New national era. [volume], January 25, 1872, Image 1

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NEW NATION AL ERA.
VOL. III.?NOTTJ WASHINGTON, )>. (J.. THOII8PAY. JANUARY 2:,. 1872. { a-8?<foarfeTflB?>~
THE NEW NATION ALTERA,
KU1HB
BVEBYf mUJi?S,DAY MORNING
At Wwhlnfian City, D. C.
BKW tATIOflAL KRA BCILIHNQ. 41S UTB MM?1
FREDERICK DOUGLASS, Editor.
DOUGLASS BROTHERS, PublitherA
_ I ;
i- ?op<e? for *10. fkxvfcbl* '? ,
AMHm FRRDKRICK DOCOLAI8, Jr., n
I.ork Box SI, WaoMnjcton, D. C. ?
! si
SPEECH
OK
HON. CHAS. SUMNER E
I o
0* j fi
EQUAL RIGHTS, !?
IN THE SENATE, 1
MONDAY, JANUARY 15, 1872. ?
D
M?. : In opening thin great ques- ''
tion, one of the vastest ever presented to the 11
Senate.. I have find t.ut one hesitation, and that 8'
i?. merely W'th regard to the order of treatment.
There is a large mt-? of testimony frotn all J*
parts of the country, fr m Massachusetts as '?
well aa O'oreia. showing tho absolute neces- *7
yity of conirr?si''tial legislation for the protection
of equal rights. which I think ought to l>e j\
laid belorethe Senate. It was my first purpose : J'1
to l>ejiin by pregiuting ties testimony; but I j 0
have now chanced my mind, and I shall devote . 1
to-day to a statement ?>l the rpiestion. relying ! ln
iK.on th" indulgence of the Senate for another j opportunity
to preset.t the important testimony. I
I ssk that the pending amendment he read. j J"'
The Chief C<rk rend the amendment. ! ...
Mr President, slavery in its original prcten- eti
sion, ruppcnrs in the present debate. Again i ,;|
the barbarous tyranny sta.ks into this Chamber, hi
deny:eg to a whole race the equal rights pro:u- ttr
iaed by a just citizenship. Some here thought qu
slavery dead. This is a mis'ake. If not in th
body, at least in spirit or as a ghost making our he
...gs tlv.. ouon.nf primiriiil ppi lin ?.?
- ? < IC|
gets among us, insisting upon the contiuuc-d i.g
degradation of a race. )ni
Pr pcrty in man has ceased to exist. The m
human auction block is departed. No human
Uii.p can call himself master, with impious rj^
pnwer to separate hu band atid wife, to Sell the *u
child from its parents, t > shut oat the oppor j?
t(iuities oi religiuu, to close the pates of know tio
hd/e and to roti a' other of his !al>or ai d all its of
frnits. These pui.ty prerogatives are ended. ao
To this extent th< slave is free. No longer a jn
cha'tel, he is a man justly entitled to all that tlit
is accorded by law to any o'ber man. j?
Such is the irresistible 1 gic of his position. ex(
Ceasing to be a slave he bteanie a man, whose evj
foremost right is Kqtiadty of ll>hts. And yet eTj
slavery bus been strong enough to postpone his
entry into the great possession. Cruelly he uia
was not permitted to tesliry in court; nor was
he allowed to vote. Mine than four millions no|
of people, whose only < flense was a shin which pei
bad been the badge of slavery, were shut out
from the court-room, and also from the ballot
box. in open defiance of the great promises of j
our fathers that all uicn are equal iu rights, the
and that just government stands only on the ula
consent of the governed. Such was tbe impu wa
dent behest of slavery, prolonged after it was bot
r< porteu dead. At last these crying wrongs ide
? ? i'i?i?- ? . .1 D;,
KCrcuTt'ltuiucu. i in:ma?c irsuuco , iuc b .??c
votes. To this client bis equality is recognized. Th
EQI'ALlTY BfcPORK THR LAW. ^
ere
But this is not enough. Much as it may ]
seem compared with the past, when all was de jat,
nied, it is too little, because all is not yet re- 8j0]
cognized. The denial of any right i? a wrong tra
that, darkens the enjoymeut of all the rest. nU,
Be.-.dec the right to testily and the right to 5}^
vote, there are other rights without which gpe
Equality docs not exist. The precise rule is aj|
Equality b. fore the Law; nor more nor less; in j
that is, that condition before the Law in which ,
all are alike?being entitled without auv dig
crimination to the eq-ial enjoyment of all insti
uuot s privileges, advantages, atid conven yj-g
iences created or regulated by law, among .
wiiicti are the r gbt to testify and ttie right to
vote. But this plain requirement is not satis- fi
d, logically or reasonably, by these two con sar
cessions, so that wh-n they are recognized all ^nv
at hers are trifles. The court-bouse aud ballot 0* (
box are not the only places for the rnle. These
two are not the ouly insti'utions for its operati
?n. The rule is general; how then restrict *
it "O two case- T It is, ait are equal before the tro
law?not m'-rely before the law in two?ases. {*re
but be ore the law in all ca-es without limita *t''1
Uou or exception. Important as it is to testily 1 u
and to v its, life is not all contained even in *'ec
these possessions. "
l'.?e n w ui.tdr citizen is called to travel for tiro
bn- f.ess. for health, or for pleasure, bat here den
kie twialo Ka.m n I'hn rlrt >ra ?l" t liax r.iifil i? hntfl ft M ,
U?l> ?VU. . ... .. u .. r ~ V..,
whicti from the ear.iest days of our jurispru- >
dence have a!w?ys opened hospitably to the utt<
stranger. close ugaiii-t bim, and the public and
conveyances, which the common law declares the
equs i? trie to all alike, have do such freedom rep
for him. lie tonga, perhaps, for respite and
relaxation at some place of public amusement, 0{i (
dn t licensed by law, and ht re al*o the same e
adverse discriuiinatioo is made. With the ai xinns
of a parent, seeking the welfare tf his J
child, hestrivis to l?estow upon bim the ines ?on
tiruaole blessings of educutiou, and takes him
sff ttiinati'lv to the common school, created ?gj)(
bj law, and supported by the taxation to which
tic uas couiiihuit u, out these doors slain rudely
in the lace of the child wlr-re is garnered up
the parent's heart. Suffer little children, "
and forbid them not, to come unto mesuch to 1
were the worus ol the divine Master. But Go<
among us litile children are turned away and J
forbidden at the door of the common school, ove
because of the skin. And the same insulting n
os'racism shows itself in other institutions of can
(science and learning, also in the church at.d ttl<.
io the last resting place on earth. UOi
Two instances occur, which have been mentioned
already on thi.-floor; but their eminence ..
in illn8tratioa of an unquestionable grievance "4
justifies the repetition. ne,|
CASE OP PREDEBICK DOIQI.AM. Ste
One is me well Known case of Frederick j1"'
DouglasJ, who, re turning home alter earnest
serv.ee of weeks us secretary of the commission ?) '
to report on the people of St. Domingo and 1101
the expediency of incorporating them with the 'J'?'
