Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1866-02-16

~ IOuuutI ftIiCAss anu utat II IAtt0iA~s NNN
talk about abstract IDEAS Of liberty, who never
perilled life, liberty or property. This kind OF
theoretical, hollow, impractical friendship
amounts to very little. But he did net want to
adopt policy that he believed would end in
contest between the two races, and the exier-
miuat.on Of one or the ether. He wss wiling
TO be the Moses 10 lead the slave from bondage
to freedom, but be vas net willing to adopt a
policy which he believed viii Only resul: in the
the sacrifice Of his life and the shedding Of his
blood.
Slavery, sail he, has been abolished. 4 gleat
raliona! guaranty has been giyen-oDe that car
not be revoked. a very email proportion Of
white persons, compared with the whole number
Of such, owned the colorel people Of the South.
might instance the State Of Tennessee in Illus
tration. There were there tWenty-seSen non
Shareholders to one Stakeholder. and Jet the
slave-power controlled that State. Let US talk
about this matter as it Is. Although the cclored
man vas in slavery there, and owned as pre-
Ierty in the sense and in the language Of that /
locality, yet IN comparing his condition and /
lis position there with the nol-siayehO.der he |
ueuaiiy estimated his importance just in pro- /
portion 10 tie number Of slaves that bis master /
owned compared with the n-s.Iyehollcr Have |
you never lived upon plantation:
Mr.. Dougllss-l have, your Excelieucy.
The President When you would look over
and see man who had large family, s;rug
Cling hard upon poor piece Of land, you
thought 4 great deal less Of him than you did
Of your own master.
Mr. Douglass. Not l.
The President Well, know such was the
case with large majority Of you in those sec
tons. When such Is the case We know there is
an eEmity, We know there Is a hate The poor
white On The other hand was opposed to
the slave and his master, for the colorel man
and his master combined and kept him in slave
ry by depriylng him Of a fair participation II
the labor and productions Of the uch land Of
the country. Done yOu know thai q co.vreI
man, in gong to hunt master, Is they call IL,
/ iJr the mex year, preferred hiring go d uau who
owed slaves Father ;n-.n 90 man who did not
/ know tie tact 40 al e,elt-. They did not con-
] sdgr 1t quite as respectable 90 hire 80 a man
! VINO dii not own negroes, SIS TO one wAo dii.
Mr Douglas Because be would not he
treated as vel.
The President Then that is another argu-
neut Ia favor Ol what ! lIl going 10 say. l.
shows that tie colured man more appreciated
the slave owner than he did the man who dill
not own slaves. Hence the enmlty between the
colored man and the non Shareholder. The
white man was permitted 10 vote before. Gov
eminent was derived by him. He IS d part and
parcel OF the political machinery. Now by the
rebellion, or revolution, (aud when you come
back l. the object Of the war you fad that the
abolition OF slavery was not one Of the objects
Congress and the President himself declared
that II was Bagei on cur part in order 20 sup
press the rebeliion,) the abolition Of slavery has
come as an incident to the suppression Of a
great rebellion, and as an incident We should
give 1t the proper direction. The col0rei man
went into this rebellion a slaves by the opera
I ton 0f the rebellion he came out a freedman
equal 10 a freedman IN any ether portion Of the
county. Then there i a great deal done for
him on this point The nOn-slaveholler who
was forced into the rebellion, and was as loyal
ss these that lived beyond the limits Of the
State, his property, and, il a number Of
instances, the lives Of such were sacrificed, and
he who has survived has come out Of It with
nothing gained but a great deal lost. Now up
on principle of justice should they be placed
in 2 condition different from what they were be-
fore. BE have got at the hate that existed be-
tween the two races The query comes up
whether these two races situated = they Were
before, without preparation, without mas .oI
passion and excitement 10 be appeased, and
without time for the slightest improvement,
whether the one should be turned loose upon the
other and be thrown together at the ballot box
