The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-10-16
THUS BAD BEGINS AND WORSE Re-
MAINS BEHIND.


time steadily increase in frequency, for the
reason that the generation Of negroes who
were raised by white men Of the better order
is passing away and giving place to another
generation raised wholly by negroes. With
their docile and initiative nature they learned
by absorption much Of the white mans lam
guage, many of his ways, and many of his
ideas. They knew the great superiority of
the average white man over the average negro
in sagacity and common sense, which can not
be learned from books, but is hereditary in
the white race, and knowing, they deferred to
it, trusted and obeyed it. This Difference, trust
and obedience became second nature which
adheres to them now that they are free. This
nature or habit will not descend to their chill
dren, who, having near them exemplars,
guides and teachers of a lower grade than
their fathers had, will naturally obey their
own wills and instincts more and be less
guided by reason and common-sense. Being
separated almost constantly from the whites,
and looking GENEROUSLY and enviously at the
results Of white common-sense in the COM
forts by which sagacity and industry have
surrounded them, they will be further re-
moved from the civilized standard than their
parents were. This process will not stop with
this generation, and that following it
will be still more unacquainted with and
unip fiuenced by white ideas, and still more
hostile and envious toward the whites.
We may expect trouble always when liberty,
lacking knowledge, degenerates to license.
We may expect increased trouble when the
present generation of negroes is replaced by
another, which knows less of the white mans
ideas. The average negros estimate of pro-
prietary rights was always rather low,
especially as to pigs, poultry, fruit and veget-
ables, making but little distinction in the day
time and scarcely any at night, between the
wild game of the woods and the tame game
of the farm yard. This trait is worse among
the young negroes who have known the least
of plantation restraint or of white govern
ment
Innumerable complaints are heard from all
sections of depredations upon every species
of movable property. It is almost impossible
to raise fowls CT hogs enough for home use on
any farm in the vicinity of any large number
of negroes. The punishment Of the few who
are detected seems to have no restraining in
fuence upon the many who steal with impu-
nifty. 1t is becoming almost universal expe-
rience that nothing can be kept unless it is
securely locked or constantly watched
This theft is not limited to what the thieves
eat or wear, but extends to everything which
they can sell. Stealing cotton in the seed is
a form of depreciation which has increased
very much until it has become nuisance
and dread to the planter worse than drouth,
blight or caterpillars. Of course, there are
mean white men (carpet-bag merchants) who
act an important part in this theft by buying
the seed cotton at night from the negroes, in
which form they can now send it to market.
From plantations worked by negroes on
shares the lessor often loses fifth part or
more of his share of the crop by this species
of wholesale depreciation.
Negro robbery, for reasons above noted,
must increase steadily even with the more
stringent enforcement of the criminal law.
Respect for the right of ownership is one of
the feelings and instincts Of the civilized
reasoning man, which he inhelits and can
not forget; ignorance and disregard of that
right is the characteristic of the barbarian,
which comes to him by a descent of hun
dred generations Of savages