United States, was rudely excluded frt>m t!ie w"'
( upper table, where li;s brother commissioners 8,1,1
I Were already seated on board the m lil steamer J"6'
of the Po.omac. just before reaching the J'resi- "a?
dent, whose commission he h re. This case, ttn"
if not aggravated, is made conspicuous by 8t"'
peculiar circumstances. Mr. Douglass is a 18 Jj
gentleman of unquestioned ability und chsr *
acter, remarkable as an orator, retina l in man- | rel'
ners and personally agreeable. He was re- at
turning, charged with the miss-on of bringing Kre
uDder our institutions a considerable populs- "
tion of colored foreigners, whose prospective bro
treatment among us was foreshadowed on tioi
board that mail steamer. The Dominican pre
Bai % could not expect m re than our fellow- q
citizen. And yet, with this mission, and with ^;0|
the personal recommendations ho so justly
enjoys, this returning secretary could not he the
saved trom outrage even in sight of the Exocu asl
tive M msion. to
CASE OF L1BUTEXAKT GOVERNOR DUNK. .'
There also wis Oscar James Dunn, late
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana. It was toy JjOI
privilege to open the door of the Sonata Cham- r
ber and introduce him upon the Ibsir. Then _
in repiy to my 11 q iiry lie recounted the hard ^
sh.ps to which lie had be.;u exposed in the j
long journey from Louisiana, especially how ^ai
he was deuied 'he ordinary nee mmodations
for comfort and repose supplied to those of jt i
another skin. I Ins denial is memorable, not , "
etiiy li itn -be rank but the character of the "
victim. Of blameless life, he was an example
,,r u l . . r- *ei
_ . Iic was poor. nut could not t)?' |rQ
bought or l?rib-d. Dull w ith hou was more e(j(
than riches. A fortune was off-red for big to
p signature; but he spurned the temptation.
I And yet this model character, high in the ,g
sontueme el tue le.low-clut!*us and in the full '
ijoytueat of political power, was doomed to
suffer the blasting influence which still finds rM
rapport in this Chamber. He is dead at last
aai buried with official pomp. The people
cennted by teug of thousands thronged the
streets while his. obsequies proceeded. At- at!
od oas discrimination wae for the time sua- ar<
psnded. .o lira rejected by the conductor ol is
. ?
railway becauaa of his skia, he wan borne to ' r
>* last f. sting placa with all the honors an a
fdictrd community could bes-ow. Ouly in his p
offln wai tha ban of eol'>r lifted and the deed at
raftsman admitted to that equal.ty which is It
he right ol all. j n
EQCIREMKHT OP RSFCBL1CAN 1N8I ITL'TIOMS. ''
These are famous instances; hat they are
ypes. If Frederick Douglass and Oscar James ;
>unn could be made to suffer, how much must w
thers be called to endure. All alike, the "
teble, the invalid, the educated, the refined, 11
romen as well as men, are shut out Irom the w
rdtnary privileges of the steaixibnat, or rail- j
ar, and driven into a vulgar sty with smoker- '
nd rude persons, where the conversation i- | M<
offensive as the scene, and then again at ; 1,1
le road side inn are denied that shelter and ls
ourishiuent without which travel is imposei 11
le. Do you doubt this constant, wide spread s,;
11 rage, extending in uncounted ramifications
iroughoot the whole land * With sorrow he
said, it reaches everywhere, even into Mas- "r
iehuset'8. Not a Slate w hich does not need
le benhru correction. The evidence is on J>(
our table in numerous petitions. And there
ntl.or al^a.lo nwrfntwl l.r m,. US
lowing how individuals have suffered from
lis plain denial of equal rights. V\ ho that has
heart can listen to the story without indignaon
and shameT Who with a spark of justice ""
> illumine his soul can hesitate to denounce ?r
ie wrong? Who that rejoices in republican co
stitutions will not help to overthrow the
rsiuiy by which they are degraded ? Pri
I do not use too strong language when I l,r
:po8e this tyranny as a degradation to repub- dr
nin institutions ; aye. sir, in its fundamental
tiom. Why is the Declaration of ludepend- 'hi
ice our Magna Charia? Not because it tie- P3
ares separation from a distant kmgly power ; At
it because it announces the lotty truth that all
e equal in rights, and as a natural consclence
that just government stands only on '
e consent of the governed, and these are c'"
Id to be self evident. Here is the soul of soc
publican institutions, without which a He- 3 ?
hlic is a failure, a mere name and nothing
>re. Call it a llepub.ic if you will, hut it is 'he
reality a soulless mockery. he;
Equality in rights is not only the first, of cro
;hts; it is an axiom of political truth. Hut
axiom, whether of science or philosophy, universal
and without exception or liiuitan;
and this is according to the very law u'r.,
its nature. Therefore, it is no axiom to gc|,
nounce grandly that all white men are equal soj,
rights, nor is it au axiom to announce with
: same grandeur that all persons ure eqnal
rights, but colored persons have no rights
eept to testify and vote. Nor is it a self j?,
dent truth, as declared, for no truth is self i r|,
dent which is not universal. The asserted i
iitation destroys the original Declaration, ?q.
king it a ridiculous shitin. instead of that pp
dime Magna Charta before which Kings. j?.,(
tiles, and all inequalities of birth must disup- n,,t
ir as ghosts of night at the dawn. l,ut
OREAT ISSUE OP THE WAR. p''.<
ill this has additional force whnn it is known
it this very axiom and self evident truth de- w 1
red by our fathers was the great issue of the
r, and was so recognized by the leaders on ()
h sides. Behind the embattled armies were
as, aud the idea on our side was Equality in .
;hts, which on the other side was denied,
e Nation insisted that all men are created ,V J
lal; the Rebellion insisted that all men are
ated un? qual. Here the evidence is explicit. 'Iur
The inequality of men was an original postu ^'ar4
) of Mr. Calhoun, which found final expres ,
a in the open denunciation of the self-evident
th as a "self evident lie." Echoing this de- : J.
iciation Jefferson Davis, or leaving the "V
iate, January 21, 1861, in that farewell *
ech which some among you beard, but which 9?
may read in the Ol 'be, made the issue c ?
hese words : j^a
'It has lieen a belief that we aro to be de- ^ H
red in the Union of the rights which our *|(
iers bequeathed to us, wh.eh has brought gjy
islssippi into uer present decision. She has gep)
rd proclaimed the theory that all men are sir
ited free and equal, and this made the basis Iuj'B
attack upon her sot>al institutions; and the reu(
red Declaration of Independence has been ^ j.
