The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1919-05-09

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the regular state ticket, if no further
stop is thrown their way in form Of
some of other minor party nominal
tons.
To substantiate the assertion that
there are now in excess of $1,000 ne
gro voters in Missouri it is only nee
essary to bring into play the mute
but forcible and convincing results of
the Federal census of 1910. There
then were 5&921 negroes (males) q
years of age and over in the State
and, of this aggregation 1881 lived
and voted in st. Louis, and 8, 101 in
Kansas City, Missouri cities with ov-
er 500 male negroes 81 years of age
and over then were: Columbia GIL;
Hannibal, 632; jefferson City, 1890;
st. Joseph, 1893; Sedalia, 500, and
Sprinkfield, 583.
After the election of last fall it
was freely stated in st. Louis and the
assertion was never contradicted, that
1000 negro votes were cast there
alone for the Republican ticket, con-
shutting gain of probably 70 per
cent in negro votes over the election
Of eight years ago. This tremendous
increase of negro voting strength in
st. Louis was due to the huge influx
of that race from East st. Louis and
other Illinois towns after the racial
riots in those places three years ago.
While many thousand negroes still
work daily in the mills and factories
of the Illinois towns Immediately
across the Mississippi river from st.
Louis, they live in that city for safety
crossing east in the morning every
working day and returning in the eve
ming. On election morning these ne
groes stay over in st. 1Louis to vote
and make the occasion a holiday,
knowing that Republican election
bosses will literally supply them with
automobile rides and free drinks.
Kansas City, in round numbers, last
fall had 10000 negroes who voted the
Republican ticket. The gain there in
negro voters in eight years was ten
per cent.
The gain in negro voters in other
Missouri cities which in 1910 had over
500 males of that race Fl years of age
and over, can conservatively be put
down at per cent. The balance of
the State that year had 22,326 negro
voters, and the gains there in eight
years, easily averaged 9 per cent.
Anyone blessed with a mathematical
mind and has the time to spare and
the inclination to use his mental pow
ers, can put all these figures and av-
erages together, and the result will be
63,141 negro voters in Missouri in
November, 1918.
While the article is almost as scarce
as is a blooming rose bush out in the
open in December, yet occasionally a
democratic negro voter is encountered
in Missouri. There are the regular
force of twelve democratic negro jan
itors in Democratic State offices at
the State Capitol, and full allowance
is made for the other scattered over
the Shate through allotting 3,141 to
this group and graciously conceding
the Republican party the other 10000
negro voters for its share.
Supreme Court Judge Graves when
reelected last November lost st.
Louis by nearly 10000 including the
was cast there against him. Had his
election been left entirely to the
white voters of that city, which as
sertion means a deduction of $4,000
negro votes, he would have carried st.
Louis by 5000. This argument goes
to establish that the balance of power
the negro voters held for the Repuh-
lican party in Missouri, commences in
st. Louis and extends from there in
to many of the smaller cities which
have a substantial negro population
and where election results are gene
rally close.
Jefferson City, Sedalia, Springfield,
Honnibal and st. Joseph never would
be in the doubtful column, State or
municipal election, without their ne
gro voters supporting the Republican
ticket. With the negro vote of Kan
sas City split between the two parties
that city would go democratic nearly
$4,000 every general election.
In st. Louis last November, ne
gro with an Irish name was nominat-
ed on the Republican ticket, in sup
posedly Democratic district for the
House of Representatives. Early
returns election night were that he
was elected. Then came a hew and
cry from both Republican and Demo-
cratic voters that he was a negro and
it would never do for St. Louis to be
represented in the General Assembly
by negro. Three or four days later
it was officially announced that
Democrat had been elected. There are
skeptical Republicans and Democrats
over the State who still believe the ne
gro was elected, and then finally
counted out.
While we do not boast of being a
prophet or a son of a nronhat. at the