The daily gazette., 1875-09-22
WILMINGTON. DEL. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER %, 1875
rhe school Troubles I'm New Orleans

The race question has been the cause
| OF no end of trouble in the manage.
ment of the public schools in New
Orleans, tho latest difficulty having
arisen in consequence of the appoint
ment of negro as teacher in the
high school, and other colored persons
as teachers in schools of lower grades.
One hundred and twenty-five teachers
have recently been removed for polit.
ical causes and their places filled with
| others of no experience or efficiency,
whose only qualifications were either
the favor of q school director, or o
sufficient proportion Of African blood
| in their veins.
To some 1t may seem to afford evil
| dence of rebellious disposition
| against the Government of the United
States that white parents in New Or
leans, where race distinctions have
| always been so marked, should object
to putting their children under the
chage of negro instructors, who are
not only to supervise the development
OF their young minds, but also have
the power to stimulate their faculties
by the free use of the rod if they see
| lit to do SO; but when we remember
that here in the city of New York the
prejudice against color is ouch that no
negro children are admitted. in the
public schools attended by whites, the
| impartial observer will be apt to ar.
rive at the conclusion that the oppo-
sition of the New Orleans people to
African rule Ia the school houses may
possibly have other foundation than a
| desire for the destruction of the Union.
| The performances of our colored
brethren in the South: as educators,
though perhaps creditable to them un-
der the circumstances, have not gener-
| ally been very s. ccessful, as the
| reports Of various State Superinteu-
| tendents Of Education, among them
that of the Louisiana Superintendent,
have plainly made manifest. There
fore, aside from any prejudice against
color, the parents of New Orleans may
very naturally have objected to the in
novation of colored teachers for white
or mixed schools. 1t is said, too, that
the negro members of the Beard of
Directors of the city schools have been
In the habit of extorting from the
white teachers a portion of their sal
aries as condition of their being per.
mitted to retain their situations, and
this, doubtless, had its effect in
creating dissatisfaction in regard to
the sweeping changes that have been
made in the instructors of the public
schools. since the known verality of
the directors was calculated to excite
suspicion in regard to their motives.
One incident, given in the New Or
leans Bulletin, will afford the readers
an idea of the character of the off,
| cials who have the supervision of the
public schools in that city. A white
lady who had been engaged as teach.
er for many years, discharging her
duties industriously and faithfully,
was suddenly dropped from the rolls.
Since the spurious Kellogg Govern
ment has been in power she has been
| obliged to pay percentage of her
monthly salary to q negro director in
! order to keep her situation, and ON re-
ceiving notice of her discharge she ap-
piled TO this colored official to know
what complaint had been made against
her. The interview took place in a
public office, in the presence of many
witnesses, and ended in very gross
and profane insult to the lady, accom-
panied with peremptory order to
leave the office. All these things have
a tendency to cause resentment on the
part of the whites, and explain the
bitter feeling now exhisting on this
subject.
AS attempts have been made by the
Grant organs to create the impression
that the New Orleans school troubles
are the result of disloyal feeling to.
ward the national Government, it is
we'll that the public should understand
the real state of the CASEY 7,
Tribune.