The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-08-13
Two Citizens Of South Carolina.
From the Special Correspondent Of the Neao York Tines
COLUMBIA, S. c., Wednesday, July 81, 1867.

| Two Citizens OF South Carolina.
from the Special Correspondent Of the Nep York Tmes]
COLUMBIA, S. c., Wednesday, July 81, 1867.
Six feet two in his stockings, two hundred
pounds in weight and fifty years Of age with ru-
bicund face expressive rather Of bonhonanale, and
aristocratic breeding or very high cuture-that is
James L. Orr, Governor Of South Carolina. Gov
ernor to the extent to which South Carolina can,
in the present state Of affairs, be said to have
| Governor.
The typical figure Of negro, though tall and
shapelv beyond the average Of his race forty y-odd
wears old, of an ebon blackness that leaves no
room for suspicion that single drop Of white
| blood courses in his vel ns, yet showing through
| his swarthy mask the illumination Of intelligence
and manly independence-that is Beverly, Nash,
| former slave and now representative Of the new
and real governing element in South Carolina:
| These two men, both of whom have met here
| in Columbia (where have been tarrying for few
days since the Convention adjourned), have deep
| ly interested me; and somehow or other, they
| have SO associated themselves together IN my
mind-perhaps as types Of the departing and the
coming era-that have thought 6rief report Of
long conversation which had to-day with each
| might have both present and historical IN
terest. To give my report the more directness
and vitality, shall record it in the preclse IAN
guage used by the speakers in the free talk have
IL
Ineed not speak of GoS. Orr. Bis public Life Is
| well known. At the beginning OF the war ne was
considered one of the strongest opponents OF
secession in South Carolina; but when MS etate
| took the fatal plunge he went with her, ana was
Confederate Senator during the whole perlod OF
| the Confederacy's existence. After the war ne
| took prominent part in reconstructlon, walked
sarm in arm" with Massachusetts, at the Phlladels
phia Convention, and was elected governor OF
,la- hnr
which makes the term Of the gubernatorlal once
| four years in place of two. The Governors nome
is at Anderson, up in the hill country, where ne
commonly resides but at present ne Is down a1 tne
capital transacting some executive business: AS
We are stopping at the same hotel, have had ne,
quent opportunities Of conversing Wltn nun, ana
have been struck with the ability OF nus charac-
acter and the acuteness OF his mind. Thoueh the
swift-advancing political TIDE mas, as an gH ~
served from hls remarks, rather swept beyond MN
of late, yet have no doubt ne ls deStmeo 70 ieno
| an important hand in the reconstruction OF tne
State. After a understanding talk in regard to
the war, the conversation came down 10 tne Perioo
of reconstruction by my asking him how the peo-
nie of South Carolina looked upon the Constitu-
| tional Amendment.
ssWe were opposed to the amendment" SAID ne.
| ssWe went on Johnson's line of policy, and as the
amendment antagonized that, and as tne masess aS.
was left to u.s. refused to accept it. its re]ecton
in the Legislature was unanimous, there pelnS p9'
one out Of 157 members in favor OF the ahead
lment The triumph of the Republicans IN tne Ian
elections Of 1885, ne continued tb reo
ing of great uncertainty in the minds OF tne Pee Peo
ple I went on to Washington In January, looi,
to make the best observations could. and stayed
a week or two consulting with the Senators from
Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Arkansas anu
several other States"
"Did YOU agree on any line of policy?"
| eyes: after comforting together, we got up an
amendment to the Constitution, wmcn we piJS,
posed to present to our Legislatures, and which
they should submit to Congress"
| What was its nature Z"
"It embraced impartial suffrage, and the re,
moval of all disqualfcations either to vote OF hod
Office. On my return, presented the matter to
the people il speech made OF Charleston anu
"And what became Of it ="
"It was to have been brought before the Legls-
lature of North Carolina, which happened then 70
be in session; but some delay arose, anu mean-
while the military bill came up.
aWhat did YOU think Of that bill and the supple
mental one?"
