The native Virginian. [volume] (Orange Court House, Va.) 1867-187?, 1868-03-27
TIE NEGRO.

Prof. Agassiz, one of the greatest liv-
ing authorities on matters pertaining to
natural history, and the ply steal sci
ences, resides in New England aud de-
rives Ais support from tescliing the
young mes of that 'truly loyal and en-
lightened" portion OF 1.-The nation. y
he may be regarded therefore asa com
petent and dislnterested witness in be-
half of that ''sacred being" the negro.
He says:
81 have pointed out orer hundred
specifc differences between the bonal
and nervous sy stems of the white msn
and the negro. Indeed, their frames
are alike In no particular. There is not
. bone in the negro's body which is re-
latively the same shape. size, srticula-
ton, or chemically of the same compo-
sition as that of the white man. The
Negroes bones contain far greater per
centage Of calcsrcoas salt than those of
The white man; even the negro's blood
is chemically very different fluid from
that which courses in the veins OF the
white man. The whole physical organ
ism of the negro differs quite as much
that of the chimpanzce, that is, In his
bones, muscles, nerves and tibres. The
chimpanzee has not much further to
progress to become a negro than q me-
gro has to become q white man. This
fact science inexorably demonstrates.
Climate has no more to do with the diff
ference between the white man and ne
gre than it has with that between the
negro and the chimpanzee, or than it
has between the horse and the ass, or
the eagle and the owl. Each is a distinct
and separate creation. The negro and
white man were created as different as
the owl and the eagle. They were de-
signed so fill different plans ia the system
OF nature. The negro is no more ne
gro by accident or misfortune than an
s Owl IL the kind of bird he is by accident
or misfortune. The negro is no more
the white mans brother than the owl is
the sister of the eagle, or the ass is the
brother of the horse. How stupendous,
and yet how simple is the doctrine that
the Almighty Maker of the universe has
created inherent species of the lower
animals to fill the different places and
offices in the grand scenery of nature y
The above is an extract from lecture
delivered to the students of his class
some two years ago. In his book on
Brazil, recently published, he follows
up the foregoing assertion by some re-
marks about the mixture ofraces, which
we will 60 well to consider, not only in
reference to the amaigamation ofblacks
and whites but also the promiscuous i'll
termingling of the white races. For
our part. we are unable to believe that
the hoteh-potch of nationalities, which
we find in the u United States. is or can
be conducive TO the real strength OF the
country. Looking to the future of the
South, we think it by no means desira-
BILE that the experiment of ''vile col
luyium- of tongues and races, such as
exists at the North, should be repeated
here. But the haste toget rich and the
natural desire to be rid of the negro,
will, we.fear. laad us into the same folly
of cheapening citizenship and hurrying
on the curse of dense population, from
which; IL history and reason do not
lie. the North is destined &C no distant
day to suffer such national shipwreck
and disintegration as the world has sell
dom seen. This is what Agassiz say
about the mixture of races. aa. -
"Let any one who doubts the evil of
this mixture of races, and is inclined,
from a mistaken philanthrophy, to break
down all barriers between them, come
TO Brazil. He cannot deny the deterio-
ration consequent upon an amalgama-
ton of races, more wide spread here
than in any other country in the world.
and which is rapidly effacing the best
qualities of the white man, the negro,
and Indian, leaving mongrel honde-
script type, deficient in physical and
mental energy. At a time when the
new social status of the negro is sub
iect of vital Importance in our states
manship, we should profit by the ex-
perience of q country where, though
slavery exists, there is far more liberal
ity toward the free negro than he has
enioyed in the United States. Let us
learn the double lesson; open all the
advantages of education to the negro.
and give him every chance of success
which culture gives to the man who
knows how to use 1t; but respect the
laws of nature, and let all our dealings
with the black man tend to preserve, as
far as possible, the distlnetness of his
national characteristics, and the integ-
rity of our own"