The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1874-09-17

o., L
And my dear wife Polly is dead.
The following is taken from the last
number of Rarpers Weekly:
THE WAR OF RACES"
The war of races" at Austin, in Missis-
sippi, began, as usual, by an outrage upon
the part of reckless white man who
shot colored man. The testimony OF
experience is conclusive that the coIored
race i'll this country is not aggressive,
murderous or disorderly, and that as in
the massacres at New Orleans and Mem
phis. soon after the war. the first guilt of
blood is, almost without exception, upon
the race that calls itself superior In
deed, the m;lduess of the colored race
has been accounted its weakness In
1871 as many of our readers will remem-
ber, there was great public excitement
over the case OF the brig Creole. She
sailed from Richmond to New Orleans
with cargo of slaves. Nineteen of them
rose, took possession of the brig, and
carried her into Nassau. A slavedealer
was killed in the struggle, and several of
the crew wounded. The slaves bad all
the whites in their power but they did
only what was necessary for their free
dom. The difference between their con-
duct and that to which they had been
subjected by the whites was sublime.
But they were denounced by Calhoun
and Benton and Webster as "murderers
and mutineers. If they were SO, what
were Washington and Warren? =? If thev
were so, what we're the men who were
carrying them to the shambles in New
Orleans?
Just before, in 1899, occurred the case
aNe lA A 81
a cargo of slaves was stolen from frica
was landed in Havana, and was tran
shipped in the Amistad to Principe The
Africans rose, as Americans would have
risen, and took possession of the vessel.
During the fight the captain and cook
were killed; but, having gained their
liberty, the slaves spared everybody else,
including the slaye-dealers who were car
rying them to market The victors knew
nothing OF navigation, and the vessel
was brought into New London On the
shores of the harbor of that town rises
the monument to Ledyard, who is hon
ored by Americans for doing what the
Amistad captives did But the Demo
cratic Administration of that day, Van
Buren, Forsyth, Grunoy, with their legal
understrappers in Connecticut, strained
every nerve to have the Africans sent
back to Cuba to be hung as pirates and
assassins Old John Quincy Adams op-
posed them, saved the honor of the coun-
try, and held up the tools of the slave
power to the scorn of the world.
The same malignant spirit of hostility
shown TO the unfortunate race in slavery
pursues it to-day When Dostie was
killed in New Orleans, just after the war,
in disturbance due to white hatred OF
the colored people, the servile Democratic
papers in the Northern States called the
riot radical massacre. The late events
at Austin have been so represented as to
deepen the prejudice against the colored
race. A story was circulated in the
town that they were numbering white
women and children on the neighboring
plantations. 1t was false; but the white
men left the town to protect them, and
the colored men took possession; but,
says the report ''at the last accounts
they had committed no acts of violence
toward the few whites who were unable
to get away.
The colored race is peaceful and docile
and its share OF responsibility for the
sorrow that weighs upon the Southern
States is inappreciable. All manner of
horrors are anticipated by some of the
whites from the passage of q bill secur-
ing the equal rights of colored citizens
before the law The fear is bugaboo.
The same fears were expressed when it
was proposed thirty-two or three years
ago in. Massachusetts, to repeal the law
against the intermarriage of the two
races The proposition was denounced
as an innovation, which would inevita-
bly, be followed by another permitting
the colored people to ride in the same
cars with the whites. One solemn gen.
tleman averred that he would rather see
his daughter buried than married to
black man-the veteran argument in
this lofty debate. And this simple act of
common-sense was stigmatized as tull of
disasters to society, and piteous appeals
were made to preserve the white race
from the deterioration. of amaigamation
The furious follies which have been ut
tered upon this subject of justice to the
colored race would be incredible if we
did not hear them repeated at every
and just proposition of honor
able conduct toward those whom the |
white race of this country has so long
and cruelty oppressed. And we know
nothing that would be so truly ''conser |
yatiye; at this moment as a little refiec
tion and reading The conduct of the |
slaves during the war, and their entire |
freedom from any thing that can be called |
social aggression since the war, should |
shield them from the charge of |
ey intent toward the whites, and from |
the suspicion of desire of anything but |
their equal rights as men and Americans.