note 154: Minutes of Session, National League on Urban
Conditions, January 29-31, 1918.]

[Footnote 155: Report of M.N. Work on migration to the North.]

CHAPTER XIV

PUBLIC OPINION REGARDING THE MIGRATION

It was to be expected that a movement which so profoundly affected the
social and economic life of the South would be widely discussed, and
that the resulting discussions, wherein were set forth at length
the views of whites and negroes, would throw much light upon the
conditions existing prior to the movement. How the South viewed this
taking away of a large part of her labor supply was stated in letters
to the newspapers and in newspaper editorials. There were two views
as to the effect of the migration on the South. One view held that the
movement would benefit the South in that the negro population would
be more evenly distributed over the entire country and as a result
the race problem would be more truly national. The other view was
that negro labor was a necessity for the South, and the drawing of a
considerable part of this labor north was seriously detrimental to the
South's economic interests.

The following are examples of expressions by those holding the view
that the migration would benefit the South:

The New Orleans _Times Picayune_ said:

Despite the attitude of certain extreme papers of the North
that there was a broad conspiracy existing here to prevent
the negroes from leaving, the records show that many southern
papers and people welcomed the movement, believing that it
would have a beneficial effect on the South by removing the
negro majorities in many districts and in at least two
States, South Carolina and Mississippi. The problems of negro
majorities is rapidly working itself out. Louisiana, a State
in which the negro was more numerous a few decades ago, is
white today by several hundred thousand, and will have a
million more whites by the next census. South Carolina and
Mississippi expect to report white majorities in the next
ten years as they are drifting rapidly in that direction, and
negro emigration will help this condition along.

During the first months of this negro movement northward, a
number of South Carolina papers, led by the _Columbia State_,
instead of expressing apprehension over these departures,
showed satisfaction that the State was getting rid of its
excess of negroes. At the Sou