The New Orleans Democrat., 1876-08-13
WheM tse C0untry ofKevss NINA FaaP
4 .pd6f4N III 1Avinw.nW fufoHT Ia

vines the Country o1eIs l1tm 70 Roar
/ .gaou4M III Avinw.aW dflieRT II
tcorrsspondsnesN News ana Coafisf.l lisas
go1unslA. Aeg! eaItstrfbutite jaslics, u no!
femsle milk thief In Columbia, Who dseoyedJ b
mild inaiinsred n ecE int8 blind aley ior ths
tired natures sweet rsstpesr, and was Kicked
pa"s o. as ssrs sse oi sr
ssrny q ybss Ss .0EHy y SsS, wgSnS s ths = Ssfans
proofs OF the soute wantto which many of tlie
colorsd Peopls n this city end vicinity are re-
can DO easily established that not less than Que
thousand negroes old and Young now existing
In this place, are In a state Of almost utter d :
country to obtain that work under the sun which
is 50 distasteful to them. and they. can find no
employment In the almost Idle field Of the city,
The CONSEQUENCE is that they suffer daily the
crime-impelling pangs OF hunger, and are COM
PEELED TO steal tho bread which = essential to
their miserable existence. These people are
now Migrants in the strfetsst sense Of the term
and as Columbia contains but a. 600 Inhabitants
the unparalleled spectacle is presented of a
bankrupt city supporting pauper population
numbering not less than seven per cent OF the
whole iit
1t is truly ma ter Of wonder that the proper
tlop Of detected criminals is not mnch larger
than it really is and % second matter of sur
prise is that no steps are taken by the proper an-
thorities to- discover and drive outtis class from
the. city. where they can only suffer and stirve
ly needed. aud where they could READILY provide
for themselves.
/ took pa TO inquire Of nm Intelligent col
Ored man wbether the case was as des peiale as
have previously represented upon common
report. and he said in reply that II was very
much worse than I could know. aud that the one
thousand WIS rather an under estimate Of their
number / asked why he and others reoog-
nized as the leaders Of this element did not ad-
wise them TO leave the city aud 10 TO the country
in search Of work. He replied that 1t would be
useless to so advise them. and that ''he would be
called a Democrat by them If he did 80. They
are oil politicians II not producers, and thereby
hangs the probable clue to the Indifference Of
the authorities Eff ef HNflI .fIFH
have been before informed that another and
large proportion OF the colUred people in this
city have seen service In the Penitentiary The
presence gf these two elements in any one place
js not desirable condition Of affairs to state II
mildly. and the comparative immunity from So
rious crimes which Columbia really enjoys be-
comes subject Of special wonder and adrnira-
tion to any one who will consider the ease and
compare our police record with those OF other
seemingly more favored communities. 4.
The sufferiugs OF one class OF the country
peOple from this source must not, however es-
cape attention 1t il well known tliHt no planter
OF small jarrDer residing within ten mkss OF the
town can raise" n hog, chicken or sheep to ma
ture age. Satisfied with the results Of many pa
tient but futile endeavors. these planters have
generally abandoned all further effort In this di-
rectfon, while the shot gun has by swift degre s
come to be Considered as essentially an agricul-
tural implement in the cultivation and subse-
quent protection Of corn and cotton crops.