The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-12-30
ArpEALs TO RACE PREJUDICE


District of Memphis, Tennessee, and we no
tice a style of canvassing now INDUCED il
to an immoderate extent in that unfortu
nate city, that cannot but be hurtful Their,
as it has been elsewhere in this country o
late years, and deserves at the hands of thu
press more than mere passing notice. Il
is nothing more nor less than the Irish anC
anti-Irish cry. In Ohio and some other sec
tions we are accustomed to hear extern
sively, at election times, German cry
and candidates are. chosen and issues
moulded to catch the attention and COM
mand the support of this or that par
ticuiar race or class Of citizens and most
frequently all other questions are swallowed
up in what may be simply and truthfully
stated conflict between races, How bit
terly has this war for the foreign or Irish
or Catholic vote been waged in New York
city the whole Union knows too well and it
is not going too far to remark here that this
narrow prejudiced and unpatriotic practice
has been the fruitful source Of many of our
political and social plumbers, to say nothing
of the obstacles thrown in our way 10
complete Americanizing and unity
ing of sentiment throughout the en-
tire extent of the Federal Republic.
II foreign immigrant is worth anything
to us it is as citizen, not as an English
man, or Swedc or an Italian, or what
not but an American. If such does not
come among us with the pure and uncon-
ditonal purpose Of adopting our manners,
sGudying and upholding our institutions,
becoming inoculated with American ideas
and doing in word while in Rome as the
Romans do" he is rarely a contented or
very patriotic citizen, and as a rule dis
contented and indifferent citizens do not
add much to the general or collective force
or efficiency of a governments subjects. 1t
will undoubtedly be noticed everywhere
in these American States that the mos tim
fluential and successful, the most patriotic
and happy foreigners are those who have
apparently discarded tie peculiar race
tenets or customs of earlier days and be-
come thorough Americans. A real citizen,
other qualifications being equal, is the man
who knows no other laws, no other govern
ment, no other manners but those which
surround him and alone call for his study
and admiration. Sucha man i'll this nation
is citizen whether born in Mas
al, Of
in Scandinavia where he once held
ofic. Under our very generous
way of looking at things and the lib
eral frame of our statutes he has ceased to
be puritan or cavalier, a Turk ora iIoosier
and has been forever absorbed into the body
polite as an American citizen, simply and
purely. There is not an intelligent person
in the United States but admits this fact
upon its bare rehearsal and to engage in
conduct seemingly, often, indeed, ex-
pressly negativing the idea in times of po-
litical excitement is to do the most unpa-
trotic and unwise thing imaginable.
Aside from keeping alive race preiudices
aad producing the most varied
and necessarily disastrous conflicts
of opinion where only harmony
would ensure progress and needed reform
religion is dragged in and we are compelled
whether it be pleasant to us or no, to mani
fest lively and direct interest in affairs
touching perhaps the welfare of Tunis or
Siberia or bearing pointedly on Mr.. Glad
stones administration of the English gov
eminent, but really no further affecting our
genuine interests than the existence of the
man in the moon. We want only Ameri-
can questions agitated here or such as are Of
to us and the only differences
we ought or want to see are diileren-
ces between us as citizens of the
United States, regardless of birth or section.
These Memphis politicians are doing their
city a severe injury by appeals to any Ma
tional prejudices, and are perhaps concen-
tmting attention on the subject of all 9TH
crs in the canvass the least significant
And so with all other men, whether politi-
clan or farmer, foreigner or native borR,
hereto or Christian, who gives countenance
to any race contest, We trust that as that
bitter ieud heretofore dividing the various,
sections of the Union has about finally
dropped out of our politics, this
other unpleasant and equally if not
more dangerous disposition to draw distinct
lines between the many nationalities now
domciled in America, may be relegated to
It's merited oblivion, And we desire to see
the matter treated hereafter in such spirit
and with sufficient extension and elaboration
to ensure more national and healthier tone
with reference to it. Notwithstanding the
late elimination of many vexed views from
tho campaigns Of the future, they will be
certainly in some respects very bitter, and
IL is to be most sincerely hoped that thi,
prolific source of discomfort known as race
prejudice, or race parties, or race issues,
may not be lugged into them, to further
complicatc affairs.
--e--O-n
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