Randolph County journal. [volume] (Winchester, Randolph County, Ind.) 1855-1862, 1860-02-23
How to help the Slave.


How to help the Slave.
/. If we would benefit the African
at the South. We must begin at home.
This is to some men the most disa-
greeable part of the doctrine of eman-
cipation. Ii is very easy to labor for
the emancipation Of beings thousand
miles off; but when it comes to the
practical application Of justice and hu
manity to those about us, it is not so
easy. The truths of God respecting
the rights and dignities of men. are
just as important to free colored men.
as to enslaved colored men. 1t may
seem strange for me TO say that the
lever with which to lift the load of
Georgia is in New York; but it is. i
do not believe the whole free North
can tolerate grinding injustice toward
the poor. and inhumsnity toward the
laboring classes. withou. exerting an
influence unfavorable to justice and
humanity in the South. No one can
fail to see the inconsistency between
our treatment of those among us who
are in the lower walks of life and our
professions of sympathy for the South
ern slaves. How are the free colored
people treated at the North? They
are almost without education, with but
little sympathy for ignorance. They
are refused the common rights of citi-
izenship which the whites enjoy. They
can not even ride in the cars of our
city railroads. They are snuffed at in
the house of God, or tolerated with
ill-disguised disgust. Can a black
man be a mason in New York? Let
him be employed as a journeyman, and
every Irish lover of liberty that carries
the hod or trowel would leave at once.
or compel him to leave! Can the black
man be carpenter? There is scarce
ly carpenters shop in New York. in
which journeyman would continue to
work. if black man were employed
in it. Can the black man engage in
the common industries of life? There
is scarcely one in which he can engage.
he is crowded down, down, down,
through the most menial callings. to
the bottom of society. We tax them,
and then refuse to allow their children
to go to our public schools. We tax
them. and then refuse to sit by them,
in Gods house. We heap upon them
moral obloquy more atrocious than
that which the master heaps upon the
slave. And notwithstanding all this,
we lift ourselves mp. to talk to the
Southern people about the rights
and liberties of the human soul, espe.
cially the African soull 1t is true
that Slavery is cruel. But it is not a,
all certain that there is not more love
to the race in the South than in the
North. They love their property
We do not own them. so we do not
love them at all. The prejudice ofthc
whites against color is so strong that
they can not endure to ride or sit with
a black man. so long as they do not
orn him. AS neighbor they are moi
to be tolerated. but as property they
are most tolerable in the house. the
church. the carriage. the couch! Ths
African orned. may dwell in America
but unowned. he must be expatriated
emancipation must be iackal to coloni
cation. The choice given to the Afri
can is plantation or colonization. Our
Chsistian public sentiment is pendu
lum swinging between owning or ex
porting the poor in our midst.
Whenever we are prepared to show
toward the lowest. the poorest. and tn,
most dsspised. an unaffected kindness
such as led Christ. though the Lord o
glory. to lay aside his dignities. anc
take on himself the form of a servant
and to an ignominious death. that h,
might rescus men from ignorance anc
bondage-whenever we are prepsreC