Iced to maintain the position of the equality
'he races."?Congressional Globe, p. 487, ug
ity sixth Congress, 2d sess. 0p
'he issue thus made by the chief rebel was the
mptly joined. Abraham Lincoln, the elected hea
widen t, stopping at Independence Hall, hav
irnary 22, on his way to the uational capital, the
llinrpmedltall-d wonts tkna inlarnMlail the .e:
la ration: . '' fath
It was that wh'ch nave promise that in our Ii
e the weight should be lifted ft om the shou'- ab'i
9 of all men, and that all should hare ileni
equal chance." autl
lark, it you please, the simplicity of thiR HUI
-ranee. All are to have "an equal ehanoe," whe
i this be said "is the sentiment embodied in A ri
Declaration of Independence." Than, in U!,.ee
Iv to Jefferson Davis, he preceeded : ('r'"
N >w, mv friends, can this couutry be saved
this basis ? If it tan 1 shall consider myself co 0
of the happiest men in the world if I ean '"llf
i save it. If it cannot be saved upon that V.?"
iciple, it will be truly awful. Hut if this ,
ntry cannot be saved without giving up that . '
iciple I was about to say I would rather be !?n
issinated on the spot." "
OUtl
living these words still further solemnity, he ,mt
fcd : ^ '
? uet
I have said nothing hut what 1 am willing
ire by, and, if it be the pleasure of Almighty -p
i, to die by." not
Lnd then, before raising the national banner how
r the historic Hall, he said : acki
It is on such an occasion as this that we d"ti
reason together, reaffirm our devotion to T
country and the principles of the Declara nieti
1 of Independence." wbii
L'hus the gauntlet Hung down by Jefferson lt st
r s was taken up by Abraham L ucolu, who atl"
er forgot the issue. 'Illei
'ho rejoinder was made by Alexander II. BUPI
vens. Vice President of the R> public. in a c"m
to be forgotten speech at Savannah, March u0.ai
1X61, when he did not hesitate to declare ori8
bo pretended government tbut " its founda acc'
is are laid, its cornerstone rests upon the '
it truth thut the negro is nut equal to the ra^f
te man." Then gmryiug in this terrible euf",
me, he added, " This, our now Govern- w
ut, is the first in the history of the world . e>
ied upon the great physical, philosophical 1
I moral truth " * * * * " This
ie which was rejected by the first builders 8P"'
iccoine the chiet stune of the corner." nij
'o this unblushing avowal Abraham Lincoln w'"e
lied in that marvelous, undying utterance Ka'a
Gettysburg, fit voice for the Republic, "
ater lur thau any victory, when he said: v
Four score and aefen years ago our fathers cja|
uglit forth upon this continent a new na- jJUII
l, conceived ?n Liberty and dedicated to the j jiej(
jiosiivin inm an nun are crratftl equal." VRrj
rhu-., in precise conformity with the Decl.ira nec>
a, was it annoanccd that our Uepuhlic is the
heated to the Kqual Rights of all, and then, all;
i prophet President, soon to be a martyr, ion,
ted his countrymen to dedicate themselves rigli
the great task remaining, highly resolving, Cu*
iiat this nation under God shall have a new 0be
th| of Freedom, and that government of the heti
'P'o, "S 'be people and for the people, shall u a
t perish from the earth." -p|
I he victory ol the war is vain without th-* XI
mder victory through which the Republic is y,
ticated to the axiomatic, self evident truth i.
dared by our fathers, and asserted by Abra fu>
n Lincoln. .
Ill this is so plain that it is difficult to argue
What is the Republic if it fails in this C.p"
ajty T What is the national Government, J',.
extensive with the Republic, if fellow citi 'j,,
is couuted by the million can be shut out tj
m equal right* in travel, in recreation, in
ication, and in other things, all contributing" thll
human necessities? Where is that great
muse by whioh the " pursuit of happiness" f
placed with life and liberty, under the^safe
ard of axiomatic self-evident truth ? Where
justice if thi* ban of color is not promptly . ?
noved. '
TWO EXCUSES. Ne
i see
The two excuses show how irrational and
ierly groundless is this pretension. Thoy
9 on a par with the pretension itself. Oue 1
that th* question is of society and not of the
iffhfs, which is cleur'v a misrepresentation;
nd the other is that tin- ? panneurno gements
rovided for colored pers ns constitute a subtitute
tor equality in the nature of an >?uiva;nt;
all of which is charlv a cor trivance, ii
ot a trick, as if there ecu d he ,.nv equivalent
tr er|ualily. j
no qctsTjoN- or socinv.
Of this first excuse it is difficult to speak
ith patience. It is a s tuple misrepresent a
on, and wherever it shews itself must he :
"eated as such. There is no colon d person j
ho does not resent the imputation that he is j |
seking to intiude hitnselt socially anywhere. ^
his is no question of society ; no question ot ; t
icial life ; no question of social i quality, il j
ayhody knows what ti.is ineaos. The object. I ^
simply Equality before the law. a term which | i;
(plains itself. Now, as the law does not pre- c
line to create or regulate sociat relations, ,
iese are in no respect affected by the pend j j,
g measure. Each person, whether Senator j
1 citizen, is always ftee to choose who shall he |
s friend, his associate, his guest. And does j,
<t the ancient proverb declan* that a man is , (-|
town by the company he keeps'? But this j q
sumes that he may choose f r himself. Ilis| j",
iusc is liis "castle;" and this very designurn,
borrowed from the common law, shows i p
y absolute independence within its walls;!
r is there any difference, whether it he palace j g,
hovel; but when he leaves his "castle" and j
es abroad, this independence is at au end. |
b walks the streets ; but. no is subject to the j e*
[ vuiiiiisi jaw or r,quainy ; nor can lit' appro- ,
iate the sidewalk to his own exclusive use, j
iving into the gutter all whose skin is less I
lite than his own. Hut nobody pretends !
it Equality in the highway, whether on j ,
verueiit or sidewalk, is a question of society ' '
id, permit me to say. that Equality in all ;
ititutions created or regulated by law. is as j w|
tie a question of society.
in the days of Slavery, it was an oft repealed [ rei
irge, that Emancipation was a measure of ae
mil equality, a..d the same charge became j ab
ry at the successive efforts f< r the right to j Vt
tify and the right to vote. At each stage I
i cry was raised, and now it makes . itself ; (jc
ird again, us you are called to assure this
iwning safeguard. ! ^
Equai.iiy notfiusu in hql'ivai.knts. | qq
Then comes the otlnr excuse, which finds j fui
uality in separation. Sepai ate hotels, sep be
.te conveyances, separate theaters, separate
iooIs, separate institutions of learning and ^rii
?nce, separate churches, and separate cem- 8a.
ries?these are tiie artificial substitutes for ,
uality ; and this is the contrivance by which
ranscendent right, involving a transcendent
v, is evaded ; for Equality is not only a 1
lit but a duty. "r
low vain to argue that there is no denial of
ual Rights wtien this separation is enforced. I r'
e substitute is invariably an interior article. "H
Ps any Senator deny it ? Therefore, it is '
i Equality. At best it is an equivalent only ; he
. no equivalent is equality. Separation ini- wit
ts one tiling tor a white person and another /its
ig for a colored person ; but equality is tin:
ire all have the s itne aiike. There can he up]
substitute lor equality ; nothing but itself, aiil
in if accommodations are the same, as is i
oriously they are not, there is no Equality, fee
the process of substitution the vital elixir art
ales and escapes. It is lost and cannot be J
jvered ; Tor Equality is f und only in <
tality. "Nought but itself can be its j
allel but Senators undertake to find
allele Id other things. 1
Issuming what is most absurd to assume, '
[ what is contradicted by all experience, ,aw
t. a substitute can be an equivalent, it is so u'*
orm only, and not in reality. Every such caD
mipt is an indignity to tlie colored race, ant
iuct with the spirit of Slavery, and this de- U1^
is its character. It is Slavery in its last ap- '
ranee. Are you ready to prolong the hate- ?'
tyranny? Religion and reason condemn
te as inmious and unchristiun, making re "u?
lican institutions and equal laws impos- tra'
e ; but hero is Caste not unlike that which "eo
irates the Sudru from the ltratiiu il. I'ray, Sa"
who constitutes the white man a Brah?
