Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1866-08-02
From the indianapolis Journal.
Andrew Johnson Oh Negro
Suffrage-Ehc Sharkcy Let
ter--The johnson DcmOCrO-

The Coppcrlcad journals are SO indus
trious i'm nothing else as i'm their charges
that the Union party of Indiana are in
favor of negro suffrage. They profess to
know more a,out the doctrines, principles
and purposes of the Union men of the State
than they know themselves, and to assure
thorough Copperhead that the Union par
| ty does not propose to give the negroes oi
the State the right TO vote. would be regar-
dcd bv him a. an imputation of his veraci-
". ON the contrary. the Democracy are
dead against the negro. They are in favor
of foisting twenty-five members into Con
gresS. from the South, as representatives Oi
the negro population of that section, but
they must be elected by the negroes mas
icrS. They were willing to pay high
price for negroes To represent Democrats in
the army but are horribly shocked when
negro soldiers participate in honoring the
tatiered flags borne through the storms OF
battle by the gallant volunteers of Indiana.
They dcclaim in indignant and sorfowful
tones. that the niger Is idle and thrittlcss,
and pass laws tO punish him for working,
and for intlicting fines upon those who fur
nish him employment.
The Indiana Democracy. if their state
mcntS are worthy of belief. are desperately
opposed to giving negroes the ballot; and
then they have another virtue--they are all
enraptured with the political wisdom OF
Andrew Johnson. They swear by John
son. they live for johnson, and indorse
johnson policy. OF course. johnson is
''down ON the ngger." and opposed to Civ
inc anv man i'm whom the ninety ninth part
of drop OF negro blood can be detected.
the right To walk up TO the ballot-b and
vote alongside of the proud caucasian. OF
course he j.. and of course the Democracy
sustain and indOrse all he has said on that
subject.
Fearing that some of them may have for
gotten the decided testimony borne bv their
new idol against the monStrous proposition
To give negroes the right of suffrage, we
have taken upon ourselves the trouble of
presenting some or the uttcIanvvs vf M.
johnson on that subject.
We first call attention 10 his speech tO
five thousand Nashville negroes, delivered
on the oath Of October. 1864, when his in
dignation against the idea of permitting ne
croes to vote was so highly excited as 10
lead him to declare that they were more
worthy 10 vote than rebels. Hear, q Dem
ocrats. his words of wisdom:
Il. Andrew johnson. hereby proclaim
libcrtv-full. broad. and unconditional lib
crtv-to every man in Tennessee. will
he your Moses, and lead You through the
Red Sea of struggle and scrvitude. To a fu-
ture of liberty and peace. Rebellion and
slavery shall no more pollute our State.
LOYAL MEN, wIETIIEI WHITE or BLACh.
shall alone GOVERN the State
\ year later, in his celebrated conversa-
ton with Major Stcarns, which was pub
lishcd with his approval. in defending his
action in not compelling the rebel States to
enfranchise their negroes he said:
MY position here is different to what il
would be if | were in Tennessee. THERE
l SHOULD TRY To INTRODUCE Ne
GRO SUFFRAGE GRADUALLY; first,
those who had served in the army, those
who could read and write, and perhaps a
property qualification for others, say two
hundred or two hundred and fifty dollars.
But it was in his celebrated letter to Pro
visional Governor Sharkey, of Mississippi,
that President JohnsOns horror of negro
suffrage was most emphatically expressed.
Governor Sharkey was an officer OF his own
creation. who had caused Convention to
be elected by the white voters of Missisip-
ri. to rebuild the State Government which
had gone down in the ruins OF the rebellion;
and 10 him the President sent the following
letter for the consideration of himself and
the convention.