Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 50, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 February 1903 — Crumpacker Abandons Hope. [ARTICLE]

Crumpacker Abandons Hope.

Under the above head the Indianapolis News, the Crumpaoker state organ next in importance after the Indianapolis-Sentinel, has the following from its Washington correspondent: Representative Crumpacker, author of the resolution calling for an investigation into the suffrage conditions of the Southern States which have disfranchised colored voters, said, today, that he had abandoned all hope of securing action upon his measure at this time. “It looks to me,” said Mr, Crumpacker, “as if the destiny of the negro, so far as his political and social conditions are concerned must be worked out by evolution, rather than by legislation, I do not believe much can be done for him here in Congess, I want to add, however, that my proposition for an investigation uroused a friendly feeling in almost every section of the country. I have heard from a great many persons aho have given it their indorsement. The time may come when the Southern representation will be reduced in accordance with the total number of votes oast in each State, but it does not appear that the present is the proper time for action.” This decision upon the part of Mr. Crumpaoker, that his impracticable and very mischievous proposition has no chance for adoption has been long in ccnfing, but has struck him very suddenly when it did come; as it was not more than a few weeks ago that he still talked as though the measure still had the breath of life in it. This proposition of his, to ont down the congressional and electoral representation of the south, on account of the disfranchisement of the colored people, is the one thing above all others, except his. tendency to array himself in the ranks of the "insurgents” at every possible opportunity, that has given Mr. Crumpacker any notoriety that he may now have. The plan is one that we pronounced impracticable from the first, and declared that it had no chance to become a law, and if it did it wouldbarm the negroes vastly more than it would benefit them. That it would put a "clincher” on their disfranchisement, by making the Republicans sharers in its benefits, through a proportionally greater congressional and electoral power. And that it would further greatly barm tLe southern negroes by intensifying the feeling against them_ among the white people of that section. And the proposition did not need to become a law to have the latter effect. Simply the stating of such a proposition, and agitatingit as it has been agitated, has, beyond question, greatly injured the negroes. There has lately been a great and lamentable increase, or rather return, of race feeling against the negroes in the south, which has resulted greatly to their injury, and one of the chief causes of this has been this proposition of Crumpacker’s to reduce southern representation. The "south is in the saddle” certainly as far as the present and future well-being of the southern negroes is concerned, and any attempt to force more favorable treatment for them, by national laws, will only make matters worse. Had Mr. Crumpaoker been a statesman, in any degree, he would have recognized this fact and dropped bis impracticable and mischievous proposition long ago.