Whence Ins lordly title? l>owti to a j
;nt period in Europe the Jews were driven (
terd by themse vesseparate from Christians; j
this discarded barbarism is revived among t^0
in the ban of color. There are millions wjt
fellow-citizens guilty of 110 offense except
dusky livery of the sun appointed by the * ,
venly Father, whom you treat as other*
e treated the Jews, as the Brahmin treats
Sudra. But pray, sir, do not pretend that l"ir
is the gnat Equality promised by our 1,1
ere. ar0
i arraigning this attempt at separa'ion aJ rcsi
rnte, 1 say nothing new. Foryeuts 1 have
juneed it as such, at.d here I followed good a c'
lorities, as wi II as reason. Alexander You are
nboldt, speaking of the negroes in Mexico .
n Slavery prevailed, called them a Ca-te. t,la
cent political andjuridical writer of France a"
i the same term to denote not only the <1 s mt'
lination in India, but that in our own conn I
especially referring to the exclusion ol "
red children from the common seh mis as off.
ing "the humiliaiing and brutal dist uta
s" by which their CaS'e is character ?. f con
nnes v> nine, i raue uu ijr^'fcianon, I o' bffa
pp. 129, 445.) The principle of si p t pro
on the ground of hereditary iuferiori* .is por
distinctive essence of Caste ; hut this ' /be del;
iige which lifts itself in our country, *ing ab<
"lam better than thou, because 1 auir. fiite. pu
away!" hie
TtIK RKMKDV. oat
bus do 1 reject the two excuses. Hut 1 do
leave tlie cause here. 1 go further and sh< w '|
consistent is the pending measure with wh
aowledged principles illustrated by uu-t Bu
hted law. ; erii
he bill for Equal Rights is simply supple
itnry to the existing Civil Eights Law, T
ch is one of our great stilutes ol p aee, and I
amis on the same requirements of the Con- ,np
ition. If the Civil Rights Law is above
*tion, as cannot be doubted, then also is tin ris|
plementary amendment, lor it, is only the uni
pleinent of the other, mid necessary io its tim
pletion. Without the ameiiduieiit the reg
iual law is imperfect. It cannot be said, i'ej
irding to its title, that all persons are pro dnt
ed in their civil rights, so long as the out lie
N 1 expose continue to < xi-d ; nor is Slavery ruh
rely dead. j can
o doubt the supplementary law must oper 1 ?"e
not only in national jurisdiction, hut also in
he Stat"B, precisely as the Civil Rights and
o ,..:il I f mil r. .1
ere must fie coextensive with the Republic,! "p1
;ing the rights of the citizen uniform every- j "tin
re. But this can be only by one uniform i irrn
guard sustained by the nation. tiot
.n enlightened public opinion must be in- >tse
ed. But this will not be wanting. Tile this
ntry w ill rally in uid of the law, more espe
ly since it is a measure of justice and
lanitv. But the law is needed now as a B
) to public opinion. It is needed by the '
; people whose present conduct makes it ^
;sgary. Prompted by the law, leaning on ' n(,|)
law, they will recognize the eipial rights ol W()|
nor do J despair of bailing u public opiuwhich
shall stamp the denial of these u|
its as an outrage not unlike slavery itself. (
torn and patronage wiil then be sought in
ying the law. People generally are little
:er than actors, for whom it was once said : jj)H
h! let not censure term our fate our choice, ere
lie stage but echoes back the public voice ; vid
he drama's laws, the drama's patrons give ; to i
jr we that live to please iniist please to live." 01|
a the absence of the law people please too pUt
n by inhumanity, but with the law teaching 1
lesson of duty, they will please by opposite ft,.p(
duct. Thus will the law tie an instrument an,
uiprnvement, neeessarv in proportion to ex J i()r,
i,g prejudice. Because people si ill uleuse bv I ? i
iiuiini'ty, therefore must tie-re be u counter- the
ng force. This precise exigency was fore ?f
i by Rousseau, ratnaikable us writer and' boi
iter, in a work which startled the world, ten
to he said : chi
' It is precisely because the force of things 1
lis always to destroy equality that the force f?u
legislation should always tend to maintain tiui
?Control Social, Liv. II, chap. II. set
per was a truer proposition ; and now let us "'I'
the cases for its application. 'eD
reu
PUHMC HoTEI.S. J
begin with public hotels or inns, because ani
rule with regard to tbciu ruuy be traced to VVi
he earliest period of the common law. In the
Chronicles of Holingshed. written in the reiiin
if Queen Elizabeth, is a chapter "Of onr Inns
ind Thoroughfares," where the inn, which is the
iriginal term for hotel, is described as ' builded
or the receiving of such travelers ard stran
rcrs iis pass to and fro and then the chroni:irr,
boasting of his own country as aompared
vith nth' rs, savs " every man may nse his inn
is his own house in Knglnnd." (Chronicles,
Ueserip/ion (f England, Book 111, chap. 11,
i. 444 London ed., 4to., 1807.) The law ol j
ingland was in conformity with this boast. \
'he inn was open to "every man," and this rule j
ias continued Irom that early epoch, anterior ;
0 the settlement of our country, down to this
ay. The inn is a public institution, with welln
wii rights and duties. Among the latter
1 the duty to receive all paying travelers deent
in appearance and conduct, wherein it is
istinguislied from a lodging-house or board
ig-house, which is a private concern, and not
abject to the obligations of the inn.
For this statement 1 might cite authorities
eginning with the iufancy of the law. and not
iiding even with a late decision of the Superior
ourt of New York, wlioru an inn is defined
) he " a public bouse of entertainmentfor all
ho choose to visit V, which timers very lime
out the descriptive words of llnlingshed.
The summary of our great jurist, Mr. Justice
tury, shows the law :
"An innkeeper is bound to take in all travel
s and wayfaring persons and to entertain
em, if he can accommodate them for a reasontie
compensation." * * * *
If an innkeeper improperly refuses to receive
provide lot a guest, he is liable to be indicted
icrefor."?Story's Commentaries on the Law
' Bailments, 'i 476.
Chancellor Kent states the rule brietly but
th lullness and precision :
' An innkeeper cannot luwfully refuse to
eeive guests to the extent of bis reasonable
conimodations, nor can be impose unreason i
le terms upon them."?Kent's Commentaries,
>1. 2. p. 592. i
This great authority says again, quuting a j
eidedease: 1
" Innkeepers are liable to an action if they '
i'uxe to receive u guest without just cause. '
ic innkeeper is even indictable for the re ,
al, if he has room in his house and the guest .
haves properly."?Ibid., p. 596.
And Crofossor Parsons, in his work on Con- |
iels, so familiar to lawyers and students, t
r?: ,
lie cannot so refuse unless his house is full c
d he is actually unable to receive them, s
id if on false pretense be refuses he is liable [
an action."?Parsons on Contracts, p. 627. {
I'he importance of this rule in determining ?
sent duty will justify another statement in r
' language of a popular Encyclopedia : "
Ooe of the incidents of an innkeeper, is that S
is bound to open his house to all travelers,
'hout distinction, and has no option to re e
c such refreshment, shelter, and accommoda- J
n as he possesses, provided the person who
[dies is of the deserintion of n traveler and "
e arid ready to pay ths customary hire and ?
iot drunk or disorderly or tainted with intious
disease."?Chamber's Encyclopaedia, fj
icle Inn. L
:\nd the Encyclopedia adds : t
' As some compensation for this compulsory f
pital/ly the innkeeper is allowed certain f
vileges." t
Phus is the innkeeper under constraint of ?
