Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1908-09-03


Leader even insinusted that the Repub-
hcsns were playing a part heretofore
enacted by Democrats, that of making
false counts and false returns of the
votes.
A little later on our Richmond con-
temporary discovered that the Republi.
cans of the Ninth were intelligent. 1t
also found that this mountain section
was fortress, wherein were entrenched
Republican influence and strength that
were threatening to infect and take the
entire State. Having made this discov-
cry, the News Leader urged that: 1.-The
whole power of the Democratic party
should be concentrated for an aggres-
sive, winning fight in the Ninth"
The first to act upon its own sugges-
ton the, News Leader has proceeded to
use and concentrate upon the Ninth
what has for many years been the
whole power" of the Virginia De-
mocracy, the cry of "niggerp' With
this false cry Virginians have been in
Inundated and influenced to vote against
their true interests and honest convic-
tions.
An unfounded apprehension of negro
domination was made a pretext for all
the political crimes committed by the
Virginia Democracy for a period of
nearly twenty-five years-crimes which
the News Leader has recently confessed
and graphically described.
We are astonished that as respectable
newspaper as the News Leader should
seek to enkindle the fame again. But
that is what it is endeavoring to do. 1t
Is now engaged in the unholy task of
trying to get the Republicans of the
Ninth, and even Of Tazewell county. to
forsake their party and principles by
making an insidious appeal to their
prejudice against the negro race. The
Roanoke Times and the Lynchburg
News tried to play the same reckless
game four years ago, and the News
Leader ought to have wisely profited by
their example and experience.
Evidently the News Leader has been
smarting under the blows the Tazewell
Republican has been striking in defence
OF the intelligence, integrity and patri-
otism of the Ninth District Republicans.
We have induced it to renounce its cam
paign of Islander, and to acknowledge
that the Republican party of the noun
tains is brave, intelligent band that is
a menace to the Democracy of Eastern
Virginia. We have forced it to admit
that Democratic legislatures have rob-
bed the mountain sections of their fair
share of legislative representation; and
we have compelled it to acknowledge
that Democratic suffrage laws have
nearly destroyed the white electorate of
the State. But with this latter &C
knowledg ement of our contemporary
comes a charge which conceals an artful
double purpose-a reasonable justifica-
ton of the outrages that have been
committed against the white electorate;
and the enticement of the Tazewell Re-
publican into making declarations on
the suffrage question that will Justify
the Democratic press in continuing
to use the negro scarecrow for partisan
effect. The News Leader says:
THE Tazewell Republican not long
ago denounced the Democrats of Vir-
ginia bitterly for DISTINGUISHING voters.
AS it is plain fact that no white man
is disfranchised unless he wilfully and
voluntarily invites and accepts disfran-
chisement, the Republican must have
intended to complain because nine
tenths of the negroes of this State are
prevented from voting"
The first accusation in the above para
graph from the News Leader is an inn
parchment of the integrity and good
citizenship of more than half the white
men of voting age in the State; and we
deny that it is true. This great army
of white men have been either deprived
of the elective franchise by the intri-
cate and dishonest suffrage laws, or have
been driven from the polling booths by
contempt for Democratic machine rule.
Responding to the second charge con-
tanned in the above quoted paragraph,
we will now and for all time put our es-
teemed contemporary to rest The