Cleveland tri-weekly leader. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1854-1885, 1862-11-11

The leaders Of the Butternut Democracy
claim to be the friends of the labOring
class, and the champions of their interests
and they endeavor to create prejudice
against the Administration and the war
by declaring that the carrying out Of the
Presidents proclamation of freedom, would
lead to q great influx of negroes from the
\ South, and subject the labOrers Of the
! North to a degrading and ruinous eompe-
tition with their labor. This declaration
is both false and absurd, and these leaders
must know it. It Is SLAVERY that is driving
thousands to the North. Give them free
dom at the South, and, 50 far from the me-
! groes coming to the North, they would go
in large numbers from the North to the
South, and those at the South would gladly
stay. Those, therefore. who oppose the
Presidents proclamation of freedom, land
who, like GOv-seymour of New York, say
that if the Union cannot be preserved
without destroying slavery, then let the
Union 60 and save slavery,) are advocat-
ing the very policy which would lead to
great influx Of negroes from the South,
seeking for the fresd9al they could not get
there. But the main object of this article
is to call attention to the pregnant admis-
sion contained in this declaration. 1t is
here declared In the strongest manner
that the presence of ignorant black labor
is both degrading and ruinOus to white
labor.
Look at this for a moment; The white
laborers of the South are subjected to all
this, and to the deeper degradation of COM
petlng with slaoo labor and yet these men
are in favor of perpetuating this degrad-
Ing and heavy curse upon the white la
bOrers Of the South, while they are makir g
false professions of friendship for the ls-
boring classes. The truth is they know
better, and merely wish to deceive and
mislead laboring men, in order that they
may secure their votes in favor of policy
that viii forever crush the hopes of free
white labOring men at the South.
If the white labOring men of the South |
had not been debased by contact with
slavery, and misled by the grOssest preju-
dice and deception, they never would have
fought for the rebellion.
Should it be said that the white laboring
men of the South must in any event, COM
pete with negro labor, we answer: Let the
stigma of slavery be removed and a great
advance would thereby be made towards
making aHlabOr honorable. 1t is only in
this way that the frst grand step can be
taken in onfranehising and ennObling ell
labor. The next step would be the eduea-
ton and Improvement Ofthe laboring class
es-a thing which the instincts and inter
ests of slavery will not permit.
Let the laboring men of the North fully
realize that their interests are intimately
bound up in the policy of the Administra-
ton; and that those who oppose this policy
are the enemies of the true interests of Ia
boring men eTerywhere-North as we'll as
South. True, the President, acting under
the Constitution, could only strike at slav-
cry as a war measure, rendered absolutely
necessary in order to put down the rebell-
ion. He waited till that necessity forced
this measure upon him but now it is glo-
rious to know that justice and humanity,
(even if the interests of lrhise men alone
are considered) unite in making this act
of the President the nOblest ever perform
ed by any President.