The Hawaiian gazette., 1899-08-25

ity today. New Orleans was white
oasis In the midst Of u population ove'-
whelminsly negro at the last census:
the new enumeration will show that
Plaquemine and ~. Bernard below.
Jefferson and ~. John above, Terre-
bonnie. I.afourchc. Iberia and st. Mar
tins on the west have become white.
that IL. have a majority of white popu-
lation--thanks to the immigration Of
the Italians and the rapid Increase of
the Acadians (brethren OF Evangeline),
the two races which are doing the most
to support the Southern theory OF
white supremacy" but who are looked
down on with contempt by the Ameri-
cans. the creoles and the other white
races.
The position OF the Italian in Louisi-
ana Is very anomalous because Of the
race, or, rather. the negro, question.
Neither the whites nor the negroes
know how to class him-he Ia. as II
were. link connecting the white and
black races. Swarthy in color. the
Sicilians are darker than the critics
and quadroons. the negro half-breeds
of Southern Louisiana. but they are
undoubtedly white. On the other hand.
they are willing to live in the same
quarters with the negroes and to work
side by side with them. and seem who'll
ly destitute Of that anti-negro preju-
dice which Is one of the distinguishing
features of all the white races in the
South. 1t cannot be said that this at
titude of the Sicilians toward the negro
has won his gratitude. He looks upon
the Italian with pretty much the same
feeling as he entertained OF old toward
the poor white trash. He has no re-
spect for the Italian and refuses to
treat him with the respect and defer
ence shown to other white men. He
will not take off his hat to him or call
him Mister" word which is never
applied under any circumstances to
the negro in the South, even when Col
onel and Judge are used. and which the
negro always uses of the whites.
1t Is the same with the whites. The
average man will classify the popula-
ton as whites, dagoes and negroes.
This is the explanation of the lynch
ing of Italians in Louisiana. Not 80
per cent but 100 per cent OF the white
men lynched in this State have been
Italians. There have been wholesale
Italian lynchings in New Orleans, st.
Charles, st. John and Madison. The
lunwritten law of the South Is that a
white man shall not be lynched. No
matter what his crime. he Is entitled
to trial by law and legal execution.
The only exception is the Italian, who,
in this respect has been placed on terms
x,f x.,tt thu II tho Ita1-
ian kills a white man; that Is, a non
Italian, he is likely to be lynched for 1t.
This rule has prevailed in all parts
y of the State. As long as the Italians
in New Orleans confined their killings
to their own race no especial attention
was paid to the matter. When, how
ever, they killed an American, the
Chief of Police, Hennessy, eleven were
lynched. 1t should be said, by the way,
that the excuse given by the Italians
for the Hennessy assassination was
that he interfered In an Italian quar-
rel. The PrOvenzanOs and Matrangas
had quarrelled and declared vendetta
against each other. Hennessy, who
was a friend of the ProvenzanOs, inter.
fered, bringing himself, 30 the Italian
assassins said. under the Italian ven.
delta code. ]. was the same In st
John the Baptist, where the killing OF
a creole by an Italian resulted In the
'lynching Of all the Italians In the par
ish Jail; while in Madison the mere
assault on DR.. Hodge was considered
good ground for wholesale lynching
Perhaps the situation there was never
better exemplified than in the inter
views with leading citizens of Madison
who declared that the hanging Of the
Italian prisoners was necessary in the
interest of white supremacy" al
though Just where white supremacy
the battlecry of the North Louisiana
Anglo Saxons, was involved in the kill
ing of white men by other white men
1t is difficult to explain.
In the matter of law and order there
has been marked improvement
J among the Italians. II the Malta eve
lexisted, 1t is thoroughly dead now. ]
was believed in by the Italians them
, selves, and many of the better clas
} paid blackmail to those who used tn
name OF Malta to brighten them with
, The vendetta prevails among the new
: lily arrived immigrants, but they sool
r drop 1t and 60 to law to settle their dis
putes. Formerly 1t was considered dis
, honorable and cowardly for Sicilial
: Ito testify in court against an Oppres
! sor; but now all do so. The amour
], ,of crime among them Is small and
! decreasing. Their worst weakness
5 the hereditary tendency to take imme
: diate vengeance for wrong with tn
Q knife. pistOl or the shotgun. In tn
t second generation the Italian America
5 is an American, Industrious, progress
: i've and public-spirited.
t Such Is the race which now consti
; tutes the largest foreign element in tn
< population of Louisiana, and offers tn
r State the best assurance that 1t WI
e not become second Africa, like tn
!, coast country of South Carolina. II ha
q been difficult to get white immigrant
: to settle In the bottom lands OF tn
: Mississippi. Other foreigners will nc
r come. They fear the heat and the ma
y llaria. The men from the North an