New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1871-12-14
Letter from Washington.
WASHINGTON. ID. G, Dec. 7, Is

WASHINGTON, ~. u, Zee. 1, ioil.
To the Editor of The Ne,o National Era:
When one reads such letter as that OF
ar T. G." which appeared in your columns
of the Goth ult, it is not without great degree
of consolation that he finds that, although
in the course of human events, guided by p'-
vine Providence, the negro race has within 'he
past two months lost two of its ablest men III
the persons of Professor Cato and Lieu'ehah'
Governor Dunn, yet there remains among
others who have been spared us, young man
like ar. T. CT growing with all the power oil
q Burke and the fire of Pitt oil o'o' io"s
NAV he live to aid us in the struggle "h'ch
seems inevitably to beset us always before truth
and iustice can be awarded US. Ihis brings
me now to the subject of my letter-Ac'ion.
The action required on our part, in this day
of our nation, ia reference to ourselves IS I'M
mediate and potent. In the OlymPics OF
Politics the dust is fast gathered up before our
ewes by reason of the aid given to the ALREADY
swift and foremost.
"R. TEXTURES the necessity for petition
To Congress. signed by every colored man ana
woman above the age Of eighteen, praying
Congress to grant our prayer and pass Senator
Summers supplementary bill Of civil rights. l
would add the names also of our white friends.
If their hearts truly pulsate to the sentiments
of their lips, this should be 50. We know this
to be true Of our great and constant friend,
Senator Sumner. Is it to be fact that gen.
eral amnesty is to be granted the rebel man OF
the South, by which he shall be restored to all
his political rights and privileges, and all past
disabilities under which he labored removed,
while the negro, who no doubt contributed
largely to the salvation of the Union, which
was the main question: and not his emancipa-
ton, shall be left to struggle out an existence
amidst the horrors of prejudices subversIve
of law and justice, and incompatible with the
freedom and liberty of u citizen? 1t is mockery
!. to talk about citizenship and its privileges
being enjoyed when the so called citizen is
denied the right of lOcomotiOn necessary TO
the pursuit of happiness, upon the ignorant and
disgraceiul plea of past condition or color
/ claim that by the Constitution Of the Uni
ted States, in its bill Of rights and the four
teenth am 9ndment, as a specification, all the
privileges Of citizenship are granted to the
colored man in like manner to those of the
white man. The necessity of the supplementary
bill Of civil rights is only proof of the stub
bornness of our people to do justice to all, and
to cover themselves under the cloak of con-
structions and intentions utterly inconsistent
with the spirit and truth of republican form
of government. 1t is due the negro, as well as
the white Union man of the North, that his
rights and privileges be protected from the law
kessness Of Ku-Klux in any form shape,
whether religion, politics or the right of To-
comotion.
Then, X. I. o." let US be mp and doing.
Action action action !, /! The ablest rep.
resentative of our race-you, Mr.. Editor, |
meant know will do your part. l know that
many winters Of your life you have passed in
struggling for the great cause of truth and
justice to all, and did not spend them either as
comfortably as, thank God, you can spend this.
Yet l indorse Cicero when he says, "NihH
igitur cferunt gu senectutem Oersari negant."
Therefore, Mr. Editor, WELD your pen, by
night and day, and let US fight the good fight.
have recommended action as necessary on
the part of our people. But it is to be regret
ted that far-off Brooklyn should remind us Of
the truth of the quotation made by our friend:
"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that We are underlings."
Here at the capital of the nation, we have
our representatives in Congress, in the various
Departments, filling chairs in our universities
as professors in law, Latin, and Divinity; all
of these, day by day, are denied the political
privileges, as well as the social privileges,
which, by the ties of Government, are our
bounden right. We must not be satisfied with
Offices ss mere pacifcations.
Citizens of Washington, you are behindhand
Let US tell Congress that we are alive to our
rights and privileges, and we ask in the name
Of God and humanity, to secure them to us,
and protect US in the exercise of them.
Cicero, when about to subvert the Roman
Empire, first attacked the youth-for, he said,
they are the bulwark of nation. We are
building noble ship in Howard University !;
she is we'll manned; the helm is we'll guided
the bulwark is strong; the crew is loyal.
Then, ar. L. Co." here we will, though late,
wv Jul Phit. IOu uusc WEAK manu-, feeble
brain, but indomitablo will, to strive for our
rights.
In conclusion, would suggest to the colored
citizens of the "City of Brotherly Love" to
wait awhile before they manifest their graft
tude to the great "Commoner," Thaddeus
Stevens. He was our friend there is not a
question about this. But is the erection of a
monument to his great good and glory expe,
dent in the present condition of our affairs ?
BE assured, as We prove ourselves men, we
shall be asked to walk alone. We are numeri-
cally small We should, therefore, treasure our
wealth for the circulation of commerce aud
education. We find no fault here with such
able and, philanthropic men as VIVA. Whipper,
Stephen U. b. Vidal, and the growing Young
merchant, James Purnell Yet, has either of
these gentlemen conceived what a powerful
educator of the times $4,000 is when ex.
pended in establishing a street raii,oay by a
company of such wealthy, experienced, and
deep-thinking men OF our race, and next u
steamboat company
must close for the present, and remain
yours truly,
ID. A. SrRAKER.
Letter from OberIin.