The Democratic advocate., 1909-10-29
ANALYZES IT.
Gives Clear Exposition Of Voting
Under the Amendment.
SIX DOORS OPEN TO THE VOTER.


yzed the suffrage amendment and
summarized It's provisions for the
qualification OF voters. MIR. Field said
After the amendment passes, in or
der TO vote a man must come under
one OF Its six provisions He need
not comply with more than one
II he Is qualified under either one Of
the six provisions lN has no concern
with the others. The ak provisions
are just like six doors, each opening
into one room To get into the room
q man does not 60 through all six
or nve, or four, or three, or two, he
only goes through one OF the doors.
The six provisions are:
n. Every man who was entitled
70 vote In any State on or before ian
uary /, 1869.
"2. The male descendants--that is.
the sons, grandsons, great -grandsons.
and so 0n--of every man embraced
In provision /.
q Every foreign-born citizen nat
uralized between January /. 1869, and
November 2. 1909
a. All the male escendants--that
~, sons. Rrandsons. great-grandsous
and 30 on--of every man embraced In
class ?. tForesgn-born citizens nat
urnlized before January !, 1869, and
their descendants come under pro-
Visions ! and -
3. Every man who can make writ
ten application to regiatar. stating the
names OF certain paDiic officials and
certain information about hiusolf
therein specified
-. Every man who has paid taxes
Tor two years on $500 worth OF prop.
erty belonging 70 him or his wife.
u II clear that practically every
white man. native born aud natural
lied, can vote under one or the other
OF the hrst four provisions. Hence,
white men do not come under pruvis-
Ion or 6. and Il makes no difference
10 any white man. so far as his own
vote IL concerned whether proYisIon
2 viii be bard or easy 10 comply with
Some negroes Will b. entitled to
vote under each provision. because
there are tcw.-though only a few
negroes III Maryland who, or whose
ancestors. were Ia States where they
could vote before January /, 1859; and
there may be some negroes who have
been naturailZed since January I, 1869
The apnber OF negroes who can
vote under these 1rAt four provisions
viii b. \ mere handful, because nearly
Oh The negroes In Maryland are either
Maryland. Delaware or Virginia ne
gTocg, and negroes could not vote Ia
either % these States until after Janu-
uaTy /, 1863
1T has been stated by an opponent
Of the amendment that negroes could
vote under the laws of Virginia on
January / 1864 but that was a mis-
take the FIRST law Of Virginia under
which negro could vote was the
Constitution ratified july 6 1869.
The great bulk OF the negroes will
not be entitled 70 vote after the amend
nient passes unless they can pass un-
der provision 8 or 6.
IL viii require a higher degree Of
intelligence than IL possessed by the
average negro 10 qualify under pro-
vision 5; ana comparatively few ne.
Rroes own sufficient property 10 enable
them 10 qualify under provision G
due 10 the fact that so large per-
centAge Of the negroes arc lazy and
improYident
THE amendment will, therefore, re-
suit in restricting negro suffrage TO
the most intelligent and thrifty among
them. Tho proportion OF negroes who
Will be able 60 vote will be so small,
comparatively, that the negro Will
cease to be a factor IN politics, and
the control OF the affairs OF our State
will be secured In the hands OF ifs
white citizenship
The best lawyers IN our State be-
lieye that the amendment is not un-
constitutional. because there IN no
provision In Il which excludes any ne
gro on the ground Of race or color:
nor IL there any provision In II which
excludes all negroes.
I'm addition TO this, similar amend
menta from other Southern States have
been before the Supreme court about
d@Een times. The Republicans have
made one effort after another, and by
different kinds OF actions, 10 get the
Supreme Court to declare similar
amendments unconstitutional They
have tried a bill ineQuity to compel
the registers TO register negroes; they
have tried 10 get a mandamus to COM
pei the election officials 10 receive the
negroes vote they have brought act
ions at law against the judges Of cleo
tion for refusing 10 receive negro
votes. These cases have extended
ever a period OF Is years. and every
effort to get the Supreme Court to de-
clare O similar amendment unconstI-
tutional has failed.
'The great majority of the white
people OF the State believe that the
passage of this amendment will be
conducive to peace, order and good
government. and will be for the best
interests OF the negros themselves by
making the relations between the two
races more friendly. and by encour-
aging negroes to cultivate intelligence
and habits Of industry and thrift This
has been the experience in every
State where similar amendments have
heep passed
@To the objection that the black
man should be given the same oppor-
tunity to vote as the white man, the
answer is: "a, that the right to
vote Is not natural right, but
right conferred byl law. and each
State has the right to bestow the fran
chise In such way as will best pro-
mote the welfare OF its people (2),
that the average negro Is historically
mentally and morally unfie to take
part In the government Of white men.
Every branch Of the white race
can boast that at some time In its his-
tory 1t has built homes. developed a.
civilization and formed and adminis-
tered a government; but the negroes
have no history In all the thousands
OF years OF their existence they never
developed civilization or formed a
government fit for white man to live
under. Even here, where for 200
years they have been under the in
fiuence OF the best civilization that the
world ever produced, the negroes fur