Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1869-10-27

We 20 so far on the race question
as TO believe that not only is the pre-.
vailing civilization the exclusive prop
erty Of the white race, but the prevail
ing religion also We do not believe
that any of the inferior races are capa-
BILE, when cut off from all intercourse
with the white race, OF preserving the
Christian religion and handing it down
TO posterity. Were they capable of
doing so, some tribe among them would
appear in possession of it to-day. But
during the eighteen centuries and a
half that Christianity has been preach.
ed on the earth, no community of the
dark skinned races has received and
retained il.
Jealous missionaries claim that they
have converted the natives of Polyne-
sia. 1t is a conversion that is only
skin deep, as the writer knows from
personal observation.
The chiefs of the South Sea Islands
profess Christianity only for the pur.
pose OF increasing their trade with the
white men, and their people show no
capacity of perpetuating il. Besides,
as arace they are passing rapidly away.
The contact Of the white mans civili-
zation and religion is fatal to them.
As for the negro race, not the slight
est impression has been made upon il
in it's native seat in Africa, by the self
sacrificing efforts Of missionaries du
ring the last three hundred years
And the same rule applies 10 the de-
scendants Of the negroes who were
brought over to America in slave yes
sells. The moment they are released
from slavery and the immediate con-
troll of the white race, they speedily
relapse into the fetish worship that Is
natural TO them. In the so-oalled
republic OF Hayti, Christianity has vir-
tually ceased TO exist, and in Jamaica
it is kept up in a feeble way only
among the negroes who come in con-
tinued contact with white men. Sew
eral years ago a community of negroes
who had formed an isolated settlement
in the mountains of the last named
island, we're found worshiping the fig.
ure-bead of a ship that they had
brought from the coast.
The negroes in the South are trav.
cling the same road. They can no
more adopt permanently the religion
OF the white race than they can build
up government like that Of Great
Britain or evolve a theory like the
Copernioan. The natural religious
condition Of the negro is that Of fet-
ish worshiper, and left to himself he
will always be one.
As an example Of the general ten
dency, we copy the following from a
letter received from Mississippi. The
negroes mentioned have had the full
benefit OF instruction in well-conducted
Sunday schools;
"The negroes are rapidly relapsing
into hopeless and irrcmediable hea.
thenism, and on this plantation they
are openly threatening to burn some
old negroes as conjurors and witches.
and are extracting snakes, &C., from
the sick ones. Even this morning we
had quite an exciting scene among
them. They arraigned one of their
number before me and required bis
dismissal on the ground that he is
conjuror, and had been seen graveling
mp a new made grave 10 get some Of
de dirt wild de smell oh de dead body |
or it, TO pizen folks wild 1t was also
charged against the conjuror that the |
body at whose last resting place he
was digging had bled in the coniuror's
presence, which was proof enough /
dat he ought TO be kilt '7-Mobile
,Aiabama) Tribune.