The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1874-09-24
THE WAR OF RACES"

Slsslppl, began, as usual by an oatrauc M
on the part Of a reckless white man who
shot colored man The testimony of OK
perlence Is conclusive that the colored race
Ill this country IS not aggressive, murder
Gus, or dlsordcrly, and that. as in the mas
sacres at New Orleans and Memphis. soon
after the war, the first guilt of blood is. al
most without exception, upon the race that
| calls itself superior. Indeed, the mildness
OF the colored race has been accounted its
weakness In 1S41, as many of our read
ers will remember, there was great public
excitement over the case of the brio
CTeote. 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 4 slave
dealer was killed in the struggle. and several
OF the crew wounded The slaves had all
the whites in their power, but they did only
what was necessary for their freedom The
difference between their conduct and that
to which they had been subjected to by
whites was sublime But they were de
nounced by Calhoun and Benton and Web
ster as ''murderers and mutinccrs." If
! they were so, what were Washington and
Warren? If they were so, what were the
men who were carrying them to the sham
blcs in New Orleans d?
just before, in 1889. occurred the case
OF the -intjstad. Against Spanish law a
cargo OF slaves stolen from Africa was land
ed in Havana, and was transhippcd in the
-Amistad to Principle The Africans rose.
as Americans would have risen, and took
possession Of the vessel During the fight
the captain and cook were killed but. hav-
ing gained their liberty, the slaves spared
everybody else, including the slavc-dealers
who were carrying them 70 market The
ylctors knew nothing Of navigation, and
the vessel was brought into New London
On the shores Of the harbor Of that town
rises the monument of Ledyard. who is
honored by Americans for doing what tho
imistGd captives did. But the Democratic
Administration Of that day. Van Buren,
Forsyth, and Grundy, with their legal un-
derStrappers iii Connecticut, strained every
nerve 10 have the Africans sent back to
Cuba to be hung as pirates and assassns
Old John Quincy Adams opposed them
saved the honor of his country, 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
at New Orleans, just after the war, in
disturbance due to white hatred Of Il
c0lorcd people. the servile Democratic pa
Il !, H., III,
radical massacre. The late events at Aus
tin have been 50 represented as to deepen
the prejudice against the colored race. y
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 cClored 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 coiored race Is peaceful and docile,
and is share Of responsibility for the sor-
row that weighs upon the Southern States
is inappreciable. AlImanner Of horrors are
anticipated by some Of the whites from the
passage of a bill securing the equal rights
Of colorcd citizens before the law. The
fear is bugaboo The same fears were
expressed when it was proposed thirty-two
or three wears ago in Massachusetts, to re-
peal the law against the intermarriage Of
the two roces. The proposition was de
nounced as an innovation, which would
inevitably be followed by another permit
ting the colored people TO ride il the same
cars with the whites One solemn gentle
man averred that he would rather see his
daughter buried than married to a black
man-the veteran argument in this lofty
debate. And this simple act of common
sense was stigmatized as full Of disasters to
society, and piteors appeals were made to
preserve the white race from the deteriora-
ton of amalgamation The furious follles
which have been uttered upon this subject
of Justice to the colored race would be IN
credible If we did not hear them repeated
at every reasonable and just proposition Of
honorable conduct towards those whom the
white race of this country have so long and
cruelty oppressed. And we know nothing
that would be so truly conservative at
this moment as little reflection and read
ing. 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 evil intent towards the whites,
and from the suspicion of a desire of any
thing but their equal rights as men and
Americans Haaper's Weekly.
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