The tri-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1866-1868, 1867-05-04


there is one class of men, who have neve
lied to you. Prayerfully and earnestly, the
told YOU the truth long ago whatever the.
said. they have done in the past; and wha1
ever they say, they will do in the future
(Cheers.) They have the power IN TN
country (Hear, hear) They are deternln
ed to press forward, and make this natlol
anexamplc to the world. They will succeed
(Yes, yes) They will do so because the.
are strong in the right armed with the WIS
dom of the ages and blest by the smile o
God For thirty years they have 1ough
against slavery, and strange rs 1t may seen
to us all and not the less to them, the day Il
not far distant when North Carolina VII
plant herself beside Massachusetts, upon q
platform of eternal truth. We know ant
believed this thirty years ago, but 1T has
come sooner than we expected. Yet now
could it have been otherwise? In this lane
of Christianity, how could four or five mil
lions of human beings be held in bondage
and degradation A contest OF ideas was
inevitable There came a contest OF blows
| knew that liberty would win, and liberty
has won. (Applause)
I can 90 back for thirty-fve years to show
you that slavery has ever been aggressive
1t was ever pressing upon freedom. call to
mind the tact that for seven years the right
Of petition was cloven down ip Congress-
Henry Clay was beaten for President because
he opposed the annexation of Texas. Then
the army was pushed over the Rio Grande.
Texas was made a slave territory-and Cal
ifornia annexed But the discovery of gold
in that region lured thousands OF young men
from the free States to California That ter
ritory was made free State by their pres
ence Then came the enactment of that I'M
constitutional, humiliating, degrading fugl-
tive slave law. Then came the contest over
Kansas. Slavery sent five thousand men
into that territory. They forced the Lee
compton constitution into the halls of Con-
gress, where it was defeated by the efforts of
Stephen A. Douglas who fell martyr on
the altar of slavery at the Charleston Con-
vention. Then came the bred Scott decis-
ion, which promulgated the dogma that a
black man had no rights which awhite man
was bound to respect.
In 1860 the champions of slavery came
into the halls of Congress and demanded the
right to transport their slaves into the free
States. Besides, the spirit of slavery melted
men to mob and murder the advocates Of
freedom. In the Northern States there were
men, who melted and encouraged the ag-
gressions OF slavery. They promised yo, aid
and encouragement. How many Of them
did you find down here fighting in the Con-
federate army? Gaughtcr) I advise you
not to put your confidence in them again.
When Lee surrendered, and the old flag
waved over the whole nation, there came to
us but once voice from these Southern States,
of unconditional submission. 1t only said,
"what are you going to do with us2 We
! Il 60 Il I, u
pletc and sincere seemed this submission,
that Gen. Sherman said to his brother, the
Senator that he would as soon have Gov.
| Vance and his Legislature re-assembled, as to
elect new one. Let them remain, he said,
write on piece of paper whatever is re-
qurcd Of them, and they will do it. If that
is the case with North Carolina he fur
ther said, it is more so with South Carolina.
And now let me ask you, is not this true
But what did the government do in that
hour of victory? With one million men I'M
der arms, we dishanded them and paid them
too-with sad memories for the loss Of
325. 900 of our dead sons-with rec0lections
of Andersonville, Belle Island and Libby
Prison-with fresh grief over our muir
dered President-there was nothing but
magnanimity and generosity displayed to-
ward this people. There was no desire for
your land money, liberty or blood. But we
were bound before man and God to secure
the colored man in his freedom. We did not
desire to humiliate any one in this State, but
to elevate all, and to make the poorest and
humblest black man the peer of the proudest
and richest citizen in the nation. {Cheers.)
We had proclaimed that the sun in all his
course over our country should not shine on
the brow of a single slave. (Applause.)
And we were determined to make them free
indeed-to educate them in the duties Of
American citizens, to give them freedom of
speech. and the right to go where they
pleased and when they pleased. And we
further desired that our President should
humliatc and degrade no one
Well, when Mr.. johnson came into power
he adopted line of policy, which put in
peril all that was in the hearts of our people
to do. The words of Mr. Lincoln, with
charity towards all, with malice for none,'
lived in our hearts and fingered in our mem
cries But how boldly Mr.. johnson talked,
how bravely he said that rebels were to take
back seats in the work OF reconstruction
We feared that he would be too severe upon
them, for as l have said, we desired to see
him degrade no one, but rather to lift up all
together. However, l will not reproach the
President. Congress was not in session, and
those leading men, who saved the country,
were not there. \ class of men gathered
around him, holding up the idea that this
was a good time to re- organize the old Dem
ocratic party-to form a new party, which
would slough off the secessionists and radi-
Gals. He started out ON that line of policy
in the South. and when Congress met in De-
cember, we found those down here, who had
been humbly asking ''what are you going to
do with us" saying we don't know so well
what we are going to do with youjust now! !"
Naughter) They thought the President
could carry them through. Well, it has new
er been our habit to care much about Presi-
dents-we go in for ideas and principles, not
men. But still they thought the President
could carry them through. So when the
Constitutional amendment was proposed,
they spurned it with scorn and contempt.
As the year passed by, loyal men were out
ragged and insulted, poor black men injured,
and school houses burned. Then the Presi-
| dent started on a stumping tour through the
North and West" swinging around the
circle" as we call it. Qaughtcr) Well, he
returned to Washington shortly, the worst
whipped man in the country. The election
which ensued swept away his policy for ever;
and inspired by the spirit Of liberty and love
of justice, the 39th Congress passed the
present military bill for the more efficient
government of these States. (Applause.)