The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1866-05-25
VOL. 61.--WHOLE No. 5.349.

Perhaps they may abolish themselves
one of these days. The men they have
abused a hundred times are the men
who abolished slavery. The slavehoid-
crs themselves did tenfold more TO a.
bolish it than they. ii the shareholders
had been satisfied to allow matters to
remain quiet, they would have had
their slaves to-day. 1t would have
been impossible TO overthrow slavery.
But they united with the politicians in
the war, and it was the soldier who a
bolished slavery, not the speechmaker,
or the proclamation-maker, who pa
rades himself here rs the person who
has accomplished it. Well. now. slaV
cry Is abolished, and what more do you
want? Everything these people want,
when you bring them down to the
point, is that the negro shall vote.
They pretend they want to give him
civil rights. We have given all the civ
il rights we have. We never stipulat-
ed to go to the extent Of overturning a
State to give him rights. We broke
the fetter from the slave and left him
Just like one Of Us, free to go where he
pleased. If ne did not like his master
in the District Of Columbia he could
go to Maryland If he did not like
Maryland he could go to Pennsylvania,
lust a. | would 90, and / might be 50
hard pushed under certain circum-
stances as to 90 to Massachusetts
Laughter. II the negro is not in the
right State he may go where he pleases,
and that i, personal liberty. 1t is the
liberty we ehaveconferred upon the black
man, and thing Of which am proud.
But | will not 90 to the extent of over
turning the liberty OF the States and
centralizing this Government, putting
the whole power in the hands Of Con-
/ gress and the President mere 10 ewield-
{ cd for improper purposes. / resist it
now as / have always.
As l said before, q gentleman has in
troduced a proposition which says: ::
"You may do just what you please,
provided you give Us political power
and let the negro vote" They intro
duced a proposition the other day, in
which they said, IF you viii give up
! the right to fifteen or sixteen members
of Congress, YOU may do what you
/ please. We do not care anything about
negro rights or negro suffrage"
The proposition now Is, if you will
let the negro vote that will leave us a
chance to continue our political power.
That is about as near the substance of
the proposition as ] can state it. A
! voice-"It is near enough."l
DO y"" o.roatost ra,,t stake in the world:
( for the Si'''' ,IeS VIII mona lucSv
6popie as a conquered people. What
do you want to do with them? If you
were a monarchy or an aristocracy, You
might find it to your advantage, but
| as a republic will you be any better of
for it? Is not the thought itself wick
ed and atrocious if ii We're possible OF
# execution? The inhabitants of those
/ States are of our blood, of our kith, and
kin. They are your cousins, your
brothers, your friends, your relations
and do you suppose they can be held
long as a conquered people? In this
war, when we were right and they were
wrong, what a terrible struggle it was
Did You not have misgivings a. to the
result up even to the day? Then, when
it happens that they are right and you
are wrong which side will God be on
Gentlemen, we must c0nciliate, re-
store and harmonic those people. We
, must forget our difference in the past
and endeavOr to live in peace and har
mony as one people. / say it is tht
greatest stake for whichany people evel
struggled. This is the greatest Repub
, | lie the world has ever seen by far, if w
can maintain it in its integrity. d.
/. you suppose we would be in the small
| lest danger from France, England, O
? any other nation if we are restored and
q stand together as brethren and Ameri'
! can citizens? Not a particle. But le
+, the Potomac river be the dividing lin
that shall cut off eleven States from
J. the Union, deprivethem of their rights
g and will they fight for you: When tn,
a time comes. and the time may com
4 tomorrow. who will they fight for to
=. day if there is trouble? VIII it be 70
the radical? f''No no." l tell you
f gentlemen, there is one man in this ma
ton who is the great bond of Union
! and that is your President. [Great en-
C thuSiasm.
It They will fight for him; and why
d Simply because when they were con
V quered he treated them a. a generou
man would. lie did not kick and GU
and abuse them. He said it is all over
a Let us be friends and have more sens
h next time That is the proper way
e do. 1t is the only way frank, hones
V liberal, human men, would treat fa
It len foe. Suppose you treat them Other
d wise, and war with England or Franc
A. should occur, they would keep tn
1f blockade open; and if they fought {
10 cainst us. where would this Union be
le They have half million of as goo
eo.L+;,,cr ,,op aS thpra orn in tho UOrlI