', which he must obey ; " bound to take in ?
travelers and way taring persons;" "nor B'
he impose unreasonable terms upon them," n
I liable to an action and even to an indict v
nt for refusal. Such is the law. il
Vith this peremptory rule opening the doors tl
inns to all travelers, without distinction, to it
extent of authorizing not only an action s<
an indictment for the refusal to receive a s>
F 'lcr, it is plain that the pending bill is only o
laratory of existing law, giving to it the t
ction of Congress. tl
rt'BIJC CONVEYANCES.
ublic conveyances, whether on land or I
ler, are known to the law us common car a
h, and they, too, have obligations not unlike p
se of inns. Common carriers are grouped
h innkeepers, especially in duty to passen w
s. Here again Mr. Justice Story is our tl
hority.: p
The first most general obligation on their o.
t is to curry passengers with all reasonable ji
gence whenever they offer themselves ntid yi
ready to pay for their transportation. Tins tl
Ms from their setting themselves up, like i
keepers and common carriers of goods, fur a
minimi public employment, on hire. They tl
no more at liberty to refuse a passenger, it p
y have sufficient room and accommodations,
n an innkeeper is to refuse suiiuble room
I accommodations to a guest."?Story, Hail !
us, e wi. it
'rofessor Parsons slates the rule strongly : c|
It is h s duty to receive alt passengers who d
r ; to curry them the whole route ; to do cl
rid no more thao tbo usual and established ft
upeiisatiou ; tot-eat all passengers alike; to tl
lave to all with civility and propriety ; to cl
vide suitable carriages and moans of trans- ci
tation." * * * * "And for the p
ault of his servants or agents in any of the ci
>ve particulars, or generally in any other w
nts of duty, the earner is d.rectly responsi- tr
tis well as /or any circumstances of aggra ci
ion which attended the wrong."?Parsons e.
Contracts, p. 228
'he pending hill simply re enforces this rule, 1'
ich without Congress ought to be sufficient.
t since it is sot at naught by an odious disnitration
Congress must interfere. '
m
HKATCKS AND FLACKS OF I'UBLIC AMUSKMKNT. |,
'beaters and other places of public amuse h
ut. licensed by law, are kindred to inns or o
>lic conveyances, though less noticed byju- o
iiudeuco. lint, like their prototypes, they ti
ieituke to provide for the public under sane- it
1 of law. They are public institutions, A
ulated if not created by law, enjoying priv li
res, nnd in consideration thereof, assuming I]
ies not unlike those of the inn and the pub to
conveyance. From essential reason, the d"
a should he the same with all. As the inn v
not close its doors, or the public convey- a
e retuse a seat to any pa ving traveler, decent tl
condition, so must it be with the theater
I other places of public amusement. Here
institutions whose peculiar object is the ..
irsuit of happiness," whish ban been placed
jug the equal rights of all. How utterly 81
itional the pretension to outrage a largo por- rl
1 of the community. The luw can leud j1
If to no such intolerable absurdity, and ?(
i, I insist, shall he declared by Congress.
COMMON SCHOOLS.
'he common school falls naturally into the cl
te category. Like the others, it must be it
n to all or its designation is a misnomer und tl
lockery. It is not a school for whites or n p
?J,1 (v.- KI....Lo k.,1 .. ...kAnl f.il- ult . I- ...Ua_ _
uv?.. .v? '/latBP, Vitb U. DVUW f III uiacr fl
(Is a c.namon school. Much is implied iu u
i term, according to which the School bar g
uizes with the other institutions already t<
itemed. It is an inn where children rest on ti
r >ad to knowledge. It is a public convey- b
e where childreu are passengers. It is a w
ater where children resort for enduring re- A
ution. Like the others, it assumes to pro- g
! for the public; therefore it must be open S
ill ; nor can there be any exclusion, except b
grounds equally applicable to the inn, the d
1 c conveyance, and the theater. m
tut the common school has a higher char- "
er. Its object is the education of the young, a
1 it is sustained by taxation to whish all si
(tribute. Nut only does it hold itself out
the public by its nume and its harmony with tl
other institutions ; but it assumes the place r<
parent to all children within its locality, tl
Kid always to a parent's watchful care and il
demos, which can know no distinction 01 ti
Id. ti
t is easy to see that the separate school g
tided on an odious discrimination and some- I1
c'S oft-red us an equivalent fur the common a
lool, is an ill-disguised violation of the prin- "
!e of Kquality, while as a pretended equiva- h
t it is an utter failure and instead of a pa- ft
it is ouly a churlish step-mother. tc
1 slight illustration will show bow it fails, n
1 here 1 mention an iucident occurring in "
ishiugton, but which must repeat itself ei
J
! wherev-T separation is attempted. Colored
i children, living near what is called the comj
mon school, are driven from its doors, and
| compelled to walk a considerable distance,
I often troublesome and in certain conditions of
; the weather difficult, to attend the separate
! school. One of these children h is suffered
from this exposure, and I have mvse|f witnessed
the emotion of the parent. This could not
! have occurred had the child been received at
the common school in the neighborhood. Now,
it is idle to atsert that children compelled to
this exeeptionul-journeying to and fro, are in
the enjoyment of equal rights. The superadded
pedestrianistn and its attendant discomfort
furnish the measure of inequality in one
of its forms, increased bv the weakness or ill
health of the child. What must be the feelings
of a colored father or mother daily witnessing
this sacrifice to the demon of Caste ?
This is an illustration merely, hut it shows
precisely how impossible it is for a separate
school to be the equivalent of the common
school. And yet it only touches the evil with
out exhibiting its proportions. The indignity
offered to the colored child is worse than any
compulsory exposure, and here not only the
child suffers; but the race to which he belongs
is blasted and the whole community is hardened
in wrong.
The separate school wants the first requisite
of the common school, inasmuch as it is not
equally open to all: and since this is inconsistent
with the declared rule of republican
institutions, such a school is not republican in
character. Therefore it is not a preparation
for the daties of life. The child is not trained
in the way he should go ; for he is trained
under the ban of inequality. IIow oan he crow
up to the stature of equal citizenship ? 11c is
piuched and dwarfed while the stigma of color
is stamped upon hitu. This is plain oppression,
which you, sir, would feci keenly were
it directed against you or your child. Surely
the race enslaved for generations has suffered
enough without being compelled to hear this !
prolonged proscription. Will not the II public, ;
redeemed by most costly sacrifice, insist upon I
justice to the children ot the land, making the
tonimon school the benign example of repnh
ican institutions where merit is the only ground
>f favor.
Nor is separation without evil to the whites.
The prejudice of color is nursed when it should
te stifled. The Pharisaism of race becomes an
dement of character when, like all other ;
Pharisaisiuis, it should be cast out. Hctti r j
iven than knowledge is a kindly nature and |
he sentiment of equality. Suoh should be the !
iunstaut lesson repeated by tho lips and inicribed
on the heart; but the school itself must
iructioe the lesson. Children learn by exam>le
more than by precept. How precious the
xaiuple which teaches that all are equal in
ights. But this can be only where all com
ainglc in the common school as in common
utizenship. There is no separute ballot box.
