The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1907-07-11
Taking the Ballot from the Negro.

(From the Wheeling Intelligencer.
If the fathers of reconstruction,
who gave the ballot to the Negro,
could view the results Of their work
today it is doubtful If they would
feel entirely satisfied with the prac-
teal results. Little by little the
fourteenth amendment to the Fed
eral Constitution has been rendered
almost q nudity, SO far as many Of.
the Sortehrn States are concerned.
Mississippi set the example of legis-
lation designed to deprive the Negro
of the ballot. and she has been .lmi-
tated by most OF the others. Cover
nor Hoke Smith, Of Georgia, now
tasks the Legislature offsthe state to
Estake like aca6n.-- Hera ~ ne Aha linz
itations within which Governor Smith
wishes to keep the right of ballot:
l. Soldiers who have served the
United States, the Confederate
States Or the State Of Georgia In any
war.
2. The lawful descendants Of
such soldiers.
3. Persons of good character who
understand, the duties and obliga-
tions Of citizenship. '--
4. Persons who can read and
write correctly when read to them in
the English language any paragraph
I Of the Constitution Of the United
States or Of the State Of Georgia.
5. The owner Of 40 acres Of land
on which he lives.
6. The owner of $500 worth Of
taxable property in the State Of
Georgia, as shown by the tax digest.
Election commissioners, composed
exclusively Of white men, are to be
the judges Of an applicants right to
vote under these limitations. The
effect will be to accomplish by law
what has already been accomplished
to some extent by limitation,
namely, to keep the black voters
away from the polls. II this is to be
a white mans country, and we can
not avoid the hope that it will al
ways be so, local government by
white men In every section is neces-
sary. The white men of the South
who pay the. largest proportion. Of
the taxes, and maintain the schools,
churches and charitable institutions
can not be blamed for refusing to
turn over the administration of their
city, county and state affairs to O.
population which may be locally
more numerous, but which Is dis
tinctly inferior.
Granting this, however, by what
rule Of reason does a Southern dis
trict, in which perhaps less than five
thousand white men vote, and in
which the colored population is prac-
tically denied representation, de-
mand and secure in the United
States Congress equal representation
with a Northern district with 10000
intelligent voters? Is the colored
race Of the South to be denied the
ballot, and still to be counted for the
sole purpose Of increasing the polit-
ical Importance of their white breth-
rem? Other sections may overlook
the peculiar conditions which re-
quire the Soutehrn white man to
hold control Of his State and local
government, but In fairness they
ought not to overlook system
which makes the vote of one white
man in the South equal to three or
four in the North.
The Southern States which have
frankly passed laws aiming to keep
the colored man from voting have
invited the issue. Congress should
take it up. Legislation Of the Hoke
Smith kind in every Southern state
should be met with a proposition to
limit state representation in proper
ton to the number Of legitimate vo-
ters. 1t Is just, and it may discour-
age some Of the radical and unnec-
eSsary legislation aimed at the Ne
gro.
MN