The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1866-04-09
LOCAL MATTERS.

The NEGRO CELEBRATION on THE Sd or APRIL.
The much talked of and long expected negro
celebration and procession came offon Tuesday
last, the Sd of April and if the great "eman-
cipated did nothing else, they ut least proved
| their power of caricaturing to perfection the
little weaknesses of their former masters.
AT an early hour on Tuesday morning the
| negroes were gathered in clusters at the street
corners, laying their kinky heads together and
wondering audibly whether the procession
| had done gone" Every few minutes n sooty
cavalier, mounted on steed as angular and
| uncertain az Rosnante of old, himself girded
with the warriors sash, with head bedecked
| with gorgeous plume, and wide spread digts
sticking ont of pair of ill-used cotton gloves,
came with flowing rein, cantering along the
street. Much wonder and admiration at all
the street corners, and the gay cavalier has
created a sensation! But ah me! TO what
base uses must we come 1t was early in the
day when one of the gay and festive negroes
was riding furiously along Grace street.
"Afric's grace in every step, and whiskcy in his
But when he reached the corner of Seventh
his horses teet became entangled in n knot
and both he and his rider went tumbling pell-
nell into the gutter. The "gay and festive !"
lay for Il moment still as death, then picked
himself up, saying:-Dat ole horse Jes done
that puppus, and he's gwine to do it all day
long, too Several little incidents of the kind
| were seen about the city so early in the morn
ing
At about 10 o'clock some few mounted "men
reached the old Fair Grounds, near which the
d" forming was to take place. 1t was under
stood that .he companies were TO parade down
town and then march to the rendezvous. One
company did form on Second street after con-
siderable confusion rs TO the arithmetical
meaning of the military formula, one! tt0o -
and by half past ten or eleven clock, at least
three hundred negroes were gathered together
at their temporary field headquarters. On :
twas curious sight TO see, this gathering OF
the old and young, the lame, the halt, and the
blind There was riding to and fro Sesticula-
ting, order TO close Up ddr, and file "b"W To re
riqltt, and at about IL o'clock the procession
started.
From the Fair Grounds the long dark line
streamed into the city, they crossed BACK 10
Broad and the appearance of the procession As
il passed the New Richmond Theatre will give
a fair idea of its general aspect throughout the
day.
THE PROCESSION.
In front, dri wing quietly and peaceably, was Il
double buggy-one horse tntite and the other
bay, although some one hds suggested that the
officers of the "F. b." ought to drive bMck
and ,cLite team Then came the sorry horses
bearing the staff of the gcnerassimo. Each
officer bore in his hand II large baton, like unto
n huge stick of streakcd peppermint candy or
q miniature BARRIERS pole, which he tenderly
handled, rs though he feared that ii might
accidentally go Off and hurt somebody On
each dusty breast was a roSettc, large as
dinner plate and made up Of all the colors in
and ont of the rainbow, and around each
" slender waist - was u scarf not rich but
paudy. Gathering at each horses heels was 4
rusty scabbard, while those who could do so
conveniently. brandshed on high once
treuchant blade.
After the staff came the gorgeous banner of
blue, with white letters, it ought to have
been white with black letters, ,-bearing the
Inscription, Pcace, Frieadstip, ami liberty cih
all n,aukind. Very appropriate, as liberty
,ciM does not mean liberty to- Then came
fifty mounted men, all accoutred like unto
those who bore the sticks of candy. Then the
footmen, the first detachment being glrt
about with black aprons tipped with gold,
typical of the very hard cash which freedom
is TO give their species, and preceded by
n banner with 4 concentric tobacco plant ana
an eccentric inscription. Then came de-
tachment with striped scarfs; and then a
strong company who wore broad black scarfs
tipped with white, typical perhaps of the
condition TO which the philanthropiSts would
reduce the South cast belt of black 1Cih Il
f,int lcI.ite St'euk 0r0u,tA tie edges. This COM
pany marched behind banner bearing the
proud blaZon, TJ.0n LiJcrtieS Protective S0cety,
0rgunized FtjTuayy4, 1866, with the unnecessary
postscript, Peace and go0d.DW to'cdrds men.
Then the tag-rag and bob tail of the procession,
those who, in the words of IN intelligent con-
traband We're "de rol"HceTS, inst f"hg IN TO
ntnke up," came shouting along the dusty
street, and the procession was done
Words could not convey an idea OF the reck-
less manner in which the processionists threw
all the ardor of their brain into hufS.-
There was the slouch of every hue and degree
of worn -outedness, the military hept, the
battered Panama, the old militia shake and 4
thousand others twisted into curious
shapes by the eXigencies OF phrenologlcaI
deyelopment and the storms and heat of many
n season. One private had the audacity tc
appear in n magnificent beaver, so large as tc
cover head, eyes, and nose; he was proud and
happv, but one of the captains OF the host
who found himself out.done, ordered him, Oh
pain of being " shot down" TO denude himself
of his beaver, which was done. Another, who
Haunted n huge streamer to his hat, had l.
ruthlessly snatched off by captain at The
corner of Seventh and Broad, and the whole
people, strange to say, seemed TO be under
military rule.
Along Broad street passed the procession,
then along Twenty-fifth street to Main, ui
Main to First, along First to Grace, anc
down Grace to the Capitol Square. Some
slight shindies occurred, but throughout th'
day there was no serious disturbance.
Capitol Square had for hours been crowded
with negro men, women, AMI children, VINO
passed away the tedious moments by getting
up an occasional fight and discussing the lates
fashions. So soon rs the procession came IL
| sight-and if the processionists were not 1ul'
of grace, Grace was ut that time full OF them
the crowd hustled up TO the ratings, thou