New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-04-10

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blindness to be beyond the hope Of re-
lapse. He has Just opened his eyes upon
a new element of political influence, and
its extent surprises and confuses him tie
and is liable to abuse It.
If he persists in this error he will soon
conclude, as Poor Miss Finch did, that his
blindness was his happiness
The discovery upon which the P;cny,n1e
has Just opened its eyes is the fact that the
negro is a power-its mistake in the mat
ter is the assertion that this power has
been abused. Sensible people saw six
years ago what the Picapne was prevented
by its misfortune from seeing until now.
Sensible people who are familiar with what
has been before their eyes for long time
do not see the abuse that the PicaVlne so
readily discovers This is to be attributed
to principle that developed itself in Poor
Miss Finch's case that they can not meas
IRE realities by standards which they es-
tablished in their blindness. The abuse
which the negroes have suffered at the
hands Of the Republican party is one OF
the errors which the Picayme accepted
when it was blind, ard it can not get rid
of it now that it is restored to its vision.
Miss Finch brought out of her obscurity a
feeling of repugnance to blue faced men
the Picayune can not get rid Of its anti
patty to black-faced people. They are
here and it was duty to perform by
them but it does not relish the job and
protests that it must be allowed to fulfill
its obligation in its own way, which is by
substituting itself in the place of those
friends whom it accuses of having misled
and cheated the race that it refused and
still refuses to accept, except as inferior
If the Picayune will allow us to do it
service, we engage to cure this distortion
that now disturbs it's sight. We are happy
to know that it is capable Of seeing what
others have seen so long, but it renders
us miserable to reflect that it may fall into
error, and do itself and the public great
mischief by miscalculating the elements
or essentials of the power which it has
just discovered. Those who have but now
emerged from darkness are not the ones
to undertake the leadership of those who
have lived for years in the light.
As first lesson, then, the P;cayule
must understand that the negroes are not
only power, but that they are capable of
understanding that fact themselves. It's
second lesson must be to learn that the
right way to reach the understanding of
negro, as it is Of white man. is to tell
the truth and to do Justice. These are the
beginning and the end of political wisdom.
While it was blind, the Picaylne refused
to accept the colored people as power,
and it now admits that that was great
mistake. Now that it can see it attempts
to correct this error, but in doing so it falls
into a worse one, that Of wickedly attempt
ing to impose upon the understanding Of
the colored people a selfish falsehood.
When it says that the Republicans cheated
and deceived the negroes, the PicaW1e
stupidity tells story that it does not be-
lieve itself. but which it weakly asks the
colored race to accept. Was there ever
such folly as 10 talk nonsense to those
whom We admit to be reasonable:
All that the Republicans proposed to do
in favor Of the colored people they kave
done. And more too. At first they merely
declared that slavery should not pollute
the Territories. This was the first step in
the process of freedom. Its object Was to
restrict and suffocate slavery by contin-
ually driving in upon it circumvalation
of freemen. In the prosecution of this
programme the Republicans were met By
the friends OF slavery with the assertion
that if they did not desist there would be
a dissolution Of the Union. This threat
did not arrest the Republicans only
made them more firm and persistent An
attempt was made to dissolve the Union,
and this fact was made the excuse for
doing in a day what had only been pro-
posed as the work of years. Slavery was
abolished as an act Of war, instead of by
the process OF suHocation. This was more
than the Republicans had promised, be-
cause it vas sooner done After that the
were admitted to the rights
of citizenship. This was more than
promised. They We're clothed with Off
cial honors. Who ever heard the Repub-
licans promise this much: And all these
things have been done against the deter
mined opposition OF the PicoWme and its
friends. Is it net little impertinent,
then, III those who resisted this reyolu-
ton, and who have constantly denied its
force and success, to step in at this late
day and declare that the men who wrought
it have cheated the people who are now
al its benefits? Ii the Pjcoyn,e
was in the enjoyment Ct as good pair Of
eyes as We have, il woali .ay, as We say,
it has been impertinelt.
Coming down to local matters, the Re
pubIicana OF Louisiana declared in 1856
that the negroes should be admitted to AL
the rights Of any and every Other citizen
For this they were murdered il cold blood
and set beyond the pail ofall decentyccog-
milton By tie Tic2yrne and its blind par
tigans IT,: wa, al the promise that Wl-
made, ard ~. lily t1s opposition to find
any other pisdse. How las this engage
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