Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1866-10-03
Fred. DougIass, Speech,

Fred Douglass made speech at the Uniol
League Rooms in Philadelphia upon the 4tl
ult. He said OF the johnson Convention:-
at is we'll that all sides should be heard il
q great crisis like this. One man may tell
great truth; one race may tell a large amount
of truth; but it takes men of all classes and
all conditions in life to tell the whole truth.
have read recently the address adopted at q
convention in this city, not of US or for us ol
with US. 1 found many things in that ad
dress to which could heartily assent, and to
nothing could assent more readily than to
the powerful argument showing that there
could be no taxation without representation
| If that address had emanated from a colored
convention, think could have indorsed it,
every word. (Laughter.} Itwas only the
knowledge of the motives which inspired il
that led me to reject it."
Of his representative character he said:
-"Gentlemen, we have Representatives here
from the North and from the South. 1 am
one of the representatives, and rejoice to
say that claim to represent not only the
black and white races, but also represent
the North and South. am also citizen of
the State of Maryland, and credit has been
given me for having in my veins the blood
of one of the early Governors. 1t is not Gus
tomary for man to disclaim his ancestral or
igin, laughter so, then, 1 vii represent the
State of Maryland. (Laughter.)
''Well, sir, it was twenty eight years ago
yesterday since appeared on the streets of
Philadelphia in hurry. Laughter
bad neither local habitation or a name, and
was in pursuit of both. 1 do not consider
that there was any disgrace attending that,
though, it is true, l came here rather uncer-
enormously. Twas unable to part from home
IN that circumlocutionary manner which
good manners prescribe. l came without
bidding my master goodbye. Laughter.
1 ought to have done so, may be, but if had
he would not have let me go. For that rea-
son did not tell him anything about it."
Upon the question of the decadence of his
race be said:
81 know that certain chronological states
men predict his disappearance from the Re-
public; that he will die out like the Indian.
They forget an important faet-that the sim
lie lacks similarity, that it lacks any resem-
blance to the characteristic of civilized man.
How does the case stand? The Indian refu-
ses our civilization, rejects it, looks upon our
towns, cities and villages, and steamboats, and
railroads, with disdain. He sees the ploW-
and he curses it. He retards everywhere the
the progress of civilization to the lakes, and
from the lakes to the great rivers, and disap-
pears behind the western slope of the Rocky
Mountains. While he despises civilization,
abhors our customs and fashions, and refuses
to adopt them, the negro accepts them, and
rejoices in them. He adopts our religion; he |
receives willingly our notions of government
and Incorporates himself into our civilization. |
More unlike you than the Indian in form and |
feature, he appropriates, like you, all the ele-
ments that go to make up civilized man.
Against him there are prejudices; against the
Indian there are none. The negro dwells |
among you, while the Indian rejects your So
ciety. He has been among you for two hun
dred and fifty years, in the same latitude, Ion
gitude and altitude
On the question of the right of the negro
10 vote, and the claim he has upon the loyal
portion of the nation:
81 have another argument; it is this: The
black man has deserved it. do not say the
black man fought better in the late war than
.he white man. do not mean to say that
you could not alone have put down the re-
Dellion. 1 believe you could. The white