Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1860-11-09
Democrats, Attention 90 Republic
EiiS i'm the South.


ans in tho South.
4 We direct attention to the following extract
from letters from the South-one from Vir
ginia, the other from Missouri. They ar
significant as showing the march of event
there. They are important as bearing upol
one of the strongest reasons tina. can be urget
why every man North should vote the Re
publican ticket 1t is this We all believe il
the right of free speech. We all believe, ir
theory, at least, if not in practice, that, under
tho Constitution, any man has a legal right tC
hold and express any sentiments which he
honestly believes, in any part of this free land
without molestaton or hindrance from any
one. And we all believe that the General
Government is bound in duty to secure and
protect every man in this right. Now, we
know that, in the South, small minority Of
$4,000 men have succeeded in getting the
upperhand of the legislatures, the courts, and
all the offices of government, and are using
their power, every day, to violate and choke
down the right Of fee speech, whenever it
comes in conflict with a peculiar property
interest of this small band of men. These
men have created Reign of Terror there,
which it is worth mans life at any time to
resist. They search our letters and papers,
they gag our mouths, they bully us at the
polls. They are preparing, in many places in
Virginia, to lynch and mob all persons who
offer to vote the Republican ticket. Is it not
time to ask ourselves all of us, Republicans
and Democrats whether we do really live in
free country, or whether despotism is not
actually growing up around US as bad as that
of Austria or Russia?
Now, then, there are large class of men,
who live in the South, who feel most acutely
this oppression, but they dare notremonstrate.
Their property, lives, liberty and families, all
would be endangered. But they, nevertheless,
are impatient, as Ill freemen should be, of this
tyranny. These men are now looking and
writing to the frccmen of the North to come
to their assistance, and relieve them from this
terrible oppression by electing Republican
Administration who will guarantee to them
the free exercise Of their rights, and protect
them when they choose to assert these rights
As soon as Abraham Lincoln takes his seat,
a numerous and enthusiastic party of Repub-
licans will suddenly spring up in all the
Southern States, who will speedily take con-
troll of their governments, and make the South
as free rs the North. Now, Democrats and
Republicans, WHO objects to this? Who
objects to removing the padlocks from mems
mouths in the South, so that they can all
speak and act IS freely there as here? Who
objects to guaranteeing to all the citizens Of
the South the same liberty of conscience and
freedom Of speech as to the citizens of the
North? Who thinks That it is wrong to give
all the people liz the South q chance to vote
as they please, and, if large number wish to
vote against slavery. then to protect them in
their right Of so voting?
Read the folowing extracts, and decide for
yourselves whether you will vote for an Ad-
ministration which gives no care to these
things, or for one which will see to it that the
rights Of American citizens are respected in
all parts of the Union, and the right of Free
Speech and Free Voting shall no longer be
nsulted and trampled upon in any part of
this country:
VIRGINIA.
PORTSMOUTH, Va, Oct. "a.
"* = i 4 + and myself
are going to Norfolk to help to organize a
Republican association. Our Club in Ports
mouth was broken up in my absence, but to-
hit we are going to meet and organize a
straight-out Republican Club. We are going
to have our tickets printed, and 60 to the polls
on election day, and vote for Lincoln, and no
other candidate. They talk very strong of
tar and feathers. | shall not be surprised if
l receive notice to leave. You can Judge
the feeling here by the piece inclosed, which
cut out of the Transcript of to-day, a Ports
mouth paper They frightened great many
while | was away, and broke up the Club,
but will remedy the difficulty. | think it
is time for US to erase the word freedom from
the Constitution Of the United States, for 1t
is a word without meaning. 1t is a miserable
claim his iavorite candidate for the Presi-
dency."
The slip from the Portsmouth Transcript,
above mentioned, is as follows:
"MrNUTE MEN."-Would it not be well for
our citizens to organize themselves as "Minute
Men?" We ask this question for the purpose
of feeling the pulse of those of our citizens
who think it important to have organizations
which will visit summary punishment on
interlopers or squatte!s who may raise the
standard of rebellion in our midst, or whose
expressed opinions and actions may beget a
spirit of i1subordination. This remedy is
being applied al through the South to recus-
ant pcrsonages. Virginia ought not to hcsi-
tate about APPLYING the practice against those
in her midst who violate the offices of good
citizenship, to say the least, by their scnseless
harangues in private. Let us organize, then,
companies of "Minute Men, in each ward Of
the city, who can and will act as Judges,
jurymen and hangmen, if necessity demands.
MISSOURI.
DILLON, Oct 10, 1860.
The large body of vo.ers in each Slave
State are timid in the expression of their
sentiments, and disposed rather to "bear the
ills they have than increase them by max
ing themselves conspicuous as agitators.
The mass of the voters in this State are
either openly or secretly in favor Of its
emancipation from slavery. Some say plain
ly, II am for emancipation" Others, ''The
laws of climate and latitude will work out
for us our emancipation or we havetoo much
land unrecIaimed We need more farmers,
if we could devise some means of getting rid
of the ';present order Of things" There is,
however, no class of men who better under
stand the signs of this tendency to Freedom
than the slave-owners themselves. We have
the most active foreground railroad to the
South at this present time that ever was
known. The slave-traders are conveying
them off with the most surprising and omin-