The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1907-12-13
As 10 TIE NEGRO QUESTION
Paul Scott Makes a Plea for His
Race of People in a Good
article.

Hace OF People IN q Good
Article.
To the people OF Mitchell and South
Dakota, l wish to call your attention
to the tact that all negroes in the
United Suites cannot he classed as
some we have stroling through the
state. Neither can they be cldssed
as Senator Tilliuan has pictured
them out.
AS MIR. Carnegie remarked at
Howard University. 1T is not what
shall we do with tue negroes but
how can we get more negroes is the
common observation among planters
and farmers all over Lousinaa aud
Mississippi to-day. The fields aud
farms with cane and cotton to be
brought to the mills and with not
enough labor for the work are max
ing the planters and farmers ask as
Mr.. Carnegie asked, how can we get
more negroes? They have others
working for them but none of these
can do or ever does the work Of cut
ting cane. loading carts, or picking
cotton as fast and as we'll as the
negro. The best cane cutter, the
best cane loader, the best mule
driver and the best and fastest cotton
picker in all the south is the negro.
He grumbles less at hard work aud
does more OF it every day than any
other a Of people on the farms i'm
the south. He is not paid as much
for his labor as the white man is paid
for the same labor and yet complains
less against tue greed Of capital than
whit" .b0r does. He has long since
realized that he has more struggling
to do To live than any race of people
In this country. He has no rich
fnther, Or mother, or aunt, or uncle
or otle! relation to die to leave him
a fortune to go into the activities Of
life with IS the white nan has. He
has always to start from the ground
and rise by his own resources and
effort. He has no one to start bin
In business life, no one to come to
his rescue and tide him over when he
fails TO make good in his first BUSH
ness venture. He cannot water Ills
stocks, initiate the value of bis
capital or give valueless paper for
cash rs the white man can, the
dollar be pays for anything that he
buys is a hundred cents on a dollar,
payable In gold on demand at the
Treasury Of the United States with
out discount. He has not the white
mans advantages; he has not got to
that point vet, nevertheless he is a
cheerful citizen, enjoying the fruits
OF his efforts better than the white
man seems to enjoy his. Aggravated
BY law and Co apply particularly to
hts case aud only generally to the
white mans case, the negro struggles
along against the odds and manages
to keep from violating the law more
than half Of the time and to have to
his credit, as President Roosevelt
declared on the occasion when Mr..
Carnegie spoke, over $3.50, 600 700 OF
real estate and over SOU. 600 homes
earned by his own efforts within the
last forty years OF his emancipation
fron slavery. Mr.. Carnegie is not
only q %financier but a philosopher
and patriot. He Is Ia a position to.
know what he vas talking about and
to see what is necessary for the pro.
motion OF the interests Of the United
States. Men like Senator Tillman
who pretend to disagree with Mr..
Carnegie on the negro question are
not worth talking about.
Mr.. Carnegle neclared the census
of 1900 shows THAT no less than TAG. III
fa,ms Of IS. 233, 1888 acres or SO 741
square miles, just the area OF Eng
land and Wales or double that CT
Scotland, are owed and tenanled by
negroes, who forty years previous
owed nut,ing. These embraced In
the Southern Central States 27.2 per
cent Of NIL farms, In the South allan
tic States 30 per cent, Georgia 1919
per cent, Alabama 42 pr cent, j .ouis-
lana 5O.2 per cent and Mississippi
IS per csnl. Tie negroes have more
farms than the whites in the last
two states, but II must be remem-
bered that the average size of the
negroes farm is mech less than those
All the whites, yet Governor Varda-
man OF Mississippi whose S. per cent
uf the farms is as are negroes says.
1.-THE negroes won't work and are
Migrants and has advised the law
which means In Mississippi,
every white man who calls himse f
as deputy sheriff, to watch every
negro closely aud II he looks like ne
has q pistol on his person search
him. l do not deny we have some
az 49, - A "