Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1869-09-17

as require both muscle and intelligence, |
and its members are usually designated as
" working men," and are men of intelli- |
gence. How will they be affected In the
first place the addition will not be to the
number Of mechanics. but the number OF
laborers engaged in agriculture--but for
the sake of the argument We will
admit there will be an increase in
the number of mechanics. What then p
1t is we'll known that the supply of any
article is regulated by the demand for it.
The present demand is first for agricultu-
ral labor, and agricultural labor will be first
supplied This increase in the amount of
labor will cause corresponding number
of acres put in cultivation and in the
quantity of produce raised. This will of
course diminish the price and enable the
working man to buy the same amount of
food and clothes that he now buys and for
less money. This then practically increases
the wages of the workingmen and increases
them very materially, for the bulk Of the
.oages ofkte qUorkingma,a is spent for food
and clothing for himself and family. So
that even if the demand for the services
of workingmen was no greater than it now
is, an addition to the number of mechan
les would not compel them to quit their
trades or starve. But it is not true that
be 10 greater. The increased breadth of
land put in cultivation consequent upon
IN increased supply Of agricultural labor,
will necessitate the building of more
houses. stables and barns, on both old and
new farms; moro plOws and gear; more
wagons and harness.; moro farming tools
OF every sort; moro railroads and depots
for the transportation of the additional
produce; moro towns for the lawyers,
doctors and merchants to live in and
for the people from the country TO trade in;
all requiring tho services of mechanics and
artiZans of every description i'll n daily in
creasing degree. No one will pretend we
have native mechanics enough to supply
any such demand. The result will be, that
those We already have, finding themselves
mechanical labor, will bring in help from
abroad. Our homo people. who are
familiar with the country and its wants,
will of course become master mechanics
and contractors So that just in the same
degree that there is moro land put into
cultivation with sufficient labor, will there
be an increase in the demand for mechani-
Cal labor. In fnct, to use a homely phrase,
the farmer cannot bulge peg without
the mechanic. The mechanic too we'll
knows how much more plentiful work is
while good crop is on hand, than when
thore has, from any cause, been a failure.
This il what the future promises if We in
| crease tho amount of labor in the country.
What showing do the present and future
make without this proposed increase We
are crippled and cramped so badly by the
want of sufficient reliable labor that the
farmer, upon whose prosperity hinges the
we'll doing of every other class of society,
year by year, instead of charging his OPP
erations, finds himself compelled to con-
tract them. Instead of building new houses
he tears down those already put up. Ex-
cept in occasional places there is no
demand for mechanical labor. None know
better than mechanics themselves how very
many of them are compelled to trudge on
foot from place to place, from town to town
seeking work. The writer of this has been
an eye witness to this sight. None know
better than the mechanics themselves
white mechanics ! mean--the difficulty of
getting work except in such places and in
such jobs as will make tho expense of sup
porting their families more than they can
bear.
And when there is work to be done, who
gets the largest and best contracts ? We
think we may truly say that 1t is inoarid-
big tie negro contractor or the contractor GUhO
a00Tks negroes and has a negro foreman.
Our white mechanics have an unconquer-
able aversion to working with or under ne
groes, and we do not hesitate to say we
honor them for the feeling, for the reason
that We believe white man is better than
q negro, and that everything which tends
to break down the social barrier between
the two races is wrong and ought to be dis
conntenanced-we say this, although the
law of the land imposed upon us by Radi-
G1In nj n To
vote, and prohibit the white man from do
ing so.
In addition to this. throughout the
country generally. the greater part of tho
work TO be done has been under the con
troll OF hatIcalS, either public officials or
private individuals, for they have hitherto
had all the money. who Of course gave tho
preference to the negroes. Our own peo-
pie, too, have been in many cases perhaps
over careful not to offend their colored
friends and for many reasons. The negroes
themselves have been embittered against tho
whites to such m extent that they will not
work under them if they can get work with
4 negro. This state of things throws all
the jobs. except small ones, into the hands
of negroes and negro contractors, because
there arc not enough white mechanics in
the State to put up large jobs with only
white labor, and gives tho negro an ad-
vantage over tho white mechanic that can
be overcome only by showing both white
and black that the black people are not
all powerful! in the land. The introduce
ton of Chinese will do this and speedily,
and give thereby the white mec hanics an
equal showing with black ones.
It is the same case in the other Occupa
tions in which negroes compete with white
men. In Wilmington, for instance, are the
draymen, porters, stevedores and BARRIERS,
white or black ? Are they not almost uni
versally black This ought not to be so,
and is SO only because the negro has been
given prominence, politically and other
wise, in the State. to which no is not en-
titled by worth, numbers, wealth, intelli-
gence or law. We do not desire to defraud
the negro of any right guaranteed to him
by the law we-simply say it is high time
he was made to know that white men have
some ''rights he is bound to respect, high
time to make him and also certain class
of white people know he is not MASTER in
North Carolina, and that he is not entitled