The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1914-02-12
4 STRONG LETTER
FROM SENATOR CARNEY

Editor Star: In your issue of the
9Th, you have an article entitled
May negroes vote in the white pri-
mary?" | want TO commend you
AMI this article as being timely and
to the point, or rather several points
that it covers. The decent people of
our town, county and state, and in
fact, the whole South, who have the
best interests of our Southland at
heart, can indorse your article in
toto. |, like yourself, am not per-
sonally acquainted with Mr.. Pleas.
Holt, of Jacksonville, but | do know
that his influence and work in our
state for some years has been
against morality and decency, and
more baneful in its effects than
probably any dozen other men in the
state. Dixie in recent issues has
shown Mr.. Holt still at his dirty
encouraging negroes to reg
lister and vote in the democratic pri-
mary, so as to defeat any good white
man who might aspire to an office,
either city, county state or national.
Parts of your article are so true
some of them in this paper.
You say in speaking of the ne
groes being registered as democrats
that They are being hired to regis
ter and to vote in order to defeat
white men. If they vote in the gen
eral election at all they will vote the
republican ticket-unless they are
hired again. AS for the men who are
inducing them to vote, there is hard
ly language bad enough to describe
them. We all know what Southern
people thought of the carpet-bagger
iforty years ago. A Southern born
| white democrat or a democrat who
has been in the South long enoug to
understand conditions here, who en-
lists negroes to vote against white
men, is worse than a carpet-bagger
could possibly ever have been or
| worse than negro can be. He is d
traitor to his party and his section,
and renegade to his race" So
true, so true is every word of this
paragraph. And the worst of this
whole matter, Mr.. editor, is that we
do not have to go to Jacksonville or
| Duval county to see the harm that
Mr.. Holt and his co-workers have
| done against the uplift of our state,
but right here in our own town and
| county We have white-skin men who
| have used the Holt methods against
our last wet and dry election, the
whole country was secured and
drummed over iby automobiles with
white drivers to bring negroes into
| town and the various country pre-
cincts to thwart the will of our best
/ white people by an responsible
| purchased vote. What a shame up
on any white man, claiming that re-
spect of his race!
The ignorant negro whose morals
are most corrupt and whose appetite
for strong drink has been whetted
lby depraved white men, is not Sc
much to blame for selling his vote
for a quart of liquor or for dollar
for he is not able to see any harm
done for the exchange of his vote
for a consideration, when the con
sideration' will appease a thirst fol
drink or satisfy the hunger of his
stomach.
But, Mr.. Editor, can a white mar
think of himself, his family or hi:
race, who will use this purchasablt
f vote to further some nefarious o.
, selfish scheme of his own? Should
I he not expect to forfeit the respec
; of all honest people?
| / have tried for some years t.
have enacted into law, an act to dis
Y ! franchise the ignorant negro-th,
D same as most of the Southern state
E now have-known more particular,
4 as the Grandfather clause in tn,