185. CLXXXV.
THE FRIENDS OF MR. NASBY HOLD A MEETING
AND INDULGE IN A WAIL OVER THE PASSAGE
OF THE FIFTEENTH AMENDMENT BY THE OHIO
LEGISLATURE.
6th Ward, Noo York, }
January 24, 1870.
The passige uv the 15th Amendment by the Ohio Legislacher
created a profound sensashen in this immejit visinity.
The news reached us in the afternoon, and that evenin a large
meetin wuz held in the back room uv my grosery to express
our views on the topic, the elect uv the Democrisy uv the ward
bein present. I wuz uv course called to the chair, and Tommy
Mick Farland, who wuz wunst a reporter, till an overpowerin
fondnis for likker preventid him from dischargin his dooties, and
who, ez he kin write, hez since made a livin by actin ez Sekretary
uv Dimekratic meetins in this ward, wuz made Sekretary.
Terence O'Grath, who is an under waiter at the Astor
House, remarked that his sole wuz filled with woe. The passage
uv the Amendment, by the Ohio Legislacher, settled the
question uv nigger suffrage. From this time forward a menial
race, only fitted by nacher to do menial offices for others, wood
be placed on a ekality with him. It wuz degradin to the
race uv freemen to wich he belonged, and for one he wood
never, no, never submit. Mr. O'Grath wood hev continyood
his remarks, but he wuz cut short by the entrance uv the head
waiter, who cussed him viggerusly for bein away from his
place, and ordered him instantly to leeve. “Who's brushin
the gentlemen's coats, and pullin off their boots, and sich,
while yoor here blatherin?” indignantly ejackilated the head
man, ez Mr. O'Grath meekly left the room.
Timmy Brannon, a drayman, remarkt that he wuz entirely
discouraged. Only last week he hed bin arrestid and fined for
beatin his hoss over the head with a dray pin, and now kin
nothin be dun to check these outrages?
Thomas Patterson, Esq., a gentleman known in pugilistic
circles ez “Patty the Lifter,” wantid to know whether he wuz
to be compelled to go to the polls twenty times a day beside
niggers? “Blast my heyes,” remarkt Mr. Patterson, vehemently,
“I'll go back to Hold Hingland first!”
Mr. Phelim Malloy remarkt that so far ez Noo York wuz concerned
he didn't know ez 'twood make any diffirence. He
wuz entirely shoor that no nigger wood ever vote in the Sixth
Ward, anyhow, ez we don't allow only sich white men to vote
ez we want to hev vote. But —”
“But s'posen they'll all vote the Dimocrathic tikket?” sung
out an Alderman.
“That woodent's do us any good,” retorted Mr. Malloy. “So
long ez we kin repate ez often ez needs be, and stuff into the
boxes ez many votes ez we want, wat do we want uv more
voters? What he wuz about to say wuz, that while it wooden't
affect us in Noo York, his sole run out in pity towards the
Dimocrisy in the Ablishen distriks, who wood be compelled to
vote with niggers, — compelled to stan by helplis, and see the
ballot-box thus degradid.”
At this pint there wuz a gineral expreshun uv joy, okkashund
by the entrance uv Mr. John Sykes, who hed jist arrived from
Sing Sing, where he hed been incarcerated two years for burglary,
which wuz complicatid with shootin the individjooel whose
house he wuz burglin. His bein convicted and sentenced wuz
owin to the fact that he hed opposed the nominashen ov the
Judge afore whom he wuz tried. Mr. Sykes wuz, uv course,
indignant at the unfair treetment he had experienced, but he
wuz more profoundly affectid at the politikle sitooashen than
he wuz at his privit wrongs. “Thunder! To think,” sed he,
“uv sich a mass uv ignorence, vishusness, and crime bein elewated
up to us. Ef 'twant for some little matters connectid
with a half dozen house-breakins in Lunnun, I'd go back on the
next steamer ez sails.”
And Mr. Sykes actilly wept.
At this pint an unfortunit difference occurred. Alderman
O'Fallon wuz offerin a resolooshen protestin agin the assoshatin
uv free men with the lower and more vishus classes ez tendin
to corrupt the sanctity uv the ballot, when Mr. Patsey Carney
entered. “Pay me the money ye promised me for the ten
votes I brot ye off the emigrant ship last fall, ye spalpeen!”
“I've paid it twice, ye blaggard; and, be gorra, there wuz only
nine uv em, and one uv them wuz a legal voter, for wich ye
hed no right to ask pay for!” retortid O'Fallon.
“To the divil wid yez!” remarkt Carney, goin for him. Uv
course the entire meetin jined in the scrimage. It lastid twenty
minits, resultin in the breakin uv every chair in the room,
a two-gallon jug, and twelve or fourteen heads. That relic uv
Ablishen misrool, the Metropolitan Poleece, kum in and stopt
the row, takin away ten men, nine uv wich I knowd hed money
in their pockets, wich, hed they stayed an hour, I shood hev
got. It wuz exasperatin.
Two uv my stiddy customers, who hed bin overcome early
in the afternoon, and who hed jist got up out uv the straw
which I keep in a room for the accommodashen uv sich, insistid
that they'd never consent to givin uv polittickle power to the
degradid wretches. They felt that the very proposishen was
a outrage. “Besides,” one uv em remarked, “wat effeckt will
the makin uv sich an army uv new voters hev upon the price
uv votes? Ef they vote at all in this city they'll hev to vote
with us. Will they immejitly demand their share uv the offices?
Imagine my bein arrestid for vagrancy by a nigger poleceman!”
And the very thought so shockt him that he rusht out into
the bar-room and took a whisky strate, forgettin, in his excitement,
to pay for it.
Resolooshens were introdoost and passed, denounsin the
ackshen uv Ohio, and exhortin Noo York to stand firm in her
rescindin uv the ratificashn. Addishnel resolooshens wuz
passed, demandin uv the Legislacher uv Noo York a stricktly
Democratic government. We insisted upon the immejit repeel
uv the Excise Law, the Metropolitan Poleece laws, the laws preventin
crooelty to animals, the health laws, the dividin uv the
Skool Fund among the Catholic churches, and all the laws which
tend to keep Ablishnists in office, to the injoory uv the s'loon
keepers uv Noo York. This last mentioned class wuz added
at my instance. Ef the poleecemen on this beat wuz all taken
from my patrons, ez they will be when the change finally comes,
wat a good thing I wood hev uv it. Imagine twenty or thirty
men, all on good salaries, and with power to arrest and go
through jest sich ez they please, and all uv em spendin half or
three quarters uv their time in my bar-room! Majestic prospeck!
Governor Hoffman wood insist upon hurryin up this
thing ef he realized how much we who electid him are losin
by his non-ackshen.
My biznis is tollable only. My customers are gettin in the
habit uv remarkin to me, “jist mark it down,” after takin a
drink, which, sence I stand inside uv a bar, I find to be a most
disgustin thing. And then my custom is bein divided. Sence
the Democratic victory in November makes a change in the
control uv the city certin, five stores in the immejit visinity uv
my place hev bin changed into s'loons, and each one draws
off suthin from me. But yit I make no doubt I shel git along.
My landlord will be a candidate for Alderman next spring, and
he can't afford to bother me very much for rent, and I am bizy
establishin a credit at half a dozen wholesale lickker stores. I
shel worry along.
Petroleum V. Nasby
(wich wuz Postmaster).
