The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1903-07-30
BILL ARP'S LETTER
NOrtherners Too Distant to
Know Negro Problem.
GREENLEAF OVERRUL ED
For Illustration Barlow Man Tells
Good Story Anent an Irish JUS
tice of the Peace-That Buua-
boo of Slavery Again.

Some fifty years ago there was a
dogmatic old squire in the seven
teenth district of this, Cass county,
whose name was Jim McGinnis. He
had plenty Of what Is called good horse
sense, a determined will and abund-
ance OF prejudice. He won the J. p.
machine in that district for about
twenty years, and his final judgment
in case was the law of the settle
ment Nobody dared to, appeal or
carry the case up for fear of offending
him and losing the next case they had
in his court.
One time a fellow sued another fel.
low for the hire of a negro. Judge
Parrott was on one side, and Colonel
Aida Johnson on the other, and when
the judge started to read his law from
Greenleaf on Evidence" Colonel
Johnson stopped him and made the
point that Mr.. Greenleaf was very
smart man and had writ a power of
good law, but that he was a yankee
and lived in Boston and knew no more
about hiring negroes than a heather
knows about Sunday. The old squire
asked for the book, and looked over
the title page, saw that it was printed
In Boston and SO he ruled it out of his
court, and Parrot lost his case. The
squire said that Mr.. Greenleaf lived
little too fur off to be familiar with
the business.
I've seen good many pieces of late
about the negro and the great south
ern problem. The people up north
begin to admit that they can't see
| through it.
North Too Far Away.
Ever since the war they have been
telling us what to do with the darkies
and they have been watching us to see
whether we did it or not, and they &C.
tually think we'd put 'em back in slav-
cry again if we could. They are in
earnest about this business, I reckon
for some of EN- die and leave who
passed. of money for the poor negro
and I'm glad of it. I wish that more
OF 'em would die and do the same
thing, but what | rise to remark is
this: They know no more about the
negro than Mr. Greenleaf did, and
their judgment amt worth a cent.
would not give farthing for any
mans judgment about darkies who
hadn't been born and raised with 'em
and owned 'em. 1t takes a long time
to learn the traits and instincts of a
race of people. The yankee never
will know what the negro is, for he
never knew him in a state Of slavery
The yankee who came south sixty
years ago, and domiciled with us know
all about him, and will take their
opinion, but when 1 he ar these modern
ones philosophizing and debating
about HIM in a consequential manner,
| unconsciOusly raise my foot to kick
somebody. There are lots of folks up
about Boston who are looking over
their spectacles at us, and din't know
they had Tewksbury almshouse.
II they would lower their sights they
would have power of work to do at
home. l bought a leather purse for
Mrs. Aarp, once and she won't use it
for it came from Boston, and she is
afraid it was made out OF a human
hide that was tanned from Tewksbury
I've got no pathetic sentiment abo,.t
the niger. The yankees passed q
whole lot of amendments to the consti-
tuition to put him on an equal footing
with US, socially and every other way,
and they We're the first to break 'em.
II the Indians had been down here in
place of the niger, the whole yankee
nation would have been friends, but
now they are their enemies and keep
driving them further and further into
the wilderness and cheating EN- out
of all the government gives EN- We
have got to study races just like we
do horses and cattle. The Anglo-Sax-
on has got his traits and instincts and
so has the Indian and the niger and
the heather Chinese. We cuss the
Jew and the Italian, and why should t
we consider the niger with the same
philosophy. Some folks seem to think
we owe him good deal because he
didn't cut up and rip around during
the war, but I don't. He didn't care
anything about it and he don't care
now. 1t is not his nature. He had
little rather have a master than not
to have him, and the truth is most OF
EN- have got 'em and they always
will have em.
Slavery Was Humane.
We are tired of all this nonsense
about slavery. 1t was no blot. 1t was
nature. There are heap of people
now in the south who look upon slav
cry like it was Achan's wedge of gold
and persisted under the condemnation
Of God and man, but don't want any
body to teach my children any such
ISLANDERS, for I know it was in the
main a humane institution, and if the
niger is any better off now than he
used to be, can't see. The whites
are better off, long ways, but the
niger amt. I've great respect for The