The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1879-06-18
Tor the Dispatcb.J
n Reatcr Country.

S1ae1Su ny WSA nieuo"Ass ~ sN~s'--s -
20 color: rs
>s--,-. Tor the Dispatcb.J
IA Restcr Country.
Some ce9ored man from south Of the
James river, in the central part OK the
State. has written me In reference to NOV
ing from Virginia, and asks for .. q better
country than this" There Is something
pathetic In this simple question OF the
Yreedman's letter, couched in bad English
and worse penmanship. This asking after
better country ista question continually III
the mouths and minds of thousands OF PEG
ple, white as well us black, and in this indl-
yidual instance she writer thought a public
answer OF the question might be for good.
| There are two sections to which my CO.
lared friend could go for better country.
North or West. III ,sa:@..t5a
Inthe North people do not take kindly to
negroes The northern mans love Tor the
former slave is purely theoretical one, ana
| in nine cases out of ten does not assume q
practical turn. AS an inmate Ola northern
farmhouse, the jcolored man would ma
himself as thoroughly separated from his
white surroundings as it. is possible for
them 10 be. South the man is Tome Sam !;
| North he is a g Niger" and the farther
North the more Of curiosity and more OF
| a "nieger1 be is. i will not attempt to
kdefend this course. There is no defence.
I am simply stating facts as Isee them.
In a social and domestic way, the nearer
the north pole you get the farther removed
the black man finds himself from social and
domestic equatity.hA man without aifamliy
might find employment rs q, hestler Or, a
man. o.. ail-work in Il good.sized town; but
| for the farming regions the sight of color
| ed family in a tenabt-house as part and
parcel Of farm-economy is rare thing in
deed-so. much--so. that do not remember
to baye seen anything OF the kind at all.
So, then, the North, with a forbiddiDs So
cial System and q climate that in the far
North is. simply. terrible, is NOT better
country than Old Virginia for the colored
man. y ""E "a i i'''.-'.s. - &c.. RI
Now for the West: To get to Kansas or
| Nebraska will cost, at the least, fifteen dol
lars per head, OF for a very small family say
| fifty dollars for transportation alone. Cons
sideriug that you have the fifty dollars and
no more, or but little more, il you will
take your family out and squat houseless
and homeless, foodless and friendlesS, on
the dearest level field and call it west,
YOU will have. your exact situation as an
emigrant. -...
No man, white or black. should think OF
gong West as an emlgrant without money
ahead, and hundred dollars may be named
MS a ridiculously small sum to begin on.
Therefore my colored friend, ii he has say
two hundred dollars, pluck, foresight,
heath.a smart, working family, and good
luck, MAY. succeed, but it will be where
Hundreds OF white men fail. ~, ma
To 20 West as a.tenant is not to find SEA
better country" aud TO go as an emigrant
to have home in sight involves the posses
sion of far more money than the average
man and brother possesses. ..e5s.- -. ..:.
Where, then, is the good place to live and
die? And / emphaticaIly declare that IN
my opinion the coiored man in Virginia,
with employment that gives him food and
clothing, should seek no better country
than that which surrounds hlm. Ii my
coored friend will watch the white man
and initiate his good qualities, avoid bis
| bad ones, educate his children, keep out OF
debt and do good, he will malice better
country than the railroads can now take
| him to-. s ... . .n. ..
There is no place the writer ever saw
where a dollar could be honestly obtained
other than by work Of some character, and
any efforts on the part OF land agents or
advertisements to represent a different con-
dition of things are frauds, and deserve to
be so treated.
Let the colored tenant make fast friends
| with the white owner and initiate him in
matters OF household cleanliness md in his
desire to educate his children. Let him
keep out Of debt and out of politics, es-
chewing ideness as Satan's own, and at as
early dute as he can do il, paying cash,
buy a place Of his own, no matter how
small, and no "better place" need be
asked for. HOWARD MILLER.
| EIE, JjcE Pa