I'here should be no separate school. It is not
nough that al,l should he taught ul.kc; thpy
mist all be taught together. They are not only
a receive equal quantities of knowledge, bur
ill are to receive it in the same way. But they
aunot be taught alike uuless all are I
aught together ; nor can they receive equal
[uantities of knowledge in the same way, ex
ept at the connuon school.
The common school is important to all ; hut
o the colored child it is a necessity. Excluded
rum the common school, he finds himself too
requently without any substitute. Often
here is no school. But even where a separate
chool is planted it is inferior in character,
io matter what the temporary disposition, the
eparate school will not flourish as tire com- I
ion school. It is but an ofTshoot or sucker
rithout the strength of the parent stem. That
he two must differ is seen at once, and that
his difference is adverse to the colored child 1
r equally apparent. For him there is no as i
urauce of education except in the c mimm
chool, where he will be under the safeguard
f all. White parents will take care not only
hat the common school is not neglected, cut i
hat its teachers and means of instruction arc
he best possible, and the colored child will I
ave the benefit of this watchfulness. This
ecisive consideration completes the irresistible (
rgument for the common school as the equal 1
arcut of all without distinction of color. ?
If to him that hath is given, according to the 1
ay of the world, it is not doubted that to him 1
rat hath not there is a positive duty in pro '
ortion to the necessity. Unhappily our col- I
red fellow-citizens are in this condition. But <
ist is proportion as they are weak and not i
et recovered from the degradation in which i
ley have been plunged, does the Republic owe I
s complotest support and protection. Already f
component part of our political corporation r
ley must become part of the educational cor- i
ration also, with Equality as the supreme law. I
OTHER PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS.
It is with humiliation that I feel hound to |
isist upon the same equality in other public ^
istitutions of learning and science, also in (
[lurches and in the last resting-places of the
ead. So far as any of these are public in
bnraeter and organised hv law. thev must .
tllow the general requirement, llow strange
iat any institution of learning or sc ience, any (
burch or any cemetery should set up a dis- (
rimination st? utterly inconsistent with correct j
rinciple. Hut I do not forget that only re- |
sntjy ft colored officer of the national Army
'as treated with indignity ut the communionible.
To insult tin; dead is easier, although 1
oudemncd by Christian precept and heathen
lample.
Among the Romans degradation ended wiih
fe. Slaves were admitted to honorable sepulire,
and loinetimes slept the last sleep with 1
tieir masters. The slaves of Augustus and 1
,ivia were buried on the famous Appian Way.
hero their tombs with numerous inscriptions '
ave survived the centuries, "lfury him with *
is niggers," was the rude order of the rebel
fficer, as he Hung the precious remains of
ur admirable Colonel Shaw into the common
rench at Fort Wagner, where he fell mount
lgthe parapets at the hi ad of colored troops
end so he was buried, lovely in death as in
fe. The intended insult became an honor,
n that common trench the young hero rests,
nnholizitig the great Equality for which he
icd. No Roman monument with its iS/xte
tutor to the passing traveler, no 'labor of an
ge in piled stones," can match in grandeur
iat simple burial.
1'KKJl'UU K UK rULUK.
Mr. President, against these conclusions
lere is but one argument, which, when con- i
idered, is nothing but a prejudice, as litrle i
ational as whut Shyloek first calls his "hulor"
and then "'a lodged hate and n certain
lathing," making him seek the pound of flesh
om out the merchant's heart. It is the pre i
idice of color which pursues its victim in the
ing pilgrimage from the cradle to the grave,
losing the school, barring the hotel, exclud
lg from the public conveyance, insulting at
lie theater, shutting the gates of science and
laying its fantastic tricks even in the church
here he kneels and the grave where his dust
tingles with the surrounding earth. The (Judiven
color of the African is a constant offcr.se
) the disdainful white, who, like the pretcnous
lord, asking Hotspur for prisoners, can
ear nothing so unhandsome "betwixt the
ind and his nobility." This is the whole case.
,nd shall those equal rights, promised bv the
reat Declaration, be sacrificed to a prejudice ?
hall that equality before the law, which is the
est part of citizenship, he denied to those ? he
o not happen to be white? Is this a white
tan's Oovernment, or is it a Government 01
all men," as declar. d by our fathers? Is it
Republic of equal laws, or an oligarchy of the
tin ? This is the question now presented.
Once Slavery was justified by color, as new
le denial of Equal Rights is justified, and the
>ason is as little respectable in one case as in
ie other. The old pretension is euriou.lv
lustrated by an incident in the inimitable uu- t
ibiography of Franklin. An ante-revo'u t
onary Governor of Pennsylvania remarked s
aily that he much admired the idea of Sunt ho a
anzu, who, when it wan proposed to give him c
government, requested that it might be of i
blacks," as then, if he oould not agree with t
is people, he might sell them, ou which a
ieud said, " Franklin, why do you continue r
side with the damned Quakers? Had you s
ot bettsr sell them?" Franklin answered, d
The Governor has not vet blacletl theiu j (
lough." The autobiography proceeds to say ' i
tint the Governor "labored hard to bhtcrien |
the As?eni( v in all his messages, hut they '
wiped his coloring as fast as he laid it on and
placed if in return thick upon his own face, i
-o that, finding he was likely to he ntgrujitd j i
himself, ho grow tircdof the contest and quitted '
the Gov rnuient." (Franklin, Antubingrnphg, I i
j>. U'' 1), edit. Biyloiv ) To negrofy a tnan was t
to d grade him.
Thus in the ambition of Sancho Pan/.a and | i
in the story of the British Governor, was color j t
the badge of Slavery. " Then I can sell them," j t
said S.iii ho Patiza, and the British Governor j i
repeated the saying. This is changed now ; I
but not entire'y. At present nobody dare say. 1
' 1 can sell them but the inn, the common j i
conveyance, the theater, the school, the scien j i
tific institute, the church, and the cemetery j t
deny them equal rights. i
Color has its curiosities in history. For I
generations the Roman circus was convulsed y
by factions known from their livery as white 4
and rttl. are^n mid hi up '?rwl *tioa? "
raged with redoubled fury in the hippodrome t
j of Constantinople. Then came blacks and s
whiles in the political contentions of Italy, t
where the designation was from ths accident n
I of a name. In England the most beautiful of v
iiowers, in two of its colors, became the badge r
| of hostile armies, and the white roge fought c
! against the red. But it has been reserved for a
j oar Kepubiic, dedicated to the rights of human ti
| nature, to adopt the color of the skin as the
sign of separation and to organize it in law. j u
Color in the animal kingdom is according it
to a law of nature. The ox of the Roman d
oainpagna is gruy. The herds on the hanks n
of the \anthus were yellow, on the banks of w
the Clitummis they were white. In Corsica J
animals are spotted. The various colors of a
'he human family belong to the same mystery, ci
There are white, yeliow, red, and black, with E
intermediate shades, but no matter what their ti
hue, they are always men, gifted with a com- j it
mon manhood and ontitled to common rights, j tb
l>r. Johnson made short work with the famous 1 ai
paradox of Berkley, denying the existence of j ni
matter. Stamping his foot on a stone, he ex- j ?t
claimed, " I retute it thus." And so in reply j c(
to every pretension against the equal rights of! cc
all, to every assertion of right founded on the j er
skin, to every denial of right because a man j Si
is something else thau white, 1 point to that i et
common manhood, which knows no distinction ! at
of color, and thus do 1 refute the whole inhu- SI
man, unchristian paradox. cc
the word "white." j
Observe, if you please, how little the word bt
"white" is authorized to play the great part th
it performs, and how much of an intruder it
is in all its appearances. In those two titledeeds,
the Declaration of Independence and
the Constitution, there are no words of color,
whether white, yellow, red, or black; but eD
here is the fountain out of which all is derived. 86
I'he Declaration speaks of "all men" and
not of "all white men;" and the Constitution
says, " We the people," and not " We 'v
the white people." Where, then, is the au- c.''
