New-York tribune., 1884-11-26
rur sorTU lyp THE NEGROES.

General Gordon whites long letter to Ihr
Cam nerciai idrcrtlsor on the plan of the south
crn whiio people In regard to the treatment oi
the negroes. There IL no reason tn doubt That
he cxp,cSses with cnndor the feelings which
move him and other prominent men ot his
class The question Is, whether the ideas which
he exprcsses and which he snpposos VIII
govern the action of the Southern people, are
shared by any large number of persons at the
South, or will have weight i'll the action OF
legislatures or controlling bodies OF people In
that section.
General Gordon thinks that it Is fortunate
that the South will have opportunity to dem
onstrate the unfairness of the suspicious from
which the people of that section have so long
and so patiently suffered in respect to the fnan-
cial conduct of the Government. He repels'
for instance, with considerable Indignation, the
suggestion that pensions are to be granted to
rebel soldiers, or rewards to Southern people
for slaves emancipated. Prophecy is easy, and
we all hope that General Gordon will in this case
be found correct He urges that the property
of his State, which amounted, according to
statistics of taxation, to S672, 100000 before
the war; was reduced after the war to
81 20, ,O00,0 900, n loss of hye-sixths, he says,
of the entire wealth OF that people. Perhaps
il might be as well to observe that the assessed
value of real and personal property in Georgia
is now more than $3.50, ,000,O 900, and that its
personal property is notorlously assessed at
very far below its real value. According to
the census report of 1880, while the valuation
of property for the purpose of taxation was less
than 50 10, ,O00,0 the estimated true valua-
ton was $55i 100000. Much OF the loss to
which General Gordon refers was through the
emancipation of slaves formerly reckOned as
property and since the war reckoned only As
property owners II does not appear that the
loss to which he refers is i'll other respects very
serious. 1t is urged by him that there has been
a great Improvement in the condition of the
schools Every one will rejoice if the school
system in that State has been and is hereafter
to be permanently and satisfactorily developed:
but his reasoning that there is no desire on the
part OF the white people OF the South to Cypress
the coored people, reduce their wages, or to
deprive them of their right to vote, or to control
their votes by other than legitimate methods,
is unhappily supported only by his own asser-
ton, and not by any argument whatever.
That there is a liberal appropriation for the
education Of the people in Georgia and for
colleges aud for Libraries, may be admitted and
with pleasure. Nevertheless, the fact remains
that less than half the qualified voters of the
State of Georgia managed to get their votes
into the ballot box and get them counted, and
General Gordon knows it. He is particularly
careful not to give any explanation of that
interesting fact
AS respects wages, his explanation Is some
what more reasonable He holds that the
wages paid are not disprop0rtionately low that
though the wages paid In money are less than
those earned bv intelligent laborprs IN North
| ptn establishments the Southern workers ha We
advantages brcanse as a rule they have house
tpnt end cthtt items Ui support iipe ol rhntep.
and ~ all events theit cus ~ living IA lpss than
u ls 10 Northern Fialps There 10 mnrh irnil,
~ ihis ahi probably the ,eHins W. the lbsinu
npuillp ~ different spplitns aip nDl az Wldplt
auait 40 niant snpHnspi Tho lArI u thai lil
aunsllnn NJ lahnf has w great ptlpnl regulated
i,seil aDi u has nol haun ~ thn power at
poliieans ~ political organisations ~ Interfere
yoly much with the adiuslnonl which has hool
eileclod undpI tbs operation of natural law.
| II Tho eolored people were more lco IN The
exercise Of political rights, more ablo 10 defend
| themselves by the choice 0f local rulers who
would regard their interests rather than those
of their employers, such difference as exists
| between their circu"s' spces and thnssnf North