Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1858-07-10
THE MUD s11Lg-MR HAmMoND's SPEECH

In common with the leading Lecomp-
ton papers Of the country, the S. F. Globe
few weeks since, quoted approyingly that
portion of the speech of Senator Ham
mond, in which he calls laboring white
men the mud sllls Of society, and ranks
them on a par with the slaves of The South
The Globe goes farther than the most of
It's co-workers, and in its issue Of May 20t
gets off a abored defense of the senti-
ments uttered by the Carolina Senator,
and asks if there is an Intelligent man who
denies the soundness Of the philosophy, or
the correctness Of the assertions contained
in the following quotation from The speech
alluded to-:
ain all social systems there must be a
class to do the mental duties, to perform
the drudgery Of life. That is, a class re-
quiring but low order of intellect and
but little skill. It's requisites are yigor,
dociIity, fidelity. Such class you must
have, or you would not have that other
class which leads to progress, civilization,
and refinement. It constitutes the very
mud-sill Of society and Of political govern
ment; and you might as we'll attempt to
build house in the air as to build either
the one or the other except OH this mud
sill. Fortunately for the South, she
found race adapted to that purpose to
her hand-a race inferior to her own, but
eminently qualified in temper, in vigor, in
docillty, IN capacity, to stand the climate,
to answer all her purposes. We use them
Tor our purpose, and call them slaves. We
found them slaves by the'comnon consent
Of mankind, which, according to Cicero,
le,c nature est the highest proof of
what is Natures law. We are old-f9sh-
Toned at the South yet; it is word dis
carded now by 'ears polite;;' [ will not
characterize that class at the North with
that term; but you have it; it is there !;
it is everywhere; it is eternal.
:: x X =
I'VE do not think that whites should be
slaves either by law or necessity. Oar
slaves are black, Of another and inferior
race. The status in which we have pla-
ced them is an elevation. They are ele-
waited from the condition in which God
first created them, by being made our
slaves. None of that race on The whole
face of the globe can be compared with
The slaves OF the South. They are happy
content, unaspiring, and utterly incapable
from intellectual weakness, ever to give us
any trouble by their aspirations. Yours
are white, Of your own race you are broth
er5 of he blood. They a your equs Is
lin natural endowment of intellect, aud
they feel galIei by their degradaoion.-
Our slaves do not vote. We give them
no political power. Yours do vote, and
being the majority, they are the deposita-
RE Of all your political power. If they
knew the tremendous secret, but the bal
lot-box is stronger than an army with ban
ners, and could combine where would sou
be? Your society would be reconstruc-
ted, Jour government overthrow, YOU
property divided, not as they have mista-
kenly attempted TO initiate such proceed
ings by meeting in parks, with arms in
their hands, but by the quiet process Of the
ballot-box. You have been making war
upon US TO our very hearthstones. How
would you like for lis to send lecturers aud
agitators North, to teach these people this,
to aid in combining, and to lead thenr'
! The speech Of Mfr. Harmon would
have been considered orthodox by the old
Federal party, and it is singular fact that
! the Lecomptonites are compelled to resort
to the long since repudiated doctrines Of
that party, in order to sustain the minority
rule in Kansas. We would not attempt
to array one class Of the community against
another, and should ha. 3 deemed the re-
marks of Mr.. Hammond as scarcely wor-
thy Of notice had they not been acquiesed
in by the leading Leco.npton papers. We
very much mistake the character of the
| American people if they sustain such doe
trines or those who advocate them.