The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1880-10-21
Bricks With put Straw.

Tourgee made a hit in preparing his DO
iitlcal stories Il. e., iIes) for the prrsi len al
year. Anything that injured the South
and kept alive the enbers of discord and
strife was sure to he devoured most rea iliy
in any Par: Of the North where Radlcalism
prevailed. There are a million or two Of
people IN the Northern States who are ALSO
iuteiy Ignorant of all that pertains to- the
south. They have q much IRE accarute
knowledge OF Central Asia or Central Afucs
nan thes have Of the Southern States OF
he Union. Thev only know US through
lying correspondents and novels rha; are
designated to carciturc our people. -
iourgee made a success when he sought The
North for the sale 81 his literary wares Tn.
iemand for A Fools Errand" has i,ten
phenomenal. Ii has sold simply hec ,use il
Was supposed 10 he in mical to the ) ath
,od travestIed our people. Ii is MT clam
ID among the Intelligent critics 70 be OF lItr
rary value. Indeed some have rather 4 ,mn
ed II outright, and yet II has sold son
thing ! Ike Uncle Toms Cabin sold, and
ali because II WIS a some What vigorous, AMI
II may he, ingenious assault Upon a people
whose money he pocktted, whose Characters
re cnuld never understand, whose socit
,irclrs be could never enter, and whom he
iate because they knew him quite thor
Iughiy. He came as an adventurer. Dur
.ng the mighty upheaval consequent upoO
The war, when society was shaken and III
situations were upTooted, the V. cite
BILE carpet Dagger was thrown IL the sur
ace. and he appeared as one of the selected
toItunates who were to wear the JudiciaI
robes and hold the courts Of North Carolina.
Knowing but little law at first. his North
western carpet Dagger learned fast, and bur
for hrs nntnrtnnHrp nrlncInloa womb how.
made a creditsble Judge.
When he visited Yanceyvi!le, Caswell
county, TO hold his court he boarded with II
negro. His instincts were low; his tradu
clEg the people Upon whom he had been
forced was an offence; he was not contcnf
TO consplre against their prosperity ami
happiness, but he used his faclIe and acrid
pen to degrade and SANDER the white peopI,
IF North Carolina. He told the Northern
people that twenty odd Qlakels had been
drowned IN one pond, when it WAS a lie out
of the whole cloth.
And now Tourgee is having his revenge.
We never read any of his books We tried
his first. He called it ''Tolgne,te'-thc
name OF a negro wench. We got through
4 hundred pages. Its nastlness was worse
han French nastiness because it had none
# TIE exquisite art or the exquisite wit tha
accompanies IL. We Threw Tue DODk dslUt
md have never seen it since His a
Fools ErraDd' we never read a line OF.
although a copv was sent US. We could
uot waste valuable leisure over a vIniic.ive
,nd vile book unrelieved by genus or az
admirable art. Ills third book h third
md most deliberate ass tult on the South. l.
cut. He calls it Bricks Without Straw
1t will sell because the South IS the theme.
Ne have not seen it and shall not read it
vii. Star.
BY way of comment on the foregoing, we
PRINT the following:
The editor of the indianapolis Sentinel
addressed a letter to Fred. Douglass rela
i've to his visit to North Carolina. The
Negro has published a card in which h,
says she saw and heard enough to convince
MIN that the impression IN the North thai
there IS a conflict Jetueen the races IN TIE
south is WRONG. lie says that he wa
extremely pleased with his reception 10 Raj
eigh, ana made hopeful Of the future Of hi-
race 10 that State by the kind and friendly
words of the Democratic Governor on the
occasion Of the colored people there assem-
"led, and he halls it as a sign OF the CON
ing tllne when there Will he a perfect peace
and concord between the different races ann
colors OF the whole South"