Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1909-03-05

work io bring about the earl. compic- ton of this the greatest constructive enterprise of modern times.
 Free Trade With Philippines.
 The governments nf onr deprnden- rie.> in Porto Rico and the Philippines ar" progressing as fnvorabiy as could be desired. Ihc prosperity of Porto Rico continues unabatcd The b,ISi- ness conditions ill the Philippines are not ail that we could wish them to be. but with the passage of the new tariff bill permitting trrc trade bel Wccn tue United StitvS and the archipelago. with sUth limita, i.,.la in sugar and tobacco as shall prevent injury {" the domestic intcr"Sie ou those products. we can conf o,i au Improvement in business coNdiIio"s ii :iie Philippines and the ucv"tuI .Gcht of t mutually profitable trad" between lhis country and the. islands Meantime our gov ernment iu each dependency is uphold. ing the traditions of civil liberty and increasing popular control, which might be expected under American auspices. 6 rebounds to onr credit as nation
 Words of Friendship For the South.
 look forward with hope to increas- ing the already good feeling bctwctn the south and the other sections of the country. My chief purpose is not to effect change in the electoral vote of the southern states. That is q second ary consideration. What look for ward to is ;ln increase ill the tolerance cf political views of all kinds and their advocacy throughout the south and the existence of q respectable no- Ijtical opposition il, every state--eve more than than tlis, to an increase feeling on tlr ,tart of all the people in the south that |his government is their goyernAtat ard that it's officers in their states are their officers.
 The Negro Question.
 The consideration of this quest ion cannot. however, he complete and full without reference to the ucgro race. it's progress and it's present. condition The thirteenth amemlmcnt secured iHem frecdoIu, Inc fonrtecnth amend Irclit due process of law. prolctIion ,. property and thc pursuit "' llapp- ness, ard ,hc fiftecnt! amendment at tempted io secure the negro against any deprivation of tue privilege to vote because be was q negro. The thirteenth and fourteenth amend ,ncnts have lmca generally enforced and have SC uresl the objects for which they were intended. While the If lcrnth nncntlmc, has slet heen gener- ally observed in thc past. il ought tC be observed. aud the tendency oi southern legislation ,etiay is toWarG the ei:esdmen of electoral qualified lions which shell square with tlia. amendment.
 No Repeal of Fifteenth Amendment.
 Of course the mere adoption of q cons,iluti0eal law is only one step in the ri".ls direction. II must he fairly and jusiiy enforced a-, well. In time both will come. Hence Il iS clear tn ail that the domina.ion of ;tn ignorant. Irresponsible clcmen, ,'an be prevent cd by constitutional law which shall exclude from voting both negroes and whites not having, education or other qualifications thought to be necessary for q proper electorate. The danger of he control of an gno,ant electorate has therefore passed Viii this change the interest which many of the south ern white citizens take in the Wcllar" of the negroes has increased The c"l ored men must base tllcir hope on thN results of their own industry, self re- straiDt, thrift aud business success az well as upon the aid and counter, aHd synlpath! which they may l"rc;N" from their white nei2h'nl"S of tNH south There was a time when nnr;,4 erners who sympa, hize1 Wih tilc Nc. gro in his necessary struggle fer iyct ter conditions sought to give to him the suffrage as d protection and to C33- force its exercise against the p:oy;'i,- ing sentiment of the south. The ye ment proved to be q failure. Wlrt .'t mains is the fifteenth amentneM' tr the constitution and the right lo l, fe statutes of states specifying 4isaIii:a tions for electors subjected to the test of compliance with that amendment. This Is q great protection to the negro. It never will be repealed. and il never ought to be repealed. If it had no, been passed 1t might he difficult nov to adopt if, but with it in our funda- mental law the policy of southern leg islation must and will tend to obey it. and so long as the statutes of the states meet the test of this amend ment and are not otherwise i'll con- fict with the constitution and laws of the United States 1t is not the disposi. ton or within the province of the fed eral government 10 Interfere with the regulation by southern states of their domestic affairs.
 "Negro Is Now American"
 There is ill the south q stronger feel ing than ever among the intelligent, well to do and influential element in favor of the industrial education Of the negro and the encouragement of the race to make themselves useful members of the community. The progress which the negro has made iu