"The supplemental bill was regarded rs great
Improvement. The main bill allowed any one 70 :.
cali o convention, and there might have been hai1
dozen antagonistc bodies; but the other put the
calling of the Convention in the hands OF the MIL
itary, which at least gave unity OF action.
ssro what extent did these bills work disTan- ra
cbisement of the former electors Of the South Z"
CON a fair Interpretation of them estimated
that between 1000 and 5000 would be disfranchls ed
This places us in South Carolina IN an awkWaro co
position. Prior to the war We had ABOUT 4o,0
white voters and about 10000 blacks 9f the xotng g
| noe, The distranchisement reduced the whites to
| AZ mo. and those who were killed or VINO died
| dnr;no fine war reduced us by 5000 more Leaving
| ma 20 600 white voters. Emigration and deaths
among the negroes brought them down m 70 TO about
IS, 600, which left them majority Oh S''oOo o'ef
u.s." 80 ... ,,5
ssBut was it not supposed that the whites would
| he able to control the black vote n =,
"Numbers were Of that opinion. They Thought
that by reasoning with the negroes tnsy mo9 doD NJ
ticsl with those of the whites, and that by thus
bringing over a sufficient number OF votes they
would be able to control the ConTentlon. -.
ssAnd what guarantees would you have gwen tne
tlacks?" L. orr,o;,
political rights but on the question OF suffrage, a
was not personally in favor OF gong tnrener tnah
tn admit blacks and whites to the privilege OF yot-
ing only on condition Of being able to read and
"How does the second supplemental bill leave
your ,., s,u, :. ,v;,, ra-
! duca the white voters by four or hVe tnoussn9
| more leaving us at present 600 white ana
S., 900 black voters or amajorty OF thirty 'ousano
@Do YOU then give up al ides OF being, able to
control the blacks on conservative line oi
polcyr ,,vs
been sent down here to mdoctrlnate the neSroes
and infame their minds, and especially coiored
orators who have come among them, I have been
led to abandon all hope Of having CONSERVATIVE
| Constitutional Convention. The Obstructive ten
dency has been aided by Governor Perrys letters
which have sown dlssensions among sne peoRei poynsi
us. The blacks have become perfectly consclons
/ of their power. This has made them very polo
and immodest and exacting, and the chances arc
that in the elections for Convention large ma-
jority of colored delegates will be sent: 9n
"What do You suppose they will demand"
'aTheir action in the Convention here thS other
day is q good evidence Of what they will want.
What the coming Convention will do is douptiui'
but the negro leaders will inculcate the doctrlne
~ of levying such tax on land above hfty or os
hundred acres as will compel owners to sell; w
they will be stimulated to dsfranchise every man
who bore arms in the rebellion; .(S to levy all
taxes on property and exempt poll and income
taxes. Then will be presented the anomaly OF ia
State and evying taxes on the property OF another
class who will have in reality no political power.
These taxes will cover schools; so that properly
holders viii be compelled to build sohools tor shls
class who will not contribute dollar LOT the equ-
cation of their own children"
ais it your opinion that they will demand ONCE
and what do you think of their fitness forit?
"I1 twenty out of the thirty districts in South
Carolina, the negroes are In the majority. LII 11 Ihe .
district Of Beaufort they are seven to one. Inc
uries, therefore, in these twenty districts WIZ Do
blacks, and Of the negro voters
will be unable to read OF write There will De a.
least six thousand of these people endowed WITH
the privilege Of voting who tomorrow, tneif OK
istence depended on it, could not count one nun
dred % Those Of more intelligence will be clerks
and shers, tax collectors, mag strates, ]udges OF
the Superior and Inferior Courts, and perhaps u
all the executive Offices Of the State.
'sWill they send negro representatives TO Ool-
gress2" 1;t.,o
"Of the four representatives, have very httle
doubt that three will be negroes"
ssAre not many anticipating collision OF races
| as the result Of all this ?"
Inns means the organization OF the blacks against
| the whites, and the negroes being invested with
all this political power, it must be left to the