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The Commoner,
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EDUCATIONAL SERIES
Dissolving the "Solid South" Mr. Taft and the New South'
In his inaugural address Mr. Taft said that
ho hoped to increase tho already good feeling
between the south and other sections. Ho said
his chief purpose was not to effect a change in
the electoral vote in tho southern states. That
ho declared is "a secondary consideration." Ho
said ho looked forward to an increase in tho
tolerance of political views of all kinds and their
advocacy throughout tho south. In this con
nection ho declared that tho negroes were en
titled to all their rights. He advocated, by im
plication at least, tho adoption of educational
qualification for black and white voters alike.
Ho said that tho fifteenth amendment would
never bo repealed and never ought to bo re
pealed, and he said it was tho duty of their
white fellows to make their path as smooth and
easy as possible. But evidently Mr. Taft did
not desiro to bo misunderstood on this point,
so ho added:
Any recognition of their distinguished men,
any appointment to office from among their
number, is properly taken as an encouragement,
. and an appreciation of their progress, and this
just policy shall bo pursued.
But It may woll admit of doubt whether, in
tho caso of any race, an appointment of one of
thoir numbor to a local office in a community in
which tho raco feeling is so widespread and
acuto as to interfere with the ease and facility
with which the local government business can
be done by the appointee, is of sufficient benefit
by way of encouragement to the race to out
weigh the recurrence and increase of race feel
ing which such an appointment is likely to en
gender. Therefore, the executive, in recogniz
ing tho negro race by appointments must ex
ercise a careful discretion not thereby to do it
more harm than good. On the other hand we
must be careful not to encourage the mere
pretense of race feeling manufactured in the in
terest of individual political ambition.
Personally I have not the slightest race preju
dice or feeling, and recognition of its existence
only awakens in my heart a deeper sympathy
for those who have to bear it or suffer from it,
and I question the wisdom of a policy which is
likely to increase it. Meanwhile, if nothing is
done to prevent, a better feeling between tho
negroes and the whites in tho south, will con
tinue to grow, and more and more of the white
people will come to realize that the future of
the south is to be much benefited by the indus
trial and intellectual progress of the negro. The
exercise of political franchises by those of his
race who are'intelligent and well-to-do will be
acquiesced in, and the right to vote will be
withheld only from the ignorant and irrespon
sible of both races.
HAMILTON OR JEFFERSON?
Tho Houston (Texas) Post prints the follow
ing letter from Mr. A. F. Jones, of Woodville,
ToxaB:
'To tho Editor: After reading the inaugural
address of Mr. Taft any student of history, any
ono with any knowledge of the facts, can not
fail to see how utterly Mr. Taft misunderstands
tho southern people and tho million and one
things ho does not know about the negro ques
tion. Mr. Taft's winter sojourn in the south
and his frank statement of his purpose to break
(ho solid democratic vote of tho south and de
liver at least one or more of the southern states
over to tho republican party should cause the
democrats of tho south to study carefully tho
situation, and as citizens and taxpayers to se
riously study political economy and Boclal and
raco problems until tho principles of the g. o. p.
aro changed radically.
I, for one, am opposed to any change in the
politics of tho south. Lot us see, let us com
pare, let us look back some years and study
tho question or candidly ask if or not any
chango from democracy is to be desired. Frank
ly, I think not. Texas is one of the best gov
erned states in tho union. I know this is a big
assertion, but I simply defy contradiction or suc
cessful contradiction, at least.
With a lower tax rate than any northern
stato, Texas keeps up her eleemosynary institu
tions and othor machinery of government, with
a good school system and school fund, with a
constantly increasing efficiency in the execution
of law and maintenance of order. Texas cer
tainly, it seems to me, could not be benefited
by turning to tho republican party, thus chang
ing her entire policy of government.
What is true of Texas is In the main true of
every southern stato. Is it for government
patronage that this chango is desired? Surely
if the south could recover from tho wounds of
the civil war and live and prosper as she has
after the saturnalia of robbory, loot and thievery
of that awful period, that nightmaro of horror
when almost every white man had a federal
bayonet at his breast, disfranchised, at the mdrcy
of tho carpetbagger and his tool, tho scalawag
and his laws made by ex-slaves who could nS
or read nor write, but passed or made just such
laws as tho carpetbagger dictated; when prop-
erty was taxed until it was impossible to make
the rich soil produce sufficient to pay such taxS
and support the ownor-I say, sufoly now.lS
a 1 the present advantages, the south can get
along without government patronage
Lot Mr. Taft and every other man on eaTth
also know once and forever the south the whit
o?0wSit:llion0t b? gr?r?ed by '-miliim" ?
or white raen backed by the solid vote of
negroes. This would be the most porfelt form
Sot BlK l frraor 8lavoa d that of a eta
not too far removed Irom barbarism; .not so
far that there are not frequent lapses into the
most horrible crimes of barbarian people.
I may be wrong, and God forgive me if I
am. I do not wish to arouse sectional animosity.
