The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1866-10-24
Gen. Wade Hampton On the Crises---A
Rraye Man SnaakS the Truth.


Gen. Wade Hampton ON the Crises--.A
Brave Man speaks the Truth.
We regret that our limited space will
only allow us to give some extracts from
the soul stirring speech OF the gallant
Hampton, delivered before the $ Soldiers
Association" at Walhalla, S. G., on Sep
tember Ed. After paying beautiful
and well-deserved tribute to his gallant
comrades in arms, as We CT Virginia well
know, he speaks the following words of
soberness and truth All honor to him !:
| know not, fellow citizens, how it may
be with others, but for myself I prefer
still to cling to the political faith taught by
great Apostles Of Liberty. I repudiate
as heretical and dalnnable that morality
which inculcates higher law than the
Bible teacher. And as to religion, | con-
fess that after the way they call heresy, SO
worship I the 'sGod Of my fathers" We
obey the laws of the land we pay the
taxes levied on us; We support the Constl-
tuition; and we acknowledge the supre-
macy of the National Government. The
North has no right to demand or to expect
Of us more than this. She has no right to
ask that we should give up the divine
right-which even slaves enjoy-of free
dom Of opinion; that we should deny the
principles we hold sacred that We should
abase ourselves in the dust to propitiate
her good will or that we should kiss the
rod that smltes us.
sShall free-born men, in humble awe
Submit to servle shame,
Who from consent and custom draw
The same right to be ruled by law
Which kings pretend to reign"
Shall we, who we're free-5orn men, be
so base as to declare that our country has
met the fate it deserved Shall we submit
to the shame which would cling to us for
ever if we admit that We have been entity
Of treason +? Shall we cover ourselves with
eternal infamy by branding as traitors the
men who died for us, and to whose memory
you are now paying honor? Never
Never!! Never.! Let any fate, how
ever hard, be our lot rather than such dis
honor should be ours. When the gallant
warrior-king OF old saw in the defeat Of
his brave army the ruin OF all his hopes,
proud, though conquered, he could still
exclaim, All is lost save honor" Let us,
amid the failure OF our hopes, the wreck
OF our fortunes, strive to save. like him
what is far more precious than all else our:
honor.
x y i: x * *
Il have placed before you the record Of
the South and that of the North. Let the
world decide which is entitled to honor
which to shame. [ have drawn in dark
colors; but alas in too true ones, the con
dition of our country, and now turn te
the discussion Of what should be our poll
cy. In the anomalous condition in which
we are placed, it is matter OF great dit.
fculty to make out the proper course fol
us to pursue but there are certain cardinal
principles Of which we should never lose
sight. The first OF these is, that as we ac
copied the terms offered to us by the North
in good faith, we are bound by every die
tate OF honor to abide by them fully and
and honestly They are none the less bind
ing on us because the dominant and IN
scrupulous party atthe North refuse to &C
cord-to US our just rights. Let US, at least
prove ourselves worthy Of the rights We
claim let us set an example Of good faith
and we can then appeal with double effect
to the justice and magnanimity Of the
North.
Thes4 virtues, I would fain hope, are
not totally extinct among that people, and
1 there are brave men there, who are bat
tling for justice, for constitutional liberty
for the equality Of all the States, and Tor
the rights OF the South. The only hope,
not alone for the South, but for freedom
itself, on this continent lies in the success
OF this party. We are their natural al
lies, and / would sacrifice much-where
honor and principle are not inyaded-and
then [ would not yield one jot or title-to
strengthen their hands in the great con-
test, which is soon to decide the fate Of
Constitutional Liberty and Republican
Institutions Of the United States. The
President Of the United States has lent
the great influence which his high posi-
ton, his strong intellect, his firm purpose,
and his indomitable will, give, to this new
conservative party, and to his support
every Southern man should rally cordial
ly.
We may perhaps, feel that he has not
gone to the extent OF his power or Of our
expectation, in carrying out his policy to it's
legitimate ends, but we cannot forget that
be has been the only bulwark to stand be-
tween our unAappy country and certain,
irretrieyable and everlasting ruin. But
for him the horrors we endured during
the war would have been far surpassed by
those OF peace. And though differing
with him in many points, cheerfully ac-
cord to him the highest praise Tor the
brave and patriotic stand he has taken in
defence OF the South and Of the Constitu-
ton. There is one other point on which
there should be no misunderstanding as to
our position, no loop on which to hang a
possible misconstruction asto ourviews. and
that is the abolition OF slavery. have al
ready intimated that the mode by which
the North secured the acquiescence Of the
South III the contamination otthis purpose
was breach OF faith on her part.
Of all the Inconsistencies Of which the
North has been guilty-and their maine is
Iegion-none IS greater than that by which
she forced the Southern States, while rig
idly excluding them from the Union, to
ratify the constitutional amendment abol-
ishing slavery, which they could do legal
IN onjvt as States OF that Union. But the