1 hority for any such discrimination, whether by nf
tin; nation or any component part? There P*
is no fountain or word for it. The fountain
failing, anil the word non-existent, the whole ?a
pretension s a d sgusting usurpation, which is w
more utterly irrational, when it is considered
tiiat the nutnority for such au outrage can be
found only in positive words, plain and unaui- "c
biguous in meaning. This was the rule with tri
auu it muQi uc me siiiur ;
with regard to this pretension. It eannot be j Jj11
invented, imagined, or implied ; it must be j
found in the very text; and this I assert uc- i "
cording to fixed principles of jurisprudence. I sa
In its absence, Equality is the supreme law of : ??
the land, "and the judges in every State shall im
be bound thereby, anything in the constitution j
or laws of any State to the contrary notwith | r*
standing.-' , * I he
This conclusion is re-enforced by ttia oonsti- ! ??
tutional amendment abolishing Slavery ; but I ! ?*
prefer to dwell on the original text of th? Otm '
*titution, in presence of which yea might ? P*
well undertake to make a king as to degrade a l?
fellow-citizen on account of his skin.
There is also the original common law, ante- "
l.iting and interpreting the Constitution, which aB
tnew no distinction of color. One of the great- r*
:st judges that ever sat in Weetmineter Hall, '
Lord Chief Justice Holt, declared in staten 1
.ious judgment, worthy of perpetnal memory,
'The common law takrs no notion of negroes eai
teing different from other men." (Smith vs. 1st
JoulJ, - Lord Raym., 1S74.) This was in 1706, an
leventy years before the Declaration of lude3cndence,
so that it was well known to our an
at hers us part of that common law to which, wh
iccording to the Con incutal Congress, the *
it-vcral States were entitled. (Story; Com- aft
nentaries on Constitution, Vol. 1, 2 199 note.) j cai
ilad these remarkable words been uttered by j xx
my judge iu Westminster Hall, they would j
lave been important, but they are enhanced
iy the character of their illustrious author, to ; ma
vhom belongs the kindred honor of first declar eai
ng from the bench that a slave canuot breathe j dei
n England. the
Among the ornaments of English law none Ar
las a purer fame than Lord Chief Justice Holt, ou
vho was emphatically a grsat judge, being an
example of lea n ng and firmness, of itnpar.iality
au 1 mildness, with a constant instinct
"or justice and a rare capacity in upholding it. a"
His eminent merits have arrested the adtnira- "?e!
ion of his biographer, Lord Campbell, who <*e
loes not hesitate to say, that "of all judges au]
n our annals llolt has gained the highest rep anl
.xtation, merely by the exercise of judicial fuac
nons, and then again, in striking words, ttiat . 1
" he uiay he considered as having a genius for c|?1
Magistracy, as much as our Milton had for Jlpoetry
orour Wilkiefor painting." (Campbell's wil
Lives of the Chief Justices, Vol. II, pp. 118 !'?
ind 135.) And this rarest magistrate tells us 'l0
judicially, "that the common law takes no ai
notice of negroes being different from other 001
men;" in other words, it makes no discrimina- Pr
tiou on account of color. This judgment is a j ra<
torch to illumine the Constitution, while it j
shows how naturally our fathers in the great ! Wi!
Declaration said, "all men," and not "all white | Pe
men," mid in the Constitution said, "We the P'1
people," and nok "We the white people." I
In melancholy contrast with the monumental Sit'
judgment of the Knglish Chief Justice, are P"
judicii 1 decisions in our own country, espe- ln
cially that master piece of elaborate inhuman- Je.
ity, the judgment of our late Chief Justice in 1111
the Dred Soott case. But it is in the States j Se
that the word "white" has been most con-! mi
jidered. Such learned debate on the rights 1 jui
of man dependent on complexion, would ex 'a'
^ite a smile, if it did not awaken indignation. ' *
I'here is Ohio, a much honored State, rejoicing an
in prosperity, intelligence, and constant liberty ;
hut even this eminent civilization has not saved
its supreme court from subtleties of refine- j 'j"
ment on different shades of human color. In j ,e
the case of Lake vs. Baker el al., (12 Ohio
Hep., 237,) this learned tribunal decided that utl
a child of negro, Indian, and white blood, but ex
of more than one-half white, was eutitled to
the benefits of the common school fund. But (j"c
in a later case the same court decided that . 1111
"children of three-eights African and five- j mi
eighths white blood, hut who are distinctly j '?'
colored and generally treated and regarded as j
colored children by the community where they
reside, are not, as of ritjht, entitled to admis- 11,1
iion into the common schools set upart for the j
nstraction of white youth,-." (Camp vs. Board I f'e
f education of Logan, y Ohio State Rep., p. j rei
100.) Unhappy children! Kven five-eighths !
vhite hiood could not save them, if in their j
leighborhood they were known as "colored." j 'n
Hut this magic of color showed itself yet more ('?
n the precedent of Poh'y Gray vs. The State n<*:
f Ohio, (1 Ohio Rep., 353.) a case of robbery, I sel
vhere the prisoner, appearing on inspection j m!t
x*f m ulisnlft nt rnlor mnluttn ami i
white," a negro was admitted to testify against me
icr, and she was convicted ; bnt on grave con 189
ideratioli by the whole court, it was decided c'o
hat the witness was wrongly admitted, and 'hi
be judgment was reversed; and the decision 'f?
tands on these words : "A negro is not an Ki
admissible witness against a quadroon on trial Rd
,barged with crime!" Into this absurdity ol to
( justice was an eminent trihuual conducted by rei
be iyntsfatuu.i of color. wil
These are specimens only. To what mean- 'n
loss of inquiry has not the judicial mind de '
cended in the enforcement ol an odious preju lan
lice? Such decisions are a discredit to lie
mblican Government, and so ulso is the exist 8l'li
ng practice ol public institutious in harmony
- -
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tiding quar** In this paper
At| faci I?m tlMM I rIImi j hirgt ItktrtUtftfkll
square.
All *iWHrti(4em?>nti>orci!pyinu !?*sstb;in aqnarter of ft colnmn
ar* computed >>y tip -q'ltie.
A<lvertie*>rn?nt4 in*ert'?! lor * ! *? tiro* than three moi.tb
are ciuufwl t rseetom nstea.
with them. The words of the tospel are fulfilled,
anil ti e "reaf llopnhlie "conceived iti
liberty ar >1 dedicated to the proposition that
nil men nre ereatetl equal," beeomea "like
unto v'hilcd sepu'ehers. whit h, indeed, appear
beautiful nntw .rtl. It are within full ot ilead i
men's hones and .'fall uncleanncss '' (Matth..
^hap. liii., v. 27 ) Are not su h decisions
worse than d id men's bones or aoy nncleanuess?
