The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1871-12-08
Correspr ndsnce Of the New York TINES.

kiCAS CoLoNf-soCIAL OSTRACIsM--BUsI.
MISS AFFAIRs--GES SANGYEREIN,
Correspr ndence OF the New York Times.
RICHMOND. FA.,}
Thursday, November 80, 1871,
1t Is evident TO me, after an absence of
| several years, during which time military
| and reconstruction governments have been
| replaced by popular ones, that the better
! classes of the people of Richmond baye
| made rapid progress in the matter Of no
| llttcal advancement, and are now much
| nearer peaceful submission to the Federal
Government than they were in the stormy
! disquiet OF Andy Johnson's administra.
| lion. They are, in truth, greatly In advance
| OF their country neighbors throughout the
state in this respect, because they have
gradually become acquainted with and been
| forced TO acknowledge the fact that all the
wisdom, political ability, and craftsmanship p
| OF the country is not monopoliZed by few
Virginia leaders. The strong arm of the
Federal Government, whatever TIM! means,
has been felt by them in way that has in.
| dIced respect, not only for its strength,
but for the justice with which It has been
welded. After all, the great reconstruct.
Ing and conctliating agent has been COM
| nerce, not political power. The session
| here Of national associations Of boards OF
trade, and the meeting Of men from every
section interested in the development OF
our commercial welfare, has done more
good than ten thousand sessions Of Con-
greSs and millions Of political speeches
could. Boston and Richmond, bound TO-
cether by the interest that speaks through
the pocket, and thereby jointly earnest for
mutual improvement, are more friendly to-
day than they ever could have been il
the attempt TO cultivate amicable relations
had been confined to the efforts of politi.
clans. "Why can we not forget the war
and It's civil strife?" said Boston gentle.
man at Board Of Trade dinner here,
q and weeping In common over the graves
Of our lost ones, remember that they died
as Americans that their deeds were those
of American valor; and that we are yet
brothers in afi ctionp" To this sentiment
one Of the most rampant and earnest seces.
sion fire eaters in Richmond responded In
a manner that indicated at least bis appre.
citation of the generous offer Of friendship.
should say, perhaps, that this feeling Is
confined to the better classes of business
men, who are, after all, not strong enough
to lesven the whole lump, and that The poll
ticians, the curse Of southern communities.
still keep alive the bitterness of sectional
animosity in the hearts Of their followers.
Soft happens that while the change have
referred to is apparent among the more sub.
>tantial class Of the people, the rabble, who
lvote early and often, are as deep seated In
their prcJudices as ever. They, OF course.
lcontrol the caucuses, the primaries, and,
finally, the elections. The result is a dis.
appointment to those who look for imme-
date recognition by the Iaw-msking power,
or the office. holders Of the efforts Of those
lwho ought to be leaders to heal the wounds
of the war. The churches, social circles,
land, to some extent, business relations, are
still governed by the old vigorous attempts
at non-intercourse with the Yankees, While
the newspapers--bsh,t they are, with few
honorable exceptions, disgusting. They
have no independence Of thought or speech,
and read to-day just as they did five years
ago. They arc entitled to the credit Of con-
sistency In that respect, II for nothing else,
for tbey deride Yankee of1ice-holders, Yam
kee laws, and Yankee (Yankee is but an-
other word for United States) institutions
as eagerly and viciously and untruthfully
as ever.
am often reminded when l read of the
American colony in Paris Z, oil the social
circles composed entirely Of northerners
which exist in all the southern cities.
Richmond is not an exception TO this gem
eral rule, and L iind here now the same
exclusive and friendly intercourse among
them that lett four years ago. Ihey are
NJ completely cut of from the possibility
OF general intermingling with society as II
they were, indeed, foreigners IN !and OF
strangers. The women of the south are,
Of course, responsible for this, Whlie
their husbands, bfothers, a9d male sie
friends, often meet with "detestaole
carpet-baggers and scalawags" In the
natural course of business events or
street salutations, and treat them
with respect, they preserve tnvioiate
the dignity OF their thresholds, over which
/ Yankees or Yankee sympathiZers ure never
allowed to cross. "The female part of my
household is still in rebellion against the
Federal Government" Is remark that Is
sometimes heard here, and could be trltn-
fully applied to nearly, If not quite, all OF
the older and most intelligent families. The
men know this to be true, and do not hesl-
tute to apologize for it, at the same time
acknowledging that It's direct result Is
| tendency to prevent respectable and re-
sponsible northern families from settling
here. So, you see that, as usual, "there Is
a woman In the case"
| But the American colony In Richmond
| is thriving. Its personnel has materially
| changed in the course OF time. ana many
Adventures have been weeded out OF IL.
Those VI no remain are solid, substantial cit1-
zens, who have by industry or business
capacity 80 thoroughly worked themselves
forward in commercial matters that they
| cannot leave now, and the community can
| i'll spare them. They hsye a Church organ
| ization Of their own, with regular services
by a Methodist clergyman In the Unlted
States Courtroom. They also have soclal
| gatherings Of their own, In which true
northern and cosmopolitan hospitality ex-
hibits itself to the great delight and COM
fort of themselves and visiting friends.
Some of them, 1t Is true, are disheaI tened
! and tired of the struggle against continued
ostracism, but think the majority haVe
decided to "stick."
| While the Eff. V.'s thus reject In So
cial way the presence of loyal whites, they
are decidedly earnest In their efforts 10
attract in political way the friendship OF
the blacks. And they have succeeded 80 lar
tha, 800 of them in this city voted the Con-
| seryatiye ticket at the last election. The
detestsble niger Ben Scott" whose
| name formerly figured in the Democratic
| prints of the city in connection with many
Police Court cases, is now known as soap
| tain Ben Scott (colored), who has been
persecuted by bis former Radical brethren
| for passing counterfeit money" Ben's ex-
| ample is frightful. From slave to tree
man, from Radical ward leader to Conser-
yative politician, and from the ranks OF the
Democracy very naturally to the penlten.
| tiary, will soon be his complete history.
| Yet his Democratic friends do not Alto
| eether desert him now. i overheard one
| of them-a prominent lawyer-say to him.
| pending his application for bal, Ben,
| believe you're innocent !; hope you'll not
be punis he'd and think that you will be
| better boy after you get out Of this scFape."
| I am bound to say that Ben did not accept
| this offer OF consolation with half the evil
| dence of gratitude that he subsequently eX-