Omaha daily bee., 1899-12-31

anu VNilo u ulSuulOu OF Dy long ana eN-
h%austing war springing from the only great
element of national discord among us. While
it cannot be foreseen exactly how much one
huge example of secession, breeding lesser
ones indefinitely, would retard population.
civilization and prosperity, no one can doubt
that the extent of it would be very great
and injurious.
Results of Emancipation.
The proposed emancipation would shorten
the war, perpetuate peace, insure this in
crease OF population, and proportlonately
the wealth of the country. With these we
should pay all the emancipation would cost.
together with out other debt, easier than we
should pay our other debt without it. If
we had allowed our old national debt to run
at b per cent per annum, simple interest,
from the end of our revolutionary struggle
until today, without paying anything on
either principal or interest, each man of us
would owe less upon that debt now than
each man owed upon it then; and this be-
cause our increase of men through the whole
period has peen greater than 6 per cent
has run faster than the interest upon the
debt. Thus time alone relieves a debtor
nation, so long as it's population increases
faster than unpaid interest accumulates on
its debt.
This fact would be no excuse for delaying
payment of what is justly due, but it shows
the great Importance OF time in this conncc-
tion-the great advantage of a policy by
which we shall not have to pay until we
number 100, 900, 900 what by a different policy
we would have to pay now, when we number
but 81 goo, goo. In a word, it shows that a
dollar will be much harder to pay for the
war than will be a dollar for emancipation
on the proposed plan. And then the latter
will cost no blood, no precious life. 1t will
be a saving of both.
As to the second article, I think it would
be impraCticable to return to bondage the
class of persons therein contemplated. Some
OF them, doubtless, in the property sense,
belong to loyal owners, and hence provision
is made in this article for compromising
such,
The third article relates to the future Of
the freed people. 1t does not oblige, but
merely authorizes congress to aid in coloniz-
ing such as may consent, This ought not
to be regarded as Objectionable on the one
hand or on the other, insomuch as it comes
to nothing unless by the mutual consent Of
people to be deported and ;he American
voters through their representatives in con-
gress.
fHNOrs Negro Colonization.
| cannot make it better known than it
already is that | strongly favor colonization;
and yet | wish to say there is an objection
urged against free colored persons remain
ing in the country which is largely i'm
aginary, if not sometimes malicious.
1t is insisted that their presence would
injure and ~displace white laborers. If there
ever could be a proper time for mere catch
arguments, that time surely is not now. In
times like the present men should utter
nothing for which they would not willingly
be responsible through time and eternity.
Is it true, then, that colored people can dis
place any more white labor by being free
than by remaining slaves? If they stay in
their old places, they jcstle no white labor.
ers; if they leave their old places, they
leave them open to white laborers. Logic
ally, there is neither more nor less of It..
Emancipation, even without deportation.
would probably enhance the wages OF white
labor, and very surely would not reduce
them. Thus the customary amount Of labor
would still have to be performed-the freed
people would surely not do mere than their
old proportion Of it, and very probably for
a time would do less, leaving an increased
part to white laborers, bringing their labor
into greater demand. and Consequently en-
HANGING the wages Of II. With deportation.
even to a limited extent, enhanced wages
TO white labor is mathenatically certain.
Labor Is like any other commodity In the
market-increasc the demaod for It and you
increase the price OF it. Reduce the supply
Of black labor by colonl2ing the black labor
er out Of the country, and by precisely SO
much you increase the demand FOR ana wages
cf white labor.