The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1917-06-08
The South Considers Facts
(FrOm the Savannah News

me time mas come TO consider the
Negro in the South calmly, with an I'M
prejudiced mind; and to attempt to I'M
derstand him and the questions bound
up with him, without relying too much
on pTecOnceived notions. Here are
some facts to be considered: Negroes
are going into the North in large num-
bers and will continue to do so; the
government is not going to order them
as race to stay in the South; the
State cannot prevent them from leav-
ing the South if they wish to go; and
the one sure way to keep them in the
South is to accord them better treat
ment. Now, there is no expectation
that white people are going to sug-
gest that Jim Crow street car and train
and hotel arrangements be done away
with, but there is plenty of room, with
out disturbing these arrangements for
improving conditions under which Ne
groes live in the South
For examples, petty prosecutions by
police forces, arrests without reason,
fines without cause-these things can
and must be ended In the WiregrdSS
Farmer. published at Ashbur and Off
cial organ of Turner county, appeared
this editorial the other day, under the
title Unjust Justice"
There is considerable criticism of
the continual arrests of the colored
people on trivial charges, in fact, il
is alleged, on trumped up charges
sometimes. The latest is that of 6
good, old time darby who has been il
our midst for quarter of century
and nothing against him. He lay in
Jail for two days and then got out by
paving six or seven dollars osts fol
the privilege of being arrested Oul
farmers and others are getting stirred
up over these conditions, as they say
it is running the labor off and it's mex
to impossible to get hands to do the
farm work.
Now here is the real problem for the
white people of the South to cOnsideIl
The Negro is needed in the South TO,
the labor he can do. If he goes, who il
going to pick the cotton, do the hare
work in the fertilizer factories mos
of the handling of trucks much Of thu
labor in factories and on farms of al
sorts? It may be said that it is al
right to let the Negro go, because afte,
the war his place can be taken b!
white men from Europe, but if this
war goes on much longer Europe's sup
ply of men is going to be very short
certainly there will not be enough mel
loft to keep Europe in operation ant
then plenty more to take the places
CT hundreds of thousands of Negroes
in the South. Nearly seven million
European men-the finest physically
in Europe-have been killed in thu
war; other millions have been so bad
ly wounded that they are but pieces
Of men, And the war is not yet over
The folly of talking about great in
fluX of European labor imMediatel!
af'er the war is plain; for one thing
the nations of Europe are going t
keep their men at home-they canno
afford to permit them to leave in mil
lions.
So whether or not the while people
of the South wish to think seriously
and calmly about the Negro, they are
compelled to do it by economic condi
lions forced upon them by the creates
war the world ever saw.
What is necessary is to put an enc
to the persecution Of Negroes such al
the WiregrdSS Farmer calls attention
to, pay the Negro enough for his labo
and do farm more than has been dom
. to make living conditions in his hom
, more attractive and healthful. Thes
charges have to be made.
It may be said, that most of the Nc
, groes who go North will come back
: the answer to this is that the best 0
, the Negroes who go North will sta
there and the riffraff that goes vii
drift back. Right treatment of NJ
groes as q race is necessary. Thi
, newer of wood and drawer of waite
is needed in the South and if the Sout
fails to recognize this fact it wi
! suffer. The sooner it does recognize
! and act sensibly upon it the better fo
, all concerned