Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1875-03-18
Home Rule Applied to Thea ters

New York World.l
The new civil rights law says, in effect
that no inn-keeper or owner of a public
conveyance or owner Of place Of pub.
lie amusement shall, in such business,
deny negro any accommodation, ad,
vantage, facility or privilege, unless n
law, applicable to everybody, authorizes
such denial. II the law relied upon be a
State law, it is of course no law, and
thus no authority or justification if for
hidden by the Federal Constitution or
the amendments thereto.
This new legislation was chiefly in.
tended by its creators for the Southern
States, to exasperate the white men and
induce the black men therein to believe
that the Republican party is their
watchiul champion, and thus entitled
to their exclusive confidence and affec.
ton in the matter of inns, public con
veyances and theaters But its language
is general, and covers New York as we'll
as Arkansas.
1t is, however limited to four classes
OF business, and embraces no other.
What is an inn, and who is an inn
keeper2 A restaurant, a relectory, a
drinking saloon and even boarding.
house is not an, inn. That is clear
enough. The common law and the stat
ute Law of England and Of every State
in our Union defines the meaning Of the
word, aHd Congress must be taken to
have adopted it. In New York our
courts have made its definition we'll
known by repeated decisions on the liza.
bility Of inn. keepers to their guests. In
this State anybody can keep an inn, tav.
ern or hotel for man or beast without
special license or permission, unless to
sell wines or spirits as part of the bus
mess, and the laws OF this State pre-
scribe the rights and duties Of the keeper
and his guests. The laws of New York
respecting inn-keepers do not at present,
and probably never will, discriminate
between white and black people, and
therefore, under the civil rights statute
the keeper cannot deny a black man
enjoyment therein on accounbof his
color. Delmonico, in this city, keeps
unrivaled restaurants, but not an "innl"
What is public conveyance on land
or waterY Certainly it includes a rail
way, an omnibus, a licensed hack, a
stage-coach, a horse-car or vessel, the
managers of which undertake TO carry
for pay all persons or their goods.
If there is not now in New York any
State law which prevents an inn keeper
or common carrier TO refuse an appli-
cant solely because he is of black or
yellow instead Of white race, and il
there be, on the contrary, a State law
which forbids such refusal, inc new Fed.
eral legislation, in this regard, is not Of
consequence, unless we object, as very
properly we can, to the national govern
ment and officials undertaking to enforce
New York laws in behalf Of our own
people. We're the aggrieved person a
citizen OF another State we would have,
under very old legislation, right to
resort to the Federal courts TO obtain
justice for violation even of New York
laws, So, for that reason, the civil rights
law may not be practically of much con.
sequence theoretically it is of great
deaD in New York az to inn-keepers and
common carriers.
But how is it as to theaters and places
Of public amusement What law of
New York Furnishes Mr.. Wallack for re.
fusing to sell ticket of admission to his
theater to e black man for the reason
that he is a black man, and then forth
with selling it to a white man for the
price the former offered to pay2 II
might be very foolish and absurd for Mr..
Wallack to do so, but what law Of New
York forbids him9 Hehas a vacant and
unsold and unengaged seat in his thea.
ter for which a negro tenders him the
price, demands admission and is refused
because a negro. What damages, in
New York, can the negro recover in
court2 And il Mr.. WalIacks conduct
be correct in the sense Of New York Ia "
can Congress come in and make this acI