgotten simply because he has not shown that sympathy with the criminal negro which pervades the ne- gro population of this coun- try. from one end of it to the other" This is no doubt true. We get num- bor of the most prominent of the negro newspapers of the country especially from the North, and some of the most hitter denunciations of the President that we see are to be found in those newspapers. And this is not surpris- fnw. The negroes naturally dislike Tillman because he has so often given them good cause to hate him. They are not expecting support or friendly aentiments from him, and bitterness from that quarter is neither new nor unexpected.
 IL is quite different with them in Reoseyelt's case. His conduct in the i1ndianola affair, his insistence in the anpointment of Crum, and his atiiI more frequent criticisms of South ern people for alleged injustice to the negroes. all combined to instill into them the belief that in him they had a friend who would stand by them at all hazards and uphold them at all times. Not for once did they doubt that they had a friend at court, and never did they feel any uneasiness as to that 9ftand's position if trouble should come to them.
 The Brownsville incident \ and the Presidents course in connection with il was rude awakening. It is needless tt discuss the right or wr6ng of the Pres sdents action in this case We know 4uI well that there are many strong mer and newspapers in the country against him. as we know that he is defended North and South. by other strong mer
  to do with the case, as many leader among the negroes look at it. The! insist that his action was not only un just, but some of the most prominen of them do not hesitate to say that hi action was due solely to race prejudice Tn short, they charge that the negr' battalion was dismissed from the arm,
 
 he did it to strengthen himself with tn Southern people and with the Demo orats generally.
 As The New Haven Register sees tn situation President Roosevelt Is learn ing @ lesson now which will be goo for him and good for the whole coun try. and especially good for the negro The rejection of Roosevelt by the ne wroes. after all that he has attempted { do for them. will inevitably result in establishment of the standards of judg ment which the country will apply [ the race. IL will bring the negro t the test which is applied to the whit man and he will then appear in his tru value" Possibly all that Is true, but is a somewhat queer condition of af fairs to find the negro denouncin Roosevelt and to find his strongest sup porters and defenders among Souther Democrats. It makes us feel like ask ing where are we at?' or where ar we going? We do not know how it wi all wind up, for Congress has sa in the matter yet, but We do know tha conditions are somewhat anomalous.