The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-06-24
DENYING Rights.

4 tuOugnl Oh ucutiuB tho "NS'"'S guy '"
their rights or else II Is writing In tota
Ignorance Of the subject which 1t processes
to be treating. We do not hope to be abb,
20 convince a mere partisan whose object
in writing about CAMgRoN's school trus-
tees Is TO excite the prciudices Of tho
northern people against the South but
the Tribune does not admit that il Is evel
guilty OF such tricks.
CAMERON, FARR, and BLAIR turned out
white men who before yielding TO their APP
pointees prosecuted a suit in the Supreme
Court OF Appeals to test their right to de-
clare those places vacant. In the places oil
two OF those white men they appointed two
negroes. The Board OF Trustees OF which
these are members has the right to appoint
the teachers and principals Of all the pub
lie schools OF Richmond. Is 1t strange
that the white people OF Richmond
have protested against the act Of Gov
ernor CAMERON in taking their schools OUT
OF their own hands and putting them INTO
the hands OF a mixed Board appointed con-
trarv to the wishes OF nine-tenths OF the
white taxpayers OF Richmond? Is there
city in the North where such appoint
ments would not meet with the same sort
Of opposition? Let such be made in the
Tribune'S own city, and public indigna-
ton against the perpetrators OF the wrong
would be hotter ii possible than it has ever
been in Richmond.
But we do not now propose TO discuss
the question Of these appointments upon
its merits. That question has been so fully
discussed already that the Virginia people
are thoroughly informed in regard TO 1t.
We set out TO show that there is no
"right" OF the negroes involved in this
matter. II il is one OF the negro's rights
TO be appointed a trustee OF the public
schools. il is equally his right to be elected
Governor of New York. But that is mis-
use OF the word ''right." Nobody has
a "right" to an Office until it is conferred
upon him. There are thousands OF white
men who have never held an office. They
have no "claim 3" to Office. The voters do
not recognize anybody's Fright" TO an Of
flee before he is elected or appointed to it.
Certainly Governor CAMERON'S messenger
had no more right than any other negro to
the Office of school trustee until he had been
Amounted. twas Governor CAMERON who
gave him his title to the Office. He had no
title to it until it was conferred upon him
bv others. 1t is not the negro, but the
State Board, who must bear the blame OF
this wrongful act.
CAMERON, FARR, and BLAIR. in appointing
these two negroes. overlooked all the white
men of their own party. Did not Governor
CAMERON have the undoubted right to ap-
point a Board consisting entirely OF whites !?
OF course he had. How, then. could any
negro have the conflicting right " to be
appointed to the Officer The Board had
never before had 4 negro upon 1t. Even
Harvard University, in Massachusetts,
where hatred of the South has made the
negro a pet to some extent, has not among
its numerous professors one negro, nor
one among its governors. Faculty and
directors are all white men. So in the
colleges and high schools OF New York.
Yet the New York Tribune has the face to
write OF the Virginia case as ii it were pc
culiar. and to claim for negroes in this
State fright" which no northern State
has ever recognized as being possessed by
its negroes.
PAUL and FORESTER. therefore, had no
" right" to the office Of trustee OF the pub
lie schools of Richmond until CAMERON,
FAIR, and BLAIR gave them that "right."
1t is, therefore, GiscreditabIe to the Tribune
to endeayor to lead its readers to believe
that in deuouncing the State Board OF Ed
ucation for making two negroes trustees OF
the public schools OF Richmond the Demo-
cratic papers OF Virginia are denying to
the negro any right which the Constitution
and laws Of the United States guarantee
to him. Surely the tribune can see that If
paul. had "right" to office before Gov
ernor CAMERON gave it to him, every negro
in New York city has "right" TO office
before it Is gwen TO MN. On the Other
hand. if PAULis right to the office was
created by CAMERON, FAIR, and BLAIR, as
it undoubtedly was, then the people OF
Virginia have the indubitable " right" to
| hold Governor CAMERON responsible for
thus preferring negroes to whites for so
delicate and important a position. The
fact that he had the right to select, but Sc
lccted negroes in preference to white men,
Is the offence with which he is charged.
We beg the Tribune, too, to remember
that nobody in Virginia objects to negro
teachers OF negro schools, nor TO negro
trustees OF negro schools. But so long as
the law provides for but ono SET of trus-
tees for this city, the whites will never
cease 10 demand that such trustees shall be
white.