The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1882-02-08
A Miner Tackles the Color Question.
GOLD RUN, Feb. 1, 1882.

GOLD RUN, Feb. 1, 1852.
Editors of the River Press
/ have observed with pleasure your manly
stand concerning the admission Of colored
children to your public schools, and, although
I am a stranger to you, cannot refrain from
expressing the satisfaction which | am sure
all lovers of right. humanity and fair-play
must feel concerning the position you have
taken on the subject.
The Hon. Supt. Of Public Instructions
and the Attorney General in expressing
their opinion take refuge behind the statute
of Montana. This seems to me to be an
evasion. Questions of right and humanity
are above questions of technical law. Be-
sides these gentlemen must know, I think,
the feeling and the terms under which that
law was enacted. 1t would be beyond the
range of possibility to find a legislature now
in Montana that would enact a law like that.
Not only is the statute @ violation of the Con-
stitution- plainly so in my opinion, though I
am no authority-but is evidently framed in
Difference simply to that prejudice which
arose against the African in this country
through the medium of slavery. l do not
wonder and never have, as some seem to
have done, that such a strong prejudice
should have arisen under that institution. I
would even say that those who were raised
and instructed under this feeling were, in a
measure, not responsible for the feeling so,
too, the feeling would spread somewhat be-
yond the slaveholding States. But the insti-
tuition ended nearly twenty years ago. The
hard of God expressed His will in the result
of that struggle and in the event of affairs
since. More than this, the discussion of the
subject has been constant during the time.
The old anti bellum embargo on free thought
has been removed. There has been in this
time almost a revolution of thought against
that old prejudice. That this African hating
spirit that must be at the bottom of this diff
Guilty follows from a few consideration
1t could not be race or color prejudice, be-
cause both Indians and Chinese are admitted
where Africans are excluded, and here is a
difference of both race and color. 1t can
not be becauses of inferiority Of intelligence,
for the African race, as it is with US, CON-
pared with the Indian and Chinaman as they
IRE with us, is much superior. 1t cannot be
because of a difference in social and religious
customs, for those of the African are identi-
Cal with those of our own, while those of
these other races are utterly different. There
is and should be no difference between a
white and a black skin. The souls the
standard of theman.
"a mans a man for a. that"
would not compel q child to sit with a
colored child if he shrank from it, just as ]
would not compel him to sit with any child
to whom he had a dislike. If a little darkey
was dirty, or uoruly, or vicious. I would do
for him just as | would for a white child. I'd
reform him if I could, if not I'd expel him.
If a little darkey was dull, but did his best,
I'd forgive him just as I'd forgive the humid
red little stupid white heads around him. I
would not let my child ride a white horse if
he were a vicious horse, because he is
vicious-not because he is Dh5te. / would
not have my child associate with a vicious
African-because Of the vice, not of the race.
You must go deeper. You must look at the
soul. The world is beyond mere surface
worship.
Garfield has taken the place of Napoleon.
I'd rather be Othello than Iago. Love every
man, woman and child for character hate
them for want of it. The Attorney General
and the Supt. of Public Instruction may af-
firm the statute and declare their intention to
abide thereby if they feel themselves SO
bound, but at the same time is il not the
privilege of these worthy gentlemen as lead
ers of the people to declare a higher law ?
to aid in creating a healthy sentiment by q
manly appeal for the right | wonld say to
those persons that have created this discus
sion Gentleman, you must be wrong. The
world has pronounced against you. You
came by your prejudice honestly and neces-
sarily perhaps, but is not merely a prejudice.
1t is hard to change an opinion, but is it not
sometimes most manly and noble All you
can do is to cause yourself and some inno-
cent persons trouble. You cannot roll back
the ocean of public opinion. The tide sits
the wrong way. Submit. Do the noble
thing. Throw yourself before the car of
progress and it will simply pass over you-it
will not stop.