The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1867-11-20

| moi fl TO be Invested with these importau,
| rights. may be 10 fault Of his Bat thc G,c,
| is patent 10 all. that t,ic negro is utterly
united 10 exercise the highest functions OF
| the citizen. The government of The country
should not hc permitted to pass from the
hands Of the white man into the hands of
| the negro. The enforcement Of The itecon
structior Acts by military power unlcr
| The guiEc Of negro voter; ard ncgro con.
icn'iom'. crnn", lawfully rc~cstablsH civil
! covernn.cnt III South Carolina. II ms, for
time hold Us in suhiection to qHls, civil
! government, backed by military force. bu;
it can do no more. As citizens Of the Uni
toi States, VIC SHOULD not couscn, to live
under negro supremacy. nor slo,.li We
ncnuiesca in negro equality. No, 10. our
selves only, but one half of the Anslo-Sax-
on rae, and blood in this country. DO we
protest against this Suhvorsion Of the srca,
socia! law, whereby an ignorant and Lepray
Cd race is placed in power and nGp"ncc
above the vrtuous, the educated ahG ,he
refined ~ these Acts Of Congress, inrcili.
Gcncc and virtue arc put under foo., Willie
'Gno'ance and vice arc lifted into powcr
In South Carolina, the negro majority.
under the Reconstruction Acts, is much
more than two TO one. In most CT the other
Southern States. the negro maioriticsa III not
so great, arc almos; rs decided Inlhosc
States where The white vote is in The ascan-
dant the election districts have bran SO
arranged, rs 10 take the political tower
from the white vote and cast il in favor o.
the negro votc. What, then, is the incvita.
bic result? IT invests the negro with
absolute political power in each Of the Ten
southern States, an at the same lime,
invests him with the balance Of power in the
united states. Nor is this all-thc recon
struc;lon scheme closes the ballot box
against the best informed aud educated
classes in the community, and opens Il TO
.Eo negro, Of whom not more than one IN n
hundred can rcal q word, and not Morc
Than one in five hundred can writc his
nnmc; and mUl;itulcs Of whom ere 80 n:o.
.oundiy ignorant, rs be he unable % rcn,cm.
per the name by which they have registered
Verify, this seems TO be converting II povu-
l'r GcTernncnt, OF which We have rccn
justly proud, into n popular farce; AMI we
Won!d hu content so to consider il, if IL did
not ,nvVlvc the issue Of life and death TO
hcJo"m OF Government established BY our
ialAcrs Tor the benefit Of themselves .u,l
thcir posirrity. II the object OF the fra
mcra of the Reconstruction Acts was TO
dcgradt tho Southern people, it is time fnr
thrm 10 con&:dcr whether the degradation
may net hc hrough: TO their own doors
whether the poisoned cup may not Lc re-
turned TO their own lips. But il may be ask.
ed, why do not the Southern people accept
the situation and control tho negro element
THIS question is much more easily asked
than answered. In tie FIRST place, il may
be said that tho influence oflhc CO.; AZ.
and intriguing demagoguc, who will appeal
TO passion and prejudice, has always been
found to be more powerful with cxciicl ana
lgncrant mobs than the wiscSt counse,s Of
the best friends. Besides, The foundation
stone upon which Republican Government
rests =, that the elective Franchise is to bc
c%erci scd by free, intelligent and unbiae
scd judgment; and whenever it is admitted
that this .frcnchjSc is to be conholGa or, in
other words, to be made The subject Of I'm.
due influences anl ofbyiLcs, then, too, it
must be admitted that Hopuhican Govern
mcht Is at an end, aIl must, aooMcr or later,
give way 10 such other Government as may
he forced upon n dcpraYed and already
corrHp!c1 people. But if it is proposed in
advance. TO place the cnfranchiscd ncgrc
under control, why confer the franchise at
ait! Surely, the part Of wise government
IS 10 prevent the evil, ana not open the
door to 'he mischief which others arc al
mohishcd iney must be prepared, hy trick
or management, to avert. But why press
tho subject further? 1t is enough for us 10
Know that this wild and reckless experiment
comes home 10 the hcarth-stonc of every
citizen, aud involves family and property,
society, liberty, and even life itself. MIR
is this all The courts Of justice are drag.
ged into the milc from their high position :;
our most intelligent white citizens are CIV
ci"dcd from the jury, Willie The ignorant
neGroi8 elevated to that roS fonsible posi-
.ioh; he jury lists nre made up from the
iist OF registered voters, which, as We have
SAID, arc more than twoto enc in favour Of
the negro. Not only, be il remembered, is
the negro admitted to the iury.hox, but The
white man is excluded tLercfrom.
Think you that when The great masters
OF the common law Of England pronounced
their cmconium upon tho trial by Jury, that
they contemplated for q moment such nm
lns'rumenttas an ignorant negro pauncl !?
rank you, that when the trainers of tho
Constitution OF tho United States incorpo-
rated into that instrument the provision
that The trial by jury should always be held
ihVloIato, that they intended TO engraft upon
II such on cnormity as negro .iurvmcn,
frcsh from the cotton and rice icds of the
South? Think you, that when John Rut :.
lchGe and his iliustrious compcers signed
tiiat Instrument on tho part of South Caro-
lima, that they Intended 10 forge chain
WINCH, III PERIOD no longer than an ordi-
nary liie-tme, would drag their grand
children (who were then playing around
their knees, and some of whom arc now
iivln&,) for trial before q jury Of their own
slaves? Talk Of additional humiliation,
talk or coniiscation, complain Of clcmoacy to
rebels, after this! God forbid The Gov
crnmcnt of the United Stalog has enforced
against the Southern pooplc nc most stu.
pendous net OF contiscnton that has ever
been enforced in tho history Of nations !;
their property Of slaves has been confiscatcd
TO The amount Of three thousand millions
OF dollars: !: other personal property. in the
shape OF cotton, provisions, stock, plate and
money, has been captured or destroyed to
inc "alnc of one thousand millions Of dol.
lars and fiom thcsc causes their land has
deiorioratcd TO the extent Of ono thousand
millions OF dollars making in tho nggrc-
cato the enormous sum Of five thousand mil
lions OF dollars. These overwhelming pc.
cuniary losses fall exclusively upon the
southern people The political evils com.
planned OF WILL Of course, fall chiefly upon
The people of the South, but not exclusive.
~ upon them. Faston negro supremacy
upon the South, and it must bc felt through
oil of her relations with tho North--wheth.
Il