{ with this enmty and hate existing between
them The query comes up, if right there VI
don't commence war Of races think | IN
derstand this thing; and especially is tins the
case when you force it upon a people WITHOUT
their consent. You have spoken about govern
/ Eeut. Where Is power derived from We
say it is derived from the people Let Us take j,
SO, and refer 10 the District OF Columbia by
way Of illustration. Suppose. fo- instance, here
in this political community, which 10 e certain
extent must have government, must have law
and, putting 1t now upon the broalest basis you
can put II, take into Consideration the relation
, which the white has heretofore borne to tn,
2 colored races it proper to force upon TIL:
community, without their consent, the elective
franchise without regard TO color, making il
universal? No DO you deny that first great
principle Of the right Of the people to govern
themselves? VIII you resort to an arbitrary
power and say 4 majority Of the people shall re-
, ceive state Of things they are opposed to ,
Mr.. Douglass-That was said before the war
e The PRESIDENT am nov talking about
f principle-not what somebody else said
Mr.. Downing-Apply what you have said
: Mr.. President, to South Carolina, for instance
The President-Suppose you 20 to South
CarOlina-suppose you 60 10 OLio-that dcesn't
change the principle a all / might 20 down
! here TO the ballot-box to morrow and y0ie dir
ectly for universal suffrage; but if great
majority Of the people said No, should consider
1t would be tyrannical N me 10 attempt to fore,
such upon them without their viii. II IS
fundamental principle in NY creed that ths
!, people must be obeyed. Ia there anything
wrong in that?
Mr.. Douglass Smiling A great deal
, wrong, Mr.. President, with all respect.
The PrCs.dent-It Is the people Of the State.
that must for themselves determine this thing
r DO not want to be engaged In a work that VIII
commence war Of races. / want 20 begin the
Hork Of preparation, for the States or the
/ people IN esch community and ia man demeln.
himself we'll, ana sh-E8 evidence that this new
state Of affairs viii operate, he B.l. De protected
il al his rights and be given every possible adj
vantage BY that community. When they be-
come r1concilei socially and politically TO GER
= tain thiugs, then viii this nea order Of things
] WORK harmOui0EslY &; but forced upon the people
before they are prepared Tor it, viii be res,s "a
AID work inhai mouiousy. feel a conviction
{ that driving this matter up the people-upon
the community-wi result IN the injury Of both
races and the ru.u cl ore 0r the other. God
= knows | have 10 dcsir, bit t.e good Of the
whole human race. would il Blre s. thai all
you advocate could be done in the twinkliug Of
an eye but it 5 not in the nature Of things,
and do not assume or plet I'd 10 De Wiser than
Providence. II stronger than the laws Of IA
ture. Let Us ROW seek o. discover the laws
governing this thing There is a great law
Controlling i; let Us endelyCr to find cut what
that law Is, and conform our actions to IT, All
the details will then properly adjus, themselves
anu work out well in the end Col knows that
anything | can do | VIII 10 in the mighty pro-
cess by which the great end Is 10 be reached
Any thing can DO - elevate the races, to sjiteu
ami amelioraie their condition ] viii DO, and 20
be able TO DO So Is the sincere desire Of ny heart
| am glad to have met You, and thank you fer
tue compliment you have paid me.
Alr. D9ugllss-I have TO return You our
thanks, Mr.. President, f5T So kindly granting
US ins interview. We did rot come here ex-
pectng 10 argue this question With your Excel
lsncy, but SIMPLY to state what were cur views
and WISHES IN the prem ses. Ny own imur,s-
s.oa i that The very thing that your Exccliency
would avoid IN the Southern States can only he
avoided By the very measure that We propose
The President think you will find. so far
as the South Is concerned, that If you will al
iaoU.Sate there tie idea, 10 connection with the
che you uEge-th4t the colgred people can live
aud advance in civilization 10 better advantage
elsewhere than crowded right down there in the
] SJujh-it would be better for them