53 atcd a new class in the South—that of freedmen. To this class, which has as yet no place in Southern society, the lack of protection would be death. A negro demands the wages which are due him—who will be his judge? A negro appears as a witness in court—who will insure respect to his testimony ? A negro is exposed to insult, is whipped, is treated as a slave—who will punish his oppressors ? I might multiply questions, but this would bo taking useless pains. Every one knows that if the liberty of the colored men is maintained only by the judiciaries of the states, the slavery which has been abolished will reappear in the most formidable shape—that of a conflict of races, an active and violent hatred, an angry coalition of all the former masters against all the former slaves. What must be done, then ? According to all evidence, federal protection must be placed by the side of the new law. A few garrisons must be maintained in the strongholds and seaports to repress white oppression and negro insurrection in case of need. The beneficent action of the freedmen’s bureaux must be maintained. The interference of the federal judiciary must be instituted in matters of litigation between the whites and the blacks. Lastly, there must be placed within the reach of the new freedmen, not only the immediate succor demanded by their destitution, but work, which is always the best of all aid. In a word, you must necessarily have, for some time, your negro affairs like your Indian affairs. You must have them, because you are bound to render the abolition of slavery effective, because it cannot be your wish that the freedom granted to the negroes should be the freedom to die of hunger, the freedom to submit to exactions of all kinds, the freedom to be dependent on the whites for everything, the freedom to be slaves. It appears to me superfluous to dwell on this subject. It is in vain to attempt it, we shall never abolish the role of time in human affairs. Whatever may be our haste, we must still grant a few days to a social transformation as gigantic as that which is being accomplished in the South.
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