All this is more irrational when we
ecall the divine example, and the admonition
id drained to the prophet : " But the Lord said I
into Samuel, Look not on h'i count nut tec,
'or the Lord seeth not as man seeth ; for man
ooketh at tlo> outward appearance, but the 1
Lord loohtth at the heart." (1 ftamnel, chap. i
tvi, v. 7.) To the pretension of looking at
he skin and measuring its various pigments
n Ik. ,1.1....: ?O . - ' -
.. *,.x, v.. 11.-1 luiiuuiuu ui rivals, i repiy mat lUo
ieart and not the countenance must he our
;uide. Not on the skin can we look, though
' white" as the coward heart of M icheth, acording
to the reproach of his wife; luitoii
hat within constituting character, which
howed itself supremely in Tonssaint I/Ouverure.
making him though black as night a lumiiocs
example, and which is now manifest in a
irtuous and patriotic people asking for their
ights. Where justice prevails ail depends on
haracter. Nor can any shade of color he an
poiogy for interference with that con-idera
ion to which character is justly entitled. I
Thus it stands. The word "white" found
o place in the original common law, nor did
; find any place alterward in our two titli eeds
of constitutional liberty, each interpretlg
the other, and being the fountain out of
'hich are.derived the rights and duties of the
imcrican citizen. How then can it become
limitation upon the citizen ! My what title
in any one say, "I am a white lord?"
very sta'ute and all leghlation, whether ua
onal or State, must he :n complete cotilorniy
with the two title. *ds. To these mutt
ley be brought as to an uuerriug touehston ,
ad it is the same with the State as with the
itiou. Strange, indeed, if nil odious disimination,
without support in the original
unmon law or the Constitution, and openly
mdemned by the Declaration of Iud"pcndlce,
can escape judgment by skulking within
tate lines. Wherever it shows itself, what er
form it takes, it is the same bare faced
id insufferable imposture, a mere relic of
avery to he treated always with indignant
mteinpt and trampled out as au unmitigated
humbug." The word may not he juridical,
should not use it if it were unparliamentary ;
it I know no term which expresses s > well
e little foundation for this pretension.
citizenship.
That this should continue to Haunt now that
avery is condemned, increases the iuconsist
cy. Ky the decree against that wrong all
mhlance of apology was removed. Ceasing
be a slave the former victim has become not
ly aman. but a citizen, admitted alike with n
e pale of humanity and within the pale of
tizenship. As a man he is entitled to all the
Ilk. rvf - 1 L
5...? ?i?u, duu u ciu/.vii ne uecomes a
imber of our common household with equalr
a? the prevailing law. N'o longer an At'rin,
lie is an American ; no longer a slave, he
a component part of the Republic, owing to
pariotie allegianoe in return for the prniee
in of equal laws. By incorporation with the
idy-politie he becomes a partner in that
tnscendent unity, so that there can be no
jury to him without injury to all. Insult to
m is insult to an American citizen. Ihs
nor to him is dishonor to the Republic it-ell.
hatever he may have besn, he is now the
me as ourselves. Onr rights arc his rights;
r equality is his equality; our privileges and
inanities are his great possession. To enjoy
is eitizenehip, people from alar, various in
ce and somplezion, seek our shores, losing
re all distinctions of birth, as, into the
can all rivers flow, losing all trace of origin
eolor, and there is but one uniform expanse
water where each particle is like every otli r ?
irticle and all are subject to the same low. iu
is citizenship the African is now absorbed.
In aneient times the cry, "1 am a Roman
;i*en," arrested the scourge of the lict>r:
d this cry, with its lesson of immunity, has
ionnded through the ages, testifying to Rout
greatness. Once it was on the lips of
nl, as appears in the familiar narrative :
"And as they bound him with thongs, Paul
d unto the centurion that stood by. Is it
vfal for yoa to scourge a man that is a Roman
d uneoudsmned ?
"Whan the centurion heard that, ho went
d told the chief captain, saying. Take hoed
lat thou doest; for this mau is a Roman." *
* "And the chief captain was afraid,
er Le knew that ho was a Roman, nnd heuse
be had bound him." (The Acts, chap,
ii, verses 23, 20, 29.)
Will not our "chief captain," will not .Sen
irs take heed what they do, that the scourge
iy not continue to fall upon a whole race.
:h one of whom is an American and uncon
runed? Is our citizenship a feebler safeguard
in that of Rome? Shalt the cry, "1 ain nu
nerican citizen," be raised in vain ngiinst
trage 1
Eql'AL. SIGHTS AND AMNE3TT.
Mr. President, asking you to unite now in
aet of justice to a much-oppressed race,
ing only a small installment of that heavy
bt accumulated by generations of wrong. 1
t encouraged by the pending measure of
mesty, which has the advantage of being
loramended in the President's annual mmje.
I regretted at the time, that the Piesiut
signalized by his favor the removal of
labilities imposed upon a few th> usand rebels
10 had struck at the Uspublie, while he said
thing of cruel disabilities indicted upon inilns
of colored fellow-citizens, who had been
nain stay to the national cause. Bat I took
arage when I thought that the generosity
oposed could not fail to quicken that sentijnt
of justice which I now invoke.
Toward those who assailed the Republic in
ir I have never entertained any sentiment of
rsonal hostility. N'ever have 1 sought tiie
inishment of any one; and 1 rejoice to know
at our bloody rebellion closeu without the
crifice of a single human life by the civil
wer. But this has not surprised me. Karlv
the war I predicted it iu this Chamber. And
t, while willing to be gentle witii former eueies,
while anxious not to fail in any lenity or
nerosity. and while always watching for the
roient when all could be restore! to our cumin
household with equality as the prevailing
w, there was with me a constant duty, which
jould never forget, to fellow-citizens, whits
d black, who had stood by the Republic, and
pecially to those lurire numbers, counted by
e million, still suffering under disabilities,
iving their origin in no crime, butmore keenly
It than any imposed upon rebels. Believing
at duty to these millions is foremost, and that
itii they are assured in equal rights we cannot
pect the tranquility which alt desire, nay.
, we cannot expect the blessings of Almighty
id upon our iabors, I bring forward this
msnre of justice to the colored race. Such i
:asure cau never be out of order or out ot
?8on, being ot urgent necessity and uiiqucainahle
charity.
Thpre urn at renin ri-'iunrw u-)iv it rihnilbl ItC
iteti with Amnes'y, especially simp the lu'.tor
pressed. Each is the removal of disahilis,
and each is to operate largely in the same
iMoli of country. Nobody sincerely favoring
nerosity to rebels should hesitate in justice
the colored race. Accord ng to the tnnviin
chancery, "Whoso would have equity must
equity.' Therefore, rebels seeking musty
must be just to colored fellow citizens
kingequal rights. l>oing this equity they
y expect equity.
Vnother reason is con'ro'ling. Ma. h is a
asure of reconc.liaiiou, inteudid to close the
ues of the war; but these issues are not
sed unless each is adopted, Their adoption
;ether is better for each, and, therefore, bet
for the country than any separate adoption,
ndred in object, tbey should be joined to;her
and never put asunder. It is wrong
separate them. Hereafter the rebels should
ueiuber that their restoration was associated
ih the Equal Rights of all, being contained
the same great statute.
Jlearly between the two the pre-eminence
st be accorded to that for the Equal Rights
ail, as among the virtues, justice is above
lerosity. And this is the more evident wheu
[ ONTINfID OK FOl'ltTH KlGE j