But every one who has studied knows that the
fifteenth amendment cost the poor ignorant
slave oceans of blood, for he could use it only
as the creature of designing, corrupt politicians
and it took the K. K. K. to save white supre-'
macy and awaken the north to the fact that
fanaticism sat enthroned and. that with the
martyred Lincoln there fell the balance wheel
of sanity. I say the fifteenth amendment was a
sin, a curse and an outrage against the white
race, and further declare my belief to be that
so long as there live men who lived through the
period of which I speak and children of such
men the republican party can only hope to
win in the south by colonizing it with northern
men. And, by the way, give them two years
themenCe alld thGy WiU bQ democrats' most of
Til?, old south and the new south have
their traditions, their precious memories, their
literature their heroes and martyrs; let us be
true to thorn. We have in the south every
facility we need to render us independenTS
the worldthe wood, the water, coal, iron
all needful, and the richest soil with cotton
lT.? ?CG "? the abilIty t0 manufacture:
Let us be true to the Jeffersonian principles
of democracy, intensely loyal to our flag, fo?
it is ours and every fold has been again and
again baptized in southern blood. Southern
TS haye borne it on many bloody battle
fields-southern heroes unfurled and maintained
n?n fw Sn te"itory and maintained it there
until that territory an empire in quantity
quality and resources became our territory by
right of conquest, made necessary by insult and
nvasion of foreign foes. I refer to the gr at
territory acquired from Mexico.
I believe southern men now regard evorv
United States officer as their officer and arlS
loyal to them as any of the north, east or west
YeS' hVtimG has come the wounds
caused by the war are healed, but lot us So?
reopen them. I have very little respect for the
men of the south who hanc aroint m?! ,
counter at Washington, ready Tthev rnJ?!?
,0,. , Lored'afd M &&
offlces in tho south; he promised , hBJf s to
spect the feelings of the peonte ami SJ re
credit for it, for it is a disS'depanureCm
VOLUME 9, .NUMBER in
the Rooseveltian plan. The negro question is a
great and overwhelming one, there is no doubt
of that, but I believe if Mr. Taft and others
will let the negro and the people of the south
alone they will solve the question properly.
When the negro respects himself, is honest
saves his money, buys his home, pays taxes
and makes a good citizen, then and not until
then will white men respect him, either north
or south. When you stop to think of the negro
being thrust on the south as a voter and legis
lator and inspired to hate his former master
and upheld by bayonet rule, you are simply
made to wonder how, after long years of oppres
sion and repression the white people of the
south once more came into their own, they
could tolerate the colored man; it was because
of the old master and the old slave; the old
master taught his children that the negro was
not to blame, he was only the tool and shuttle
cock of demagogues. The old ex-slave taught
his children to respect those whom he had loved
and served so faithfully, and gradually, very
gradually, there grew up between the races, or
the better class of both, races, a mutual respect
for each other in their proper places. Then
the educators and pastors or churches took up
the matter of trying to adjust society to the
changed conditions and had not demagogues
excited distrust and aroused race hatred this
problem would have been solved long ago. The
south needs the negro. The negro loves the
south and does not flourish in a cold climate,
hence the negro must largely live in the south.
Ah, Mr. Taft, the future is in God-'s hands. Ho
will rule and overrule men's mistakes for His
glory and their good, so don't let us worry.
God will bring It to pass, but just so long as
time lasts patriotic men should protest
against the south selling its birthright for a
mess of potage, in this case the birthright
is to rule and govern themselves true to the
time-honored, well-proven principles of Jeffer
sonian democracy. The pottage is government
patronage given in exchange for what? Sur
rendering the above to Hamiltonlan ideas of
government, represented or carried out by re
publicanism. I think the negro is doing fairly
well in Texas. If he pays his poll tax he can
kill my vote. The white taxpayers are educat
ing nis children, making absolutely no difference
in, the amount of money per scholar; he has
his churches, his schools, his lodges and his
citizenship and does not long like his colored
brother of the north for social equality and that
can never be realized, north or south, and ought
not to be, for it degrades the white race and
does not elevate the colored; but I shall say
finis just here. My purpose herein is simply
to raise my voice against republicanizing the
south until the g. o. p. changes its base and
brings forth fruits meet for repentance. No,
Mr. Taft, if the g. o. p. is the same that ruled
and misruled during the days ofreconstruction
I, for one southern man, beg to Q' excused from
voting Texas into that column. Mr. Tft is a
very takable man, genial, whole-souled; all in
all, a well-rounded out character. More, he is
a great man. No man of mean ability could
have risen as he has. He has proven u fit in
nearly or quite every place he has occupied.
He is my chief executive and I propose to be
loyal to him and every man he appoints to help
administer and execute the laws, and I hope
for prosperity, but I will not, nay, can not, be
smiled, cajoled or misled into the g o. p. I
may be joined to my idols. If so,' I am a
satisfied idolater, and bid the big, cheery, brave
president Godspeed and vote -the democratic
ticket.
Woodville, Texas. ArF. JONES.
BISHOP CANDLER ON THE "SOLED SOUTH"
The Atlanta Journal, in its issue of January
17, printed an article entitled "Dissolving the
Solid South." This article was written by
Bishop Warren A. Candler and was as follows:
Objection is being urged to the solidity of the
solid south," and intimations have been given
out that an effort is being made to disintegrate
It. Concerning the political phases of the sub
ject, in the light of which men determine their
party affiliations, I have nothing t6 say; but
about the general subject I have some reflections
to offer.
And first of all I would like to inquire why
so much objection is urged to a, "solid south"
while nothing is said of a 'Wid -New England?"
The solidity of the latter iff as- obdurate and
persistent as the solidity of the former, -and for
much the same reasons, doubtless. There is na
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