Daily national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1854, 1854-07-26

anu Q6I6oteu py TIC chstinS VoIc VI VIC cpcuker.
WHAT BECOMES OF THE FREE coI0RED PEo-
PLEl
We had several observations to make on this
subject which the unusual length of our arti-
Gle on Monday constrained us to postpone.
The strength Of the prejudices against color
is 30 great in this country, that even the peo-
pie Of color themselves partake of it. Every
one Of African descent values himself in pro-
portion to the degree Of white blood he has in
his veins; and it ia rarely the case that mulat-
toes are willing to form matrimonial alliances
with persons having less Of Caucasian blood.
They are willing i" to tako no step backwards"
in their upward progress to tie level Of the
whites; and except among such as possess
rigid ideas Of virtue, the females prefer Illicit
intercourse with white men, to matrimony with
men one shade darker than themselves. De
Tocqueville, in his Democracy in America"
gives the following graphic picture of the ne
gro's estimate Of his position, and Of his indy
ing ambition to take rank among white men !:
"The negro makes thousand fruitless eff
forts to insinuate himself amongst men who
repulse him; he conforms to the tastes of his
oppressors adopts their opinions and hopes by
initiating them to form q part of their commu-
nifty. Having been told from infancy that his
race is naturally inferior to that of the whites,
he assents to the proposition and is ashamed
Of his own nature. In each Of his features he
discovers trace Of Slavery, and if it were in
his power, he would willingly rid himself Of
everything that makes him what he ISL 4
aThe negro, who earnestly deJires to mingle
his race with that Of the European, cannot
effect it. while the Indian, who might succeed
tempt. The servility of the one dooms him to
slavery, the pride of the other, to death"
So far as the individual negro is concerned,
it is true, as asserted by De Tocqueville, that
he can never overstep the partition wall Of
caste, which separates him from the whites;
but If by the negro ho means the race, we
have shown, in the preceding article, that his
conclusion is unfounded in fact. The author
is equally mistaken in supposing that the In
dian disdains the idea of commingling his
blood with that Of the whites. On the con-
trary, where the white race have been brought
into social contact with the Aborigines Of the
country, the same illicit intercourse has taken
place between white men and Indian women,
of which we see evidences between whites and
negroes. In fact the affinity between the
whites and mulettoes is much greater than
that between the whites and Indians.
We have, therefore, none of the gloomy fore
bodings Of collision Of races, which M De
Tocqucville anticipates. The disreputable al
tentative of Illicit amalgamaticn, which is
going on with accelerating progress, will re-
lieve the South from the bloody catastrophe
which some have apprehended. Our institu-
tions and tho constituent elements of our
country, are 50 dissimilar from those which the
history Of the world has ever afforded else
where to the contemplation of philosophers,
that it is little short of presumption in for
eigner, though profoundly wise as is De
Tocqueville, to speculate upon our distant fu-
ture.
IL may be said that, on the principles we
have laid down, the slaves would become white,
even faster than the free colored people This
is no doubt the case but the slave may be-
come white without becoming free; while the
descendants Of free colored persons, when they
cease to have one-fourth of African blood in
them, cease to be ranked in the colored class.
IL is for this reason that zoe oftener see pery
white Slaves than very achite free eolored poo
ple.D This remark will be confirmed by the
experience of every Southern man. II is quite
common to see slaves who are ss white as their
masters, with straight hair and European fea-
lures
II is evident that the longer the less numer-
GUS race, which at the same time is deemed the
Inferior remains in contact with the superior
and more numerous, the less there will remain
Of the original, undiIuted African blood in the
country. Practical amalgamation and climate
will constantly tend to brighten the dark VISA
ges Of the African stock, and to wash out all
stain from the mulattocs This would be the
case, il there were no active stimulants assist
ing the natural course Of things. We have
already pointed to the sense Of inferiority in
the negro and mulatto races, which makes
them ambitious Of ranking with the whites
and which facilitates Illicit intercourse. On
the other hand, the wealth and power of the
whites, operating upon the poverty and help
lessness Of the colored race, places female
chastity 10 the latter almost completely ct the
mercy of licentious white men, These causes
combined are rapidly removing tho varieties of
color which checker the face Of the South and
Of the whole country. @.
A DvrL--It is reported that, on bis arrival
in England, It was expected that John Van
Buren, would be challenged By Daniel =.
Sickels, Secretary of the American Legation.