The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1862-07-25
Gen. Hunters Black Troops.

TO bO,uOU loyal, acclimated, art
drilled soldiers OF the same color b,
fall brought mp lively debate in tn
House on the 9Th, in which, says th,
Cincinnati Gasettc'S dispatch, som,
very conservative men said som,
very ultra things, that must prov,
sadly firing to the Southern heart.-
Wicklitfe wanted to reconsider tn,
vote by which Gen. Hunters lette
was ordered printed. and could no
contain himself on the insult llunte
had offered to loyal people. Ii,
charged officers OF tho Government
and Of the army with having under
taken without law, against order
and in violation Of every principle o
humanity, To assume the power y
enlisting slaves to serve agaius
their masters. Gen. Hunters letter
was In manner and terms unbecom
ing General. lie held Secretary
Stanton responsible for Hunters
conduct, and sneefinely said Hun.
ter had better been seeing to his
business when the late disaster in
South Carolina took place, than tink
ering with negroes.
Mallory made the usual Kentucky
speech against arming the blaoks. -
He iidiculed the idea of making
them soldiers; said a single cannon
shot would put ten thousand OF them
to flight; and closed by declaring
that nrming them was barbsrous. in.
human and contrary to the practice
of civilized nations. and that il was
almost M bad Va putting tho tom.
shawk into the hands OF the savage.
This stirred up Thad. Stevens, who
inquired. how docs it come that they
are SO dangerous to their masters
when "A single cannon shot will pul
ten thousand TO liighlp Or how il
il they have not courage enough to
make soldiers when you call tbam
as savage and dangerous as Indians?
But tic gentleman was mistaken in
his facts. Common history, he re
peaied, proved them false. 1t had
been the general practice of ci7iliz
ed nations to employ slaves for mill
t. rypurposes, whenever and wherev.
er needed.
Lovtjoy here begged leave to in d.
terrupt, nnd read from common
school history abont Jackson's arm
ing slaves in the war of 1912, and
his promise 10 give freedom 10 all
who served. He then read Jack
sons general order thanking the ne.
eroce Tor their gallant success, say.
ing that lie had not been unaware
of their good qualities as soldiers.
but that they had far surpassed his
highest expectations, and rcass urins
them OF emancipation as a reward
for their conduct. Lovejoy conclud.
ed his demonstrations on the negro
tr gh,ened gentlemen by reference
- another history, showing that one
fourth ri the mon who hnlpcd to
~in P'rry's victory on the lakes
were negroes. The effect OF all this
WIS sensational. Men who had beer
donouncing Hunter could not have
been more astonished If one of llun.
ter's own bombshelIs. from Port
Royal had been dropped among
them.
Sedgcwick heightened the eft. ct by
reading mn elaborate statement o'
'he New York State Librarian. show
ing that nearly every civilized nation
had, sometime or other, employed
negroes Ms soldiers and always vill
success, and winding up with the eS.
ample of Brazil, the largest slave
holding empire IN the world, usine
regiments Of slaves at this very day
as among tho best soldiers they
have.
Diven begged to trcsspass on Ste.
veps' time, just TO say that he bad
long been profoundly convinced tha,
Congress failed in i,s imperitve du
ty, just 40 long as it failed to pro-
vide for enlistiug negro troops tc
serve in unhealthy regions to which
they had become acclim sted, aud he
now had bill to that end prepared
and WAS rcady to offer it at the Ara
opportunity.
That, resumed Mr.. Stevens, il
precisely what | woul1 have done
long ago, only was not a conserva
tive, and 30 they'd have called it ar
Abolition scheme. Stevens ther
went on with unusual earnestnest
and force to urge the necessity foI
using negroes to save white men. -
He declared that all over his Stata
households wero everywhere desc
lated to day because we had no
troops enough, and now they wanted
to call on them for moro, to be sen
into unwholesome climates, wher,
teXposure WAS certain death to an,
white man, and asserting that Will,
such policy was pursued the sup
preston OF the rebellion was hope
lessl
The effect OF the discussion wa
seen when at the close Of Stevens
speech the House laid Wickliffe
motion on the table by a vote of z
to 29.
There will be no more snesring a
Hunters letter or his negro brigade
The man who planted q dagge
in his enemy's breast, raised u Gro