The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1875-03-24
Eutter Oh civil Rights.

The following letter emanates from
the Hon. Benjamin T. Butler, late
Congressman from the district of Es-
sex. in Massachusetts,, and will deter
mine some doubts hitherto existing in
many intelligent minds as to the exact
scope of the famous Civil Rights Act:
WASHINGTON, March Is, 1873.
sSir-I have the pleasure to ac-
knowledge receipt of yours of the
18th. containing expressions OF appre-
citation of my efforts in behalf OF the
Civil Rights Bill, for which accept my
thanks. You further ask, Will you
be kind enough to inform me if col
ored men are entitled to the privileges
of saloons and barber shops under It's
provisions
ITO this | answer: l understand
by saloons, you mean drinking
saloons, and am happy to say that the
Civil Rights Bill does not give any
right to colored man to GO. into
drink ing saloon without the leave OF
the proprietor, and am very glad that
1T does not | am willing to concede.
az friend to the coiored man, that
the white race NAV have at least this
one superior privilege to the colored
man, that they can drink IN bar-rooms
and saloons, and [ never shall do any
thing TO interfere with the exercise OF
that high and distinctive privilege. L
would not advocate bill which should
give that right to the colored man. 1t
[ were TO vote for any bill on this
subject at all, it would be one to keep
the eolored man out of the drinking
saloons, and | hope no bar keeper
will ever let a colored man have
glass of liquor at any bar open Tor
drinking. Indeed, | should be clad.
whenever a colored man should so in
to a drinking saloon for the purpose
of drinking at the bar, if somebody
would at once take him and put him
out. doing him as little injury as pos
.sible. He could do the colored man
no greater kindness.
las to the other branch of your
question, in reference to barber shops,
let me say that the trade OF barber
is like any other trade, to be carried
on by the man who is engaged in it at
his own will and pleasure. and the
Civil Rights Bill has nothing to DO,
and was intended to have nothing to
SO, with its exercise. A barber has
= right to shave whom he plcases, as
mach as q jeweler has a right to re-
,nsir a watch for whom he pleases, or
Il Blacksmith to shoe such colored
horses as he pleases In other words.
THESE arc not public employmehts. but
,urnratc business, In which the law
docs not interfere.
From time immemorial all men
have had equal rights at the common
law in places of public amusement. III
,puhEic conveyances and by inns or
licensed taverbs, because all such
business was for the public under
special privileges granted by the Gov
,ermnent The theatre and like pub
lie .auaiuse meHts were licensed by the
pubic authorities and protected by
the police The public conyeyances
used the Kings highway. The public
inn had the special privilege of lien
or ,cks1m upon the baggage or other
property OF any Traveller using 1T Tor
his keep: and it any man was refused,
while behaving himself well and pay
ing his fare, IA seat III any place OF
Ipu blEsc amusement, or carriage by pub
lie conveyance or shelter in a public
inn. Re had at common law a right OF
actisx against the party so refused.
The Civil Rights Bill only confirms
these rights Of all citizens to the col
ored snan in consideration OF the pre-
.judias against him. and an attempt in
certasf, parts of the country to inter
fere with the exercise of those com
mon law rights, and has enacted a
peaalty as a means of enforcing the
his lsrl,.less and dependent condition.
The Civil Rights Bill has not altered
the es,lored man rights at all from
h., l,o4D Tor, ho
moE law, applicable to nearly every
Stale. in the Union 1t has only given
him a greater power to enforce that
righK to meet the exigency of CON-
bised effort to deprive colored cltl-
zens of it: and all idea that the Civil
Rights Bill allows the colored man to
force himself into any mans shop. or
into any mans private house, or into
any eating house, boarding house, or
establishment other than those | have
manned, Is simply an exhibition OF
ignorance as we'll as. in some cases, of
imsu fferable prejudice and malignlty.
And while | would sustain any col
-3red man in firmly and properly in
sis1ine upon his rights under the Civil
Rights Bill, which were his at COM
non Inv. as they We're the right OF
every citizen, yet should oppose to
the utmost of my power any attempt
on the part of the colored men to use
the Civil Rights Bill as a pretense to
interfere with the private business of
private parties. 1t is beneath the dig
nifty Of any colored man so to do, and
all acts, such as shutting him out from
drinking saloons, may be well left to
the ignorant and generally vicious
men who keep them as badge of
their superiority to the colored ra,.e.
L have the homer to be, &C.,
"BENJAMIN f. BUTLER.
ZIP on, L DIT II ALLAN E.n