Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1867-05-03


him the dire effects of slavery; who believed with
II anklin that slavery was terrible crime; that it
was breach Of trust; who believed with Jefferson
that God had no eternity that could take sides
with those men; who believed with Madison that
slavery was a lamentable evil; that the word slave
ry should not go into the Constitution of the Uni
ted States; who believed with George Mason, the
great son of North Carolina, that when the aholi-
ton of slavery should take place, it would be an
event cheering to every lover ofhberty all over the
world, subservient to their wishes. (Applause.)
We believe the doctrines of the old revolution
airy fathers we believe the doctrines OF the men
who carried us through the war-foundsd the in
of the United States, they were abolitionsts. Now
they would seek to let slavery go into the Terrific
ries and countries South of So degrees 80 minutes
and protect it there, thus making Us each one re-
sponsible for slavery. We could not do it. We
felt if we consented to it, when fes labor should
de done, Should sink into obscure graves that
what Grattan called purchasing the immortal
indignation! of history" that Gods curse would
be upon u.s. and the human family would loathe ouI
names through all ages. And they asked US TO dc
another thing, and what was that? That we should
put a provision in the Constitution that they
might take their slaves to any part of the North
they felt disposed They wanted liberty to take
them into the Hall where independence was first
declared, into old Fanuil Hall, where the Chila
which ToOmbs said 6 He would call the roll of his
slaves ;" but he has not done it-(Iaughter) and
trade in those sacred places. But we would not
do that. CHEERS
And we had other propositions put to us, and
were told the country would be DESTROYED if we
did not conset to them all and great many of
them told if we did consent it would go anyhow.
daughter and cheers.)
We had slavery in the District of Columbia, and
they wanted to put it in the Constitution, that
we should never obollsh 1t there without the con-
sent Of ''Old Virginia" Continued laughter.)
No matter what other portions of the country
thought of it, 1t must be in the bond that this
should be done, and that slavery should shake
her letters in the very faces of the representatives
(JalItOI
try, until Old Virginia consented, that we might
let it go. (Kenewed laughter.)
In Massachusetts, We have allowed black men
to vote from the year 1880 down to this hour and
at the last election we elected two black men to
our Legislature, and they have not disgr4ced it
very much think. daughter and cheers.) We
must put provision III the Constitution that q
black man should never be citizen of the United
States, and if we did not do that, these gentlemen
to 6 shver the Union from turret to founda-
ton stOne We did not do it. We could not do
it. Man and God would have cursed us five had.
(Applause.) 1t a black man on Bunker Hill
that shot down the Brit sh Commander who led
the column on the third attack and stormed the
Notifications Of Bunker Hill (Great chez ing.)
Black men have always fought for this country
A black regiment raised III Rhode Island,
commanded by Colonel Green, and that regiment
three times drove back a British regiment at one
of the severest battles Of the war. 1t won the
greatest victory that we have been Dragging Of
down to the present day-the battle of Red Bank
on the Delaware river. loud applausel They
fought with our fathers in 1872 on wave and land,
and they ask us that they should be made citizens,
a right for which they have nobly fought. They
should have the right of suffrage. (Crios of
" that's so."J They had few thousand free
cOlored men in the South aid they did not like to
have them walking around-it made slaves dis
contented, so they wanted provision that we
should pay their expenses to the Western States !;
that they should go there to dclve in the earth,
beneath the scorching rays Of Summer and the
SHOWS of Winter. We diu net choose to do that.
(laughter.)
Nine .tenths Of these people told us they would
not stay if did not adopt that. We did not do
it, so they went out to please themselves, and
them back. Il uKhter.J We had little band
of men down al Fort Sumter, and we sent the
Star Of the West with little food to keep them
from starving, and when the vessel entered the
har Dor it fired into and compelled to return,
and Wigfal Of Texas, told that 1.-The old
bunting had been insulted, and we dare not resent
it - and they made their farewell speeches
and turned Oh their backs and went out and
founded government resting on human bond
age. And the poor men thought 1t would live in
this christian age and in this Western world. Now
upon these men who occupied seats in the Senate
and in the House Of Representatives rests, before
man and God, the guilt OF the blood that has
been shed, and the tears and signs and sorrow
lngs which lave been witnessed IN this land for
the last six years.
Well the governments was compelled to put
into the field two millions and half OF men to
this rebellion and sustain the authority
OF the nation. 1t created the most powerful navy
that ever rode the waves. 1t incurred d debt Of
three hundred millions of dollars to save the
country. 1t raised three hundrsd and twenty-five
thousand of our young men, in the pride OF life
to tight more han six hundred battles to save it,
and after four years surrendered one after anOth-
er surrendered, and the cid flag waved victorious
in Southern brcczes. over everl square mile of the
rebel territory. (Cheering.) million Of victO-
rlous men marched home, received their pay and
went to work
The power of the nation was triumphant, and
the power Of the rebellion was played clea out
1t had no men, it had no money. 1t exhausted
itself and died. Continued laughter.) There is
one thing that will live in that reb elton in spite of
the WlCkedneSS of the cause and that one thing is
that the young men Of the South who We're drag
ged into the war, fought with heroic valor, main.
tanned on many fields of victory and defeat the
name. the prowess, the strength aud the vigor Of
the race to which they belonged. We honor them
for it; they were our countrYmen, and we were not
ashamed Of it. (Applause)
Now, when the rebellion went down, there came
to Us, on every breeze that was waited from the
South, words of surrender, submission, and the
question, what are you going to do with US ?'-
say to you here, and | want you to remember
tive have lost 325,0O0 men-our brothers.. our
sons and our children; we have two or three hun
dred thousand wounded and manned men amongst
US to remind us Of the contest; We hive sOrrowing
hearts, for L say to You we suffered, as well as
you, III this terrible contest, all over the land. We
have debt Of three thousand million dollars that
must be worked out by the laboring men Of the
entire North and South. Abraham Lincoln, the
first after Washington, dear to all Americans the
man loved deeper than any other that ruled |
N the Western World, has been murdered because
ne loved his country, and because he loved Liber-
~. We know that thousands of sons have
persisted with starvation at Salisbury, Anderson
vile and Belle Isle but yet say to you here now
hat all the loyal States, while we rejOiced in
he triumph Of our arms, we have not one senti-
nent of hatred towards our countrymen
n any part of the country (Applause.)
And now, ask you to-day, how it is,
md why it is, that We have passed |
through these two years of controversy. Our
armies have done their work; our generals have
schleved the victory; our statesmen raised |
srmies created navies, raised men, borrowed
money, conducted the government of thu country
With consummate ability We were strong, pow
'rful, prosperous, had more man TO put in the
army than when the war began; the name of the
'ou ntry had become tower Of strength the wide
world over; she had leaped thousand leagues
higher up III power; the government still stands
Without the assistance OF Sou thern statesmen, al
hough we have been taught to believe that we
could not do without them, and I think can
larry on the government great many years longer
Without them. daughter and applause.)
Had the President of the United States, in the |.
spring, and all the Summer Of 1865, called Con-
5ress together, l have no doubt that a policy
would have been inaugurated that would have
been cheerfully hailed by the entire country and
hese States would have been back in the Union
before now, but there gathered about him class
IT ambitious men; men who got the idea into their