The Cleveland leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1865-1865, 1865-07-26
THE FREEDMAN'S FRANCHISE.
Speech of Chief JnSGce Chase at Dart.
mouth College On Negro Suffrage.

speech Oh GnAeA justice Gnase al Dart
mouth College on Negro Suffrage.
At the alumni dinner at Dartmouth
College on Friday last, Chief Justice Chase
was present. and after speeches by Senator
Clark, Rev. DR.. Massie of England, Rich.
ard 81. Kimban of New York, and Gene
raj Shepley, made q speech bearing mainly
on negro suffrage. The part of his speech
relating to this question is reported in the
New York World, and, although made
public i n q condensed form by q hostile
paper, is SO interesting, eloquent and logi
cal as to demand attention. Wesppend it
Mr.. PRESIDENT: It may be deemed
improper for one occupying my position to
speak upon political subjects. l am pre-
cluded from this field, but here, among
brothers, 1 would like to say Familiarity .
few things that I would not In q more
public way. 1t vii be, indeed, a beautiful
thing to erect q memorial hall for the mar.
tyred sons of the college, and inScribe its
granite walls all over with the names of
her children who have been eminent, both
in war and in peace. But the true monu-
ment we shall rear to their fame will be
out of the country itself. l would be glsd
to give you my ideas as to how this country
shall be so reorganized and rebuilt as to
secure the true results of so much suffering
and blood expended. These ideas
have been confirmed by my observation in
my recent tour through the South. It is
my belief that no reorganization of the
country will be complete and permanent
until every mar in it. of whatever color. is
allowed to vote. The right of suffrage is q
right of freedom and citizenship, and it
must be granted to all, and 10 sl who have
been made free by the course and events
of the war. 1t will objected that the ne
groes are not qSuliHed to vote. But my
observation, recently, assures ma that they
are sufficiently intelligent. There are
among them on the plantations csrpen-
ters, mechanics, blscksmiths, preachers,
who are very skiIful and intelligent. At
least there is st the South, among the col
sred men, 8 real sristocrscy Of nature.
There are those who are intelligent enough
to construct q ticket, and the others have
intelligence enough to vote it when it il
put into their hands. They can take the
ticket you gave them, and if they are In
able to tell the reason why they vote it
they yet know enough to walk up TO the
bsliot-box and put it in. And I think
that is about IS much intelligence as these
before me have. think if 1 should ask
the reasons of you why you voted as you
did, you would not give them. 1 think
YOU, Mr.. President and Mr.. Ex-President,
snd you, gentlemen of the trustees, and these
gentlemen here, could not tell me why
--A.g -, Aha- Aid ~ cha 1,NaN aIaaksNR
You found q ticket ready made, and you
knew enough to go to the ballOt-bOx and
deposit it. You mad no hand in making
It, and the colored men Of the South can
do as you hsve done.
And they are moral enough to be allow
ed the suffrage. They are s very religi-
GUS people and most of them belong to the
church, or il, as 8 friend suggested that
only members of 8 church should be allowed
to vote, that restriction should be made,
they would all be members of the church
by next week, and that if it were not a
moralizing process, would be avery speedy
and effectual political one. But they are
moral enough to be allowed this right.
They have a great many black preachers
among them, who are now preaching the
ssnctity of marriage, and if they have but
little knowledge of the distinction between
,aeun1 and tuan, never having been taught
it by their late masters, yet these preachers
are now instructing them in the rights of
property. Therefore, to give them the
ballot will be eminently safe and eminent
ly right.
=. N0yI wish to say a few words about
ING moue tS?.S~za tho South, I do
agree with the doctrine thst my 4GnEnZ
ed friend advocated yesterday, that the
States Of the South have become territories, |
or that they are out or have been out of the
Union. Bat 1 think that 1 may show that
the result he aims to secure may preached
by q different theory and process from
that. 1t is my opinion that the States re-
main States. But the war, q great and
fact, has effected changes,
changes as real and permanent as those
by any other method. 1t has eff
fscted q complete destruction of slavery.
No one doubts that. Slavery is dead. And
has accomplished other changes. The
white population of the South has become
Tree. Those who were slaves st the begin
ming of the war have become freedmen and
now. Ard the rebel governments
If the Southern States have been destroyed.
All the machinery of those governments
las come to an end, and now holding, as 1
10, that the States remain States, the
econd process in the work of r~eorganiza-
ion is that the governments now revert
nto the hands of the Southern people.
They are to rebuild the governments of
heir States. But who are the people2
That is now the question. Ihold that the
var has made every colored man a part of
he people. Therefore the colored men of
he South should bear an equal hand in re-
rgsnizstion. The war has made them
and the right Of suffrage in the re-
rganizstion of q State pertains to every
itizen, Whstever may have been his status
the war began.
And this right will have TO be admitted,
not now, yet some time. 0ur classical
nowledge will give US an Illustration.
When the sybilline book was offered to a
.oman emperor and refused, 8 leaf was
aken out and this was repeated upon each /;
until but q single leaf was left and ;
he same price Wss demanded for that. .
md it was paid. So we shall have 10 pay :
lis prica- We shall pay IT at last
ght, too that We should
is n II Is
ian. The right OF