New-York tribune., 1879-05-10
,ETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE
"soUTHERN POVERTY"
,vTrrR FROM soLoN RoBINsoN.

IL
rd1for Of The Trf6wne;
Gu, The article which you published Aprli
,no above title will bear q little further Illus
- nv Northern-bon man who mas mace 'no 'ou't
-, novoe for tho past ten OF twelve years "unS VIZ
80 .ravelled some and seen q goou uo"i VI 0o
,, n oil is phases For the purpose oi 'o"i'"'n' anN
,,,ng the subject directly before Tie p'esen' ieu'
4 wish TO repeat the first sentences Va '""'
follows: .,o Cation States are i'm.
All 9Th the appearauoe Of thrittessness thaI cnaI
scterizes the whole country s % tnvns have evidently
en- better days the planters houses are S rsSroi II, nat
Of paint ana repairs Ts in Se old cabins constructed in
% ~ Slavery now much dliapdaieu py aSe any anu
want Of care have D fortsbe t6an their old quar-
@ Tbcre are few bridges across tne iilSis va oi ano %
most none across the etSehs, en- Stacking condition
snG tbe railroads few through nes & oPePS.eI & ny
S,rtbcrn capitalists are baIeS pass"'i0 io' 'i"'"' ~
,inc ten or ifteen miles an hour'
- al obseryant travellers have observed that this
no,al condition Of dilapidaon is attributed TO the
,,arcod condition Of labor" Aud have no doubt
,bt GOOD many these travellers believe that story
t,t And the reason don't Is because spent three
,,..ors some thnty years ago. travelling eisurely
oty in nv own wagon, through the Slave states from
81 Ions TO New Orleans, ana from Louisiana to Della
-, Tbad nothing else to do but TO be an observing
,reuer. and some dozens of note books now laid
,rov in my library bear witness that l did observe
GOOD many things. And now declare that the general
,rnesrsnee Of thrftessness" full as great in those
davs as it is IN the present
Itscvactly in The uaure Of things that that appear
snce viii attract the eyes Of all obseryant travellers
rrCm Northern States while the present as we as past
,diton Of labor exists Not the condition OF slavery
- emancipation, nor "the natural thrftlessness Of
,be negroes" but the inbred condition OF Incidence,
,d despite OF all labor which can be possibly called
nenial.
All such labor and all who thus labor most heart
Uv despsed by the average southern gentleman" He
had rather suffer cold than chop and bring in handful
of Sood ana the front gate might fall from its Auges
and block the way TO his lacnles front door rather
tbau he subject himself the degradation OF making
pairs with his own hands.
And ike master like man is Just true to-day as
3fyyas when that old prOverb first written. And
The freedman like the slave. only little more So Not
being compelled 10 labor ssanty to gain mere sub
sstence il is perfectly natural that black man should
become as indoent and sftless the white man who
claims to be his superior, and ought 10 show 1lm good
example of industry
Can you expect the freedmen 10 voluntarily build
roads and bridges the almost exclusive use and ben
eft Of their old masters who never built them durns
the good old times assert that tie streams are
no more bridgeless now than they ve-r then A-t they
will remain bTdgcless aud the country VII wear rs
look Of poverty and dapidation Just long as tne
present condition Of society exists Not because The
negro won't work" but because the other party won't
particularly that portion which have grown 10 manhood
since slavery was abolished.
! assert that the negro viii work. Otherwise very
little work would be done in all the south.
have employed a good many white men Of diverse
natiOnalties During active long life In several
States and during the time have lived IN Florida,
have employed probably more than hundred negroes
IN various cdlaCts a. carpenter bIlcAdy cl . pastei-
ers painters, white wOOdchOppers and sawyers
GaIdGers and common laborers and scarcely call to
mind single case OF Wilu ignorance or usi Oson 10
shrk labor. II is true they are generally slow, and some
times stupid enough 10 try godke patience, yet al
WAYS buabe and willing be told, and they Try 10 do
As they told but do sometimes tail have always
tried put yelf in his place" and thus have always
succeeded N getting satisfactory labor have alway
aimed TO do the brain work, and they willingly do the
muscular. What tue negroes need is direction ana
honest pay for their LABOR What the South needs is
white capable and willing 10 direct, and not one
born Of indOlonce and pred TO hate labor ,
II the Southern people poor IL their own fault
and not the fault of war or emancipation If Their
houses farms and villages are dapddted ana dirty
is the negroes aut 1t is the fault of ndOlence of
the other II Is because they appreciated tue
value of that Old adage a stitch In time saves nlne
and saves pace from becoming dilapidated. And a
place dlla pldaed III thing is likely 10 become ddp-
idacd In all things, and tat is WHY the aVeer is 80
Impressed with the general appearance of
throughout the south II he sees an exceppou he SAYS az
Here is Northern capital and Northern thrift"
Very marked instances Of this may be at Atlanta,
ceutrng railways. and less at several other
places Ia Georgia, and notably in this town aud at
other points East Florida; while other places con-
rOed by the Southern elemenWhlch drives out North
and means OF Improvement, wear hat old Woe
begOue look well described in the article noticed aud
IN several Of the letters OF E.N. S." LW and other
observers.
could make q great many specifications TO indicate
this widespread Southern disease but whereoref II Is
almost universal, and ncurdbe. unless by medicine
which The sufferers reject JLcy mad rather 1--we ana die
IN poverty than be cured by Yankee braus aid thrift
which make the great contrast III the general appear
eHce OF North and South. SoLoN ROBINSON
JGekSonriHe, FId., April 25, 1879.