Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1866-01-04

Anew WORDS To AND ABOUT FREED
NES.-The holidays are past, and tht
stern business Of life begins, with b0tI
white and black, for the year eighteer
hundred and sixty-six. Our section o
country IS greatly impoverished, and car
be restored &c its former state Of bounti.
nl pl~entiousness, only by the toll aaC
patient endurance Of labor. In the
sweat OF his brow shall man earn hi,
bread, is a decree applicable, practically,
to al. Ifany have INDUCED the fantasy
that freedom means license for idlenes.
and laziness, that fancy must by thi.
time be dispeIed. Their position Is now
one, In some respects, Of harder endeavol
than ever before; because 10 the task OF
manual labor, by which alone they car
hope 10 III their living, there is super.
added the, oltentimes, harder labor
Of planning and experimenting, here
tofore performed by others for them.
We cannot therefore, too strongly
urge upon the freedmen the policy and
duty Of beginning the year with the res
oluts and firm determination 70 complete
the work which the vicissltudes and ne
cessities Of war have but commenced.
WeUrge It as pol cy, because it is only by
examples cf industry, intelligence, and
good conduct, that the black man can
hope 70 overcome the prejudiees Of the
opposite race, and achieve that standing
IN the political and social organization,
without which freedom IS but a name.
a Servant ofservantspw VIII The descend
ants OF Ham be, until they shall have
demonstrated that they dessrce 10 be
estimatedas something higherand better.
They must work out their own redemp-
ton from under the prejudices Of the
white 2 C throughout the world.
And they have much - encourage
them il this career-especially IN this,
tha. there has never been q time when
any man would command such general
sympathy and good feeling, would array
around him such a cloud OF useful and
valuable friends. IS the negro may now
Command by the simple fact Of estab-
fishing a character for sobriety, honesty,
Industry and reliability. We undertake
20 guaranty that no negro who shall DO
this viii fail in enlisting, among South
err men, a larger number Of efficient
friends than have usually been found TO
strengthen and encourage the efforts Of
lAelr owu race, who, with equal good
qualities have nevertheless been borne
down by a similar poverty. The pecu-
Isrity Of his position gives this advan-
tsge to the black freedman, and il viii
be doubly his fault, and gr,evously his
misfor5uEe, ifbs fails 70 improve It..
Il mus, uotbo forgotten, on the other
hand, that upon Us Of the superior race.
rests a very fearful responsibility, that
,re shall not fail in aoing whatever de-
upon u.s. to aid the freedman in
the task we have allotted to him Of self
preservation, self-deveiopment and pro-
grsss. in the Providence Of God, this
6urthen has been laid upon him, and we
must not forget that IL WISE not Of his
seeking. To let him sink down 10 sloth, |
idleneas, prodigacy and relapse into bar
barlsn, for the want Of z friendly
hand 10 steady him, a kindly
voice to encourage him, and good
and wholesome laws 10 stimulate him.
and so four millions Of human beings 90
down 70 destruction, would be HORRIBLE
be criminal. We know the hearts
and -consciences Of Southern men cannot
contemplate such an end Of the African
race on thiseontinen without ashudder
and We feel quite sure that every freed
nan who shsl deserve, viii receive the
encouragement confidence and support
the community in which he lives.
We need the ,abor o. every n who
vii work. To make that labor useful
nd available by dealing with and re-
harding il with absolute fairness and jus
ice. is alike u interest and our duty.
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