The Portland daily press., 1867-02-04

PORTLAND.
Monday Morning, February 4, 1867.
Intermnrrinse Of Dinereu, Races.

o. -
Am'ermnrrinse of Different Races.
The bill in the State Legislature. to remove
the disability to marry between persons of die.
ferent races, has developed an unexpected on.
position in the House. Passing the Senate
with but two opposing votes, it was first laid
on the table Ofthe House by vote of SO to SO.
subsequently taken up and indefinitely post
poned by vote of SO to 5S; finally brought
again before the House by reconsideration,
and postponed till day after tomorrow. The
debate appears to have been very mesgre, at
least the reports are meagre enough. The
prevailing disposition seems to have been to
vote the proposition down with as little dis
cussion as possible. '-' f
The absence, SO far as we are informed, of
any reasonable ground Of opposition to this
very proper measure, compels us to believe
that the majority of the members OF the House
are frightened by the word miscegenation,
which is suitably described in the last edition
of Webster's dictionary, as "a new and ILL
formed word" meaning amalgamation. 1t is of
Democratic coinage and as misshapen as the
idea which it represents. The Democratic
notion is, that nothing but the law prevents
our best families from intermarrying with the
blacks; that if the bars are taken down there
will be no Caucasian society left, owing to the
general invasion OF parlors and dning.rooms
by sooty sons-in-law and dark daughters-in-
law. This calamity is pictured to the Demo-
cratic mind by the word miscegenation. This
general mingling of races, the Democratic
press charges the Republican party with con-
spring to bring about 1t appears that quite
a large number Of Republican representatives
at Augusta are persuaded that there is some
thing in the Democratic notion, and feel COM
PEELED to vote against this bill in order to vim
dicate themselves from the suspicion ofswant-
ing to marry Niger" aa I'D. ei.i
1t is marriage which constitutes mscege-
nation, be it observed. The Richmond peo-
pie were greatly exercised few weeks ago by
the report that a Yankee invader who had
come there and gone into business, had mar
ried his housekeeper, a woman of African
NA~'NSAAo, "AO1 oSSOAuihS W Sulcl OuSllCc d.
ney, had no rights under the Constitution
which white man was bound to respect 1t
had been supposed for some weeks that the
couple were living in concubinage, patri-
arehal mode of life whichrdoes not appear to
violate the Richmond code of propriety.
Judge fancy and the Iparriarchs have not
gone out Of fashion in Richmond yet. When
1t became known that the Yank had not de-
bauched his housekeeper, but had married
her, there was commotion in the Virginia
capital. The press raised its puissant voice.
The vigilance committee sent in its batch of
anonymous notes threatening to bum the
house and "chaw up" the inmates. Benedick
was obliged to remove to some less fastidious
section of our glorious country. And yet the
Rev. Mr.. Nasty has remarked with his accus-
toned acutsness, that the Ethiopian does
change his skin in Virginia and other States.
Mulattoes, quadroons, oetoroons,g sexto-
decimoroons-our erring brethren have in
vented complete system of nome nclature
for the successive dilutions of the negro blood
which have occurred in purely patriarchal
way. This patriaehal business is not misce-
nation, because there is no marriage involved
In it. J7h sai Of 3.asr5 iil Iiged '.- ~
Here in Maine there are few parti-colored
couples living together as man and wife, but /
without the sanction of the law This is not
miscegenation. 1t would be miscegenation to
repeal the law, to legalize these unions, to
make their offspring legitimate. Senator Mer-
rill married one of these couples. The law of
Maine holds that ceremony null. In the
sight Of God it is as perfect and as sacred as
any marriage ceremony since the foundation
of the world. The law does not prevent these
unions. Public sentiment, while very strong
ly coEdemning them in point of taste, does not
condemn them as criminal. While we read
without offence the story of Othello and Des-
demona, while black Ira Aldridge lives in Lon
don with the Swedish baroness, his wife.
while Dumas tiourishes in the best society of
Paris, why do we keep upon our statute book
this vestige of an outwon theory? Why pre-
serve law which is no longer of any practi-
cal use or significance? If two people of ma
ture age and sound mind choose to enter into
this contract, what right has the State to in
terpose its objection? Mr.. Boynton says the
people OF Somerset county don't want to mar
ry 'colored Venuses." Well, they needn't
But do they want to prolong the absurdity OF
permitting unions which the law refuses to
recognize9 We don't believe it, Are the off
spring of such unions improved in any res-
pect by the stigma of illegitimacy? We don't
believe that. II the bill to remove this disa-
bility cannot be passed, let us have the yeas
and nays upon it once more. 1lt >