The Washington bee., 1908-08-01
Bishop HoOdRGbukGS
COTOtherS and Walters
NO OPEN DOOR FOR THE NE
GRO IN THE DEMOCRATIC
PARTY.
BY BISHOP J. W. HOOD
(Senior Bishop of the A. NJ. E.
Zion church,

AS might have been expected, the
appeal on behalf of the Negro made
by our good friend, Colone' Waiter
son, was made in vain | have been
Cognizant Of the spirit of the Ma
tional Democratic party for more
than sixty years, and for this whole
period that party has been against
the Negro. 1t has been responsible
for every national act against the
Negro, including the Fugitive Slave
Law. the sum of all villainies.' 1t
has also opposed every national act
in the Negros favor. 1t therefore
could not have been expected to
change its heart so quickly. Those
Negro politicians who have been in
private communication with the lead
er Of that party ought to realize that
they are taking a course which IS
calculated, if not des; ;gned, to deceive
and mislead our people. This is not
the time for the Negro to support the
National Democratic ticket. 1t is
to be hoped that the time may come,
but conditions are strongly against
it now. In the South there is hes
itation in the Republican party to
recognize the political rights OF the
Negro. The leaders of what is call
ed the Lily Whites" seem to be try
ing to show that they have no more
use for the Negro than the Demo
Gratis have (hardly as much)- Any
man among them who is supposed to
be at all favorable to the Negro Is
often turned down. With this state
Of affairs in the South, the Negro Is
perfectly safe in taking his choice
of the candidates presented by the
two parties. He is not allowed
voice in the nomination OF either n
some of the States South, and both
ho,d similar views respecting his po-
Etical rights. But in the North 1t IS
different There the Negro is rec
ognized from start to finish. And
there is another difference. In the
South the mass of the best people
are Democrats: but in the North
the mass of the best people are Re
publicans. In voting the Republican
ticket in the North the Negro lines
up with the best people, and in sup
port of the best measures. The Ma
tional Democratic party has always
been controlled by the prO-slavery
and anti-Negro sentiment and IS still
controlled by the same sentiment
This being the case. / repeat, It IS
not the time for the Negro to vote
for the national candidates OF that
party | have a fear that it would
be a fatal blunder. 1t will be re-
membered that the Negro made two
great blunders in the State Of North
Carolina which were the cause, very
largely. of his disfranchisement IN
that State. If the Negro had lined
up with the best white people IN that
State and prohibition had been adopt
ed, largely by his vote in 1881 he
would never have been disfranchlSed
In that State. The men with whom
the better class Of Negroes were al
he'd would never have permitted the
disfranchisement of the race if the
race had stood with them in that
struggle. did all I could to per
suade my people to take the wise
course. but many Of the thoughtless
Negro politicians said some very un-
kind things about all who favored
orob;bition. Something behind 1t
was the slogan of the ants. Our
people were made to believe that It
was a step toward their re-enslaye-
ment. Prohibition was defeated, and
the Negro was blamed for 1t; al
though he was not responsible tor It.
We were getting somewhat over this
when the last. the fatal, blunder was
made; namely. when Judge Russell
was elected governor, largely by the
Negro vote 1t is doubtful II any
man ever hated the Negro more than
Judge Russell did. I opposed his
nomination, which, when he learned
e he wrote asking me TO let up. l
refused. and then he wrote me a bit
TER letter. His inaugural address in
d;cated that his administration was
to be one of hate, spite and vengeance.
He seemed determined to do all he