Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1865-1869, 1865-07-06
RICHMOND WING.
THURsDAY MORNING...JULY 6, 1865.
Horace Greeley on the Emancipation Of
the Serfs of Europe.

We eould readily cite authorities that would
an many volumes, and all from modern authors
.oopeurrinR in showing that the laborinS class
EVERYWHERE in free society, Is suffering from want
of food Of clothing, Of pure air and water oil
house-room and of fuel-naS going further and
maintaining that these suaerings nave Oec0iue
intolerable, and that society must be- everywhere
subverted and reconstructed on entirely Ne" P''u-
eiples. These authors are al socialists, aud have
almost mouooolized modern literature, provoking
from the North British Review the exclamation
that III would seem We should soon have no hiera'
fure, but literature Of social reference. All OF
these writer's agree that the present suffering con
dition Of the laboring poor is Of modern dlIe'-
We shall quote from but one OF them the hon'
Horace Greeley man equally distinguished Ior
his genius and his active philanthropy Inc
messages which we shall cite are from eoutro'
,srsiaI eorrespondenee with b. j. Raymond,
tbep one of the editors Of the New York Courier
and Enquirer. The correspondence was puohsh'
ed in book form, bat All the copies OF the BOOK
except few in private hands, were lost by the
burning out Of the H1rPers-
We introduce Mr.. Greeley to prove that the Ia
hiring roor wste in comfortable circumstances and
enioyine careless ease, whilst they were slaves,
and that now that they have become free, their
novsrtv and their suferings are intolerable. From
The peculiar phfaseology employed by MI Tree
Lev il il obvious that he attributes the present sad
condition Of the laboring class % their exchang-
trvslsyery for liberty. Careless ease is enjoyed
NV none but slaves How superior race AUS
Ss,link the negfoes are to the whites il liberty
which he maintains, has been ruinous 70 the
whites is to prove blessing to the blacks Let
the reader bear in mind that FIVE hUNpEsr
Wins AGO the white laborers OF Europe were
slaves and be viii md that Mr. Gree'eys testtmo-
nv fully sus.aias Que position, that the emancipa-
.i.n Of the white has injured their condition
II so we argue. that A rORuOEI' the negro will
he vors.ed by emancipation. This is tde prom
sod extract from our distinguished author -
g These do not AFFECT the general and appalling
truth that during TN LAST FIVE CENTURIES there
has been a complete and disastrous revolution
in the ordinary coalition OF the toiing millions
So Of civilized Europe, Ior the same IS true OF
o otber countries as well as England, in propor
&c .,on % their population and increase IN lndi7d-
nal wealth. a revolution which has depressed
s them from comfort 70 wretchsdness, nom CARE
49, rs EASE 10 iuce sSant anxiety AMI struggle Tor
.the bars,t necessarjss o. life. They have reach
.. ed that point where, in the words Of the Vest
minister Review, there is not sep, but merely
q, a hands breadth. between the condition OF the
Is agricultural labcrer aad pauperism.' Instead
.. OF tae fare Of his ancestors, described above,
bis family arg scaRtily sabsisted on potatoes
sand SILT bread and lard, with alttle intensely
O. skinned milk, as an occasional luxury. His
s.weekly wages will barely procure this Diet and
"spd paw the rent Of his LOT, and when sickness
.. or failure Of employment oyertakes him, he is
=, driven 10 beggary or the Union work houses
viii any ore say, you are talking Of British
O. listresses; what DO they prove to usl All,
=. sis the same general causes that have produced
s-these q stresses in EarOge are now al work
here. Population is rapidly increasing wealth
ia concentrating, the public lands are rapidly
.. passing into pirate ownership; often tens Of
. thousands of acres % . single individual, and
.. IS our population becomes compact, and land
.. costly a. in England the evils now experienced
sby the many in Europe, viii gradually fasteu
..up6n their brethren here. Oar political institu.
4. tons may do something 70 mitigate this but
=, how mucal The master evil in the condition
g. Of ths English aud Irish Ia, the monopoly by
. the few OF the Godgiyen elements oi.produo.
O. lion, which are necessary 10 all Abolish
q monarchy, titles Of nobility, church establish.
=. n,ant national debt, and whatever else you
., please 80 long as the land shall remain the ex-
. elusive properly Of email and isolated class,
q competition for the use OF it az active as now,
. and rents consequently as high, so long viii
s.notaing have been accomplished beyond clear.
Sing away some Of the elementary obstacles TO
q the real and essential reform"
Mr.. Greeley is q consistent ard pertinacious
man, and a. much opposed as ever 70 land mo-
nopoly. Hence, but the other day, he endorsed
and approved Geuit smiths proposition To d.
vide the lands Of the ,outh among the negroes,
for they constitute four Hths Of our poor. -
We do not, however, apprehsnl that any such
agrarian measure vii, be sdOp-ed 10 proving
lie unfortunate results Of white en- aucipaton,
NE wish 10 prepare the pubic for similar evils and
mischiefs from negro emancipation, and TO guard
as far as possible against the consequences Of
slcb. by advising the enactment Of laws that will
teap the liberated negroes at work, and restrain
aba,, from Generalization. disorder, suffering and
crime. We accept the overthrow ct slavery n
an accomplished and reversible fact. The late
slave owners would not re establish the instltu-
zion if they could because they know that its
morale could not be restored. and that in the alb
sence Of the seryie feeling the seryie relation is
no. desirable. Our object is to arouse attention to
coming misclieis, 80 that they may be obyiated or
mitlgated as far as practicable.