Daily union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1865-1866, 1866-08-30
PRETENDED RADICAL FRTENDsHIP
FOR THE NEGRO.
.s.pondenee q UnIon and AmerIean.

Correspondence Of Union and American
EAST TENNESSEE, August Is, lsG6.-Is
the apparent effort, in which the Radical
party North, is engaged, to elevate the ne
gro to political and social equality with the
white race, prompted alone by that spirit Of
genuine, noble, gOdlilge philanthrophy which
they assure us animates their every motive
and action To see men abnegate sell. and
devote their time, talents, energies and for
tunes to the relief Of the destitute, the dis
tressed and the oppressed, has ever been
esteemed the highest exhibition Of disinter-
ested benevolence, and has always challenged
public admiration, where the sacrifice was
not tainted with a suspicion of fanaticism.
+ insanity or sinister motives.
An ancient and venerated volume enoins
US "le try the spirits" Let Us, in this mat
ter, obey fhe injunction.
Is the spirit which is so rampant now. for
the elevation Of the negro, or is its purpose
to degrade the white man Of the South /? IL
Congress were sincere in the purpose TO 50
cure to the negro that perfect equality be-
fore the law" Of which we hear so much, why
did they not begin with the passage of some
statute equally affecting the North and the
South, in their relations TO the negro race
In this way they might have attested their
sincerity IN a manner to settle all cavil
about 1t, and in q way that the South could
have had good ground Of complaint
AT West Point and Annapolis the Gov
eminent has two schools for training the
youth Of the land, at the public expense, for
the land and naval service. Nov if the
negro is entitled to equal rights before the
law, why does not Congress which assumes
TO be the especial champion Of those rights
enact that the cadetshipin these two national
schools, shall be equitabiy divided between
the black and white youth Of the land A.?
Has the nation no "wardsp signing after
military renOwn? Why not afford them all
the aid the Government can, in the way of
education, that these longings after imaor-
tality may not be quenched in rayless dark
ness, for the want of early advantages, when
the moment of their fruition shall arrive
Now is the golden moment to inaugurate
such a reform poetic Justice" too con-
joins with the favorableness of the occasion
to sanction its adoption. There are, now, no
| high spirited young Southrons in those ma
honal nurseries Of cur future heroes, educa-
ted with foolish prejudices of caste, to pro-
test against such association; besides what
an appropriate punition for white dislOyalty,
and reward for colored loyalty.
Why should not Tennessee lead the van
in this, as in all previous Radical reforma-
/ tons How appropriate, too, that East
Tennessee should take the initial step. Is |
not this the sublime contamination for which |
our brave mountain boys fought through the |
! year of the late civil war? Come, Mr.. |
MAYNARD, inaugurate the great reform. |
Give the benefit of the two appointments, to |
cadetship in the Naval Academy, at your |
disposal, to some aspiring Hamite youths, |
who have inscribed Excelsior" ON their |
| banners
Never was there a more suspicious time
than the present to commence the process of /
etiolation. The great philanthropic heart
OF the North is yearning for the abolition"
OF all distinctions on account of color. En-
brace the golden opportunity, HORACE.
Why may not the clustering honors with
which Mr.. SUMNER has been striving for
more than half generation to crown his
brow, bloom in atramentOus Immortality |
upon thy own pate, HORACE? Why may
notyou becomethe more than WILBERFoRCE
of American politics, HORACE?
Again, why are negroes in the military
service excluded by Radical Legislators from
promotion TO higher offices than the rank Of
sergeant Indeed, why are they organized
into African companies, regiments, brigades,
&c? Is it on account of prejudice of caste?
Surely if they are unfit for any of the places
here enumerated, and from which they are
excluded by the Radicals themselves, they
are also unfit to be clothed with the elective
franchise, which might commit to their con-
troll the destiny Of several of the Southern
States.
Then, / ask, are the Radicals sincere in
their professions of devotion to the interests
ST the negro? Or do they merely seek, by
their negro policy, tofurther humiliate the
nd bxvr Of holi o. |
petuate their despotism over a subiugated
people? Their failure to attempt to elevate
the negro, where such elevation is likely to
bring him into association or competition |
with Mortimer shows the utter hOllowness |
Of such a pretense.
Suppose Mr.. Editor, should announce
to you that l was entrusted with commits
sion to your city, the speedy performance of
which was of the highest importance, not
only to myself but to the entire community,
that | was so deeply impressed with a sense
of the responsibility resting upon me, that
my own reputation and the happiness Of
multitudes depended upon the faithful exc
cutiOn Of the trust. Suppose, too, / should
inquire Of you the nearest and quickest i
route to your city; you advise me of the d.
rect line of railroad, which, in a few hours, {
will place me at the point l wish to reach. s
NOW suppose, instead OF taking the deslg-
mated route I should start off by the way Of j
the White Mountains, Lake Champlain and
Niagara Falls, what would you and every c
sensible person think of my sincerity or my T
worthiness as a repository of such trust y?
There could be but one verdict in such t
case.
Is there no parallel between such case t
and conduct and the position and action of t
Congress upon the negro question What, a
then, is the legitimate inference? Is it not j
that the pretense of securing to the negro {
perfect equality before the law IS false C
deep and fixed hate for the South v
is the controlling motive of the Radical {
heart-that the prejudice of caste" is as
deep and ineradicable in the Northern f
mind as it is in every other part of the II
Caucasian family, but that fanaticism has \
for the time dethroned reason and lust of c
power overwhelmed public virtue q
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