The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1867-08-08
4 coLoRRp Man sPE.A..Ks.

We publish the following portion
of a speech Of Mr., George Cox Cool
ored), delivered at Tuscaloosa,
Ala. ION the 18th ult, We should
be glad to publish the whole, but
the presence Of other matter pre-
vents us from doing so. The Mont
gomery Sentinel, from which we
clipit, says of Mr.. Cox: ftThis
man Cox was slave at the surren. !.
der Of tho rebel armies. He was
raised up to blacksmithing, and
when he was freed by the Govern
ment did not know letter in the
book; nor did he have the least
idea Of what writing was. He nev.
er has been to school aiday, but by
close application during such times
as he was not at work at the anvil,
he has learned to read and write;
and as to his ability all can judge
from the speech: s.a.f g...
FRlENDs AND FELLOW, CITIZENS
I feel truly happy TO have the priv
ilege of meeting you again in my
old home, tho city of my delight,
where my boyhood days were spent,
the recollection of which brings
Joy TO my heart; but theeruel hand
OF a protracted war has passed over
and laid waste many of her most
favored and magnificent places, bat
I feel happy in the hope that time
and energy, such as you are pro-
verbal for, will soon replonish the
waste places and restore your city
TO its former beauty. / am told
that you will very soon hear again
the old aud familiar sound of col
lego bell. the echo of which will be
music in the ears Of the qule5 fish
erman as passes between the War
rior's steep banks, a harbinger of
the return of educational advan-
tages. I am told, also, that the
small but strong Hurricane above
will soon throw her current against
a huge water wheel, starting into
action the machinery Of a cotton
factory. These are favorable signs,
and speak we'll for the gentlemen
who have taken courage and gone
into these useful enterprises.
l hope to see anxious inquirers
after the road that leadeth TO re-
construction and peace between
North and South upon an enduring
basis, tor until this is the case, gen
tlemen, we are all hound to suffer,
motthe poor, the black, or white
alone, but all must suffer together.
TO escape from the present state of
deprivation, there is but single
road, and that is to accept the
terms offered for reconstruction
Do this and enter into JOY and
peace, or reject it and continue in
misery and suffering. God forbid
that we should suffer any more
The war is over; let its issues be
accepted and its strife ended. We
have nobody to fight and nobody
to hurt but ourselves.
DO you ask me to tell you who
your best friends are? with a
clear conscience, can say that they
are those men who constitute the
party which stood by the departed
Lincoln when he signed the Eman'
cipation Proclamation. | know
there are men who claim to be our
best friends, and if they are l am
truly glad Of it, and we must, of
course, treat them and their prof
fered friendship with due respect
and courtesy. ] feel satisfied that
their generosity will acknowledge
that we are only acting the part OF
honest manhood, when we tell them
we owe our friendship in another
direction, and it is our imperative
duty alike to ourselves, to our
country, and TO our God, to stand
up fortbe party that first stood up
for us; the party that has given us
the right to protect our freedom by
our votes, and the only party that
we can look to for happy results IN
the future, to which l have already
referred.
Now, gentlemen, the time is
near at hand when we are to prove
ourselves men at the .ballot-box, as
we have in the field, under the old
flag of the Union, emblem Of Free
dom; or to prove ourselves unwor-
thy the boon granted 20 us blythe
best Government known to the ma
tions of the world, .5as
We are to cast our first vote tor
men in whose hands our destiny
and that Of our children must rest,
whether for good or bad, or in 9th
er words, for men who are to lay
the foundation principles, upon
which our freedom and prosperity
will depend. Therefore we must
see,to it,that we elect such reliable
men as are in harmony with the
Union Republican party, and in fa-
.vor OF freedom and equal rights to
all men-men who have proved
not only since tho war but before
and during the war, that they were
in favor of freedom for all men, ir-
respective of race or color. 1 n
8 There are those who would have
as believe that they are our best
friends who are not Of the party TO
which | have referred. They have
never proved their friendship tous
by any deeds of kindness for which
they were not duly compensated
one way or the other. The Re-
publican party has given for our
freedom three hundred thousand