Year: 1875




1 There was before the war class
among us who held no slaves. They
were not, however, anti-slavery men, but
the most ra heal advocates for keeping
the negro in his place" The negro was
greatly in fear of them. 1t cost them
nothing to disable or to kill q slave, and
masters were always under the necessity
of protecting their property from such


violent and irresponsible enemies. This
antagonism can not be accounted for ex-
cept in the irreconcilable repugnance of
races, the competition of labor, or the
jealousy of social equality. The same
class is represented at the present day.


From this class is recruited the Ku-Klux,


the shooters of Coushatta and the artil-
lerists of Vicksburg. We may note the
same spirit in our campaign clubs and
among the orators and journalists Of
Democracy. We will not enumerate
their leaders, but we ask the reader to tell
over to himself the names Of the most
PAoAAAAOAe DcAoSAatAo PoAtlSlnho AL hAu
out of the press and note how many there
| are among them who ''never owned a
negro in his life. This is the case Of
that hostility to the negro which has made
so much misery in this State 1t is to be
remarked that in proportion as the class
which owned the negro and understood
his value have attained control of South
ern government, peace has been restored
and prosperity has returned. Virginia,
Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky, have
protected and utilized the negro. In
those States he is valued and he is safe.
It may surprise the reader that the
official journal of the party which eman-
cipated the slave, should make distinc-
ton in favor of the former slave owner.
Historical truth and personal conviction
shows this to be just. The former slave
owners as Gloss are better element for
the industrial and moral reconstruction Of
Southern society than the former non
slave holders. as class.


The reasoning upon which this PROPOSE
tion is based is plain. The former slave
holder owns lands valueless without la
Dor. His family has been accustomed to
the domestic services of the negro. The
relation between employer and employed
is thus hereditary and natural. When
the fiery partisan would kill the negro
field hand from between the pillow handles
to nullify his vote, he thereby leaves an
idle mule and pillow OF the hands of the
employer. The fields of Mississippi are
white with unpicked cotton. The partisan
cannoneers so terrified the poor pickers
that they kept away alike from the polls
and the bolls, so the employer finds his
negro labor unavailing to save the crop
which negro labor had planted and plowed.


This partisan class, which never owned
negro, is in open hostility to negro edu-
cation or to negro morality. Every in
stance Of ignorance among the unlettered
negro Office holders, every case of cruelty
or crime, every batch of negro burglars
or thieves which goes to prison, is SUBJ
ject of delight to these anti-negro parti-
sans. The most savage attack has been
made by the anti-negro press upon the
system of public schools, and the colored
members of the School Board have been
scandalized and satirized as unworthy as
sociation. There is large party for ex-
cluding the negro from the public schools,
as there is large party also opposed to
having any public schools at all.


The decline in the rate of negro increase
is hailed by the anti-negro partisan as an
evidence of the immediate extinction of
that race. Forgetting that whisky and
the knife are indiscriminate slayers, the
anti-negro partisan fondly expects to sur
vive the whole African race in America.


We have been surprised to see the
Christian clergy yield to the domination
of prejudice. Many of our ministers
were distracted and divided by the sla-
very question, but they should not allow
their hostility to the Northern divisions
of their sects to obstruct their duties TO
humanity. There is predominance of
the negroes of Louisiana and of the whole
South who profess the Protestant faith.
There is large proportion here of COL
ored intelligence and property who are
Catholics. We have seen Protestant and
Roman clergymen making speeches and
prayers for the White League cause, and
what was even more unfortunate, the
Christian clergy have not taken that
unanimous and active part in the educa-
tion and morality of the colored people
that was to have been expected from
those pledged to go into all the world
and preach the gospel to every creature"
There is no more popular topic Of ridi-
cule by the anti-negro partisans than his
almost untaught and fervid efforts to
praise God in the services of religion.
The seed Of true gospel has been inn
planted in these people. Is it just-is it
wise, to ridicule and discourage their
humble efforts to secure salvation? The
negro abandoned to himself and to the
temptations which beset his low grade Of
experience, falls victim to the barrel
house or to theft Under the unregulatsd
sway of passion be commits the most
brutal murder. He rlufs his ;aalos,. v.r-