The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-04-16


Concert Hall to hear lecture from Mr.. Tbeo
dore Tilton, editor of the Independe1a upor
1.-The Cornerstone of Reconstruction, =" delivered
under the auspices of the Social Civil, and Sta
tistieal Association of the Colored PeopIe o
Pennsylvania. The exercises were opened with
music by the "Black Swan" after which was
delivered the following
Introductory Speech of Mr.. Robert
PurVis.
share with you, ladies and gentlemen, and
with you, Mr.. Chairman In the felcitation of
welcoming our highly gifted and honored friend
here tonight. He is no new man among us
Not an AOoltionist coming out or made nm
from the necessities which the war has imposed
Not one who needed to De convinced that
human liberty and rights did not depend upOn he
color OF the skin or the texture OF the HAIR bur
as a natural born lover of truth and iustice of
humanity, and OF freedom. He has been from
youth to manhood the earnest believer, and
faithful and able and eloquent advocate of that
great republican law which declares equality of
rights of the black man. (Applause.)
And now accepting, as our noble friend does
and as we all do, that the abolition of
slavery in our country is fact and living
fact, that the accursed and bloody monster is
dead dead, DEAD, beyond the possibility of
resuscitaton-ay sir, even beyond whatever
power remans-yet our friend is fully alive tn
another important fact, which proves that the
work of auti-slavery is unaccomplished, and
that is, that the foul and fatal spirit of the
demon exists stll in the naughty and God
defying lines OF caste. and in the bitter hate and
contempt and sCorn of the coored race
Hence our distinguished friend grapples with
the vital issue of the hour, with all the
intense earnestness of his earnest nature, aud
advocates that only form of political and re-
publican freedom. tApplause.) | have the
honor ladies and gentlemen, to present to YOU
tonight the advocate OF human rights, in the
person OF Theodore Tilton. Tremendous ap.
plause.)
Speech of Theodore Tnton.
Ladies and Gentlemen:-My friend who has
presented me to you has taken occasion to say
That am not new man. Allow me to recipro-
cate that compliment, and say that, despite his
grey hairs his five minutes OF eloquence have
proven to you that he is not an old man. Gap
plause.J Tonight 1t teels like summer time, and
the lecture SYSTEM. like the winters snow,
begins TO melt away in the spring. If you are
glad that your course of eight lectures ends here
tonight, ! am glad that my course of eighty
lectures ends here 70 night. We may congratu-
late each other.
Thirty years ago, when De Tocquevilla came
to this country to look at our institutions, and
went home and wrote book, he made this
remark:-"The Americans speak for federal,
the French for national government" But
that was generation ago. Now, thanks to an
overruling Providence, the Americans have not
only federal, but they have made 1t a national
government,
The question bring to you this evening is,
and which you are to consider while you are
tanning yourselves:-"How shall we reset these
ten States upon the solid rock?" In otherwords
"What shall be the cornerstone of recOnstruC-
tion?n Now it is idle to settle, it Is idle to
touch, what Blr. Lincoln used to call the pernI-
cious question, whether the States are in the
Union or out OF it; for suppose they are inflow
are they in? They are in because they never
were out If they never were out OF the Union,
they were in during the war. But if the ten
States were IN the Union during the war; and
yet out of Congress- the ten states cannot be IN
the Union now and yet out of Congress, and
am content that they shall remain so awhile.
Now, how multitudinOus have been the
plans for reioining the broken fragments of the
discovered Union! FIRST of all we had the plan
of Andrew Johnson; then the plan OF the Con
stitutional amendment; then that disTlaCing the
one and supplementing the other, viz, the mill
tary plan OF the Thirty-uinth Congress. Let Us
inquire Wnat IS the difference between these
three.
Long ago you were told that, except for the
Constitutional amendment, white man in the
South would have twice the political power OF
the white man of the North. l blush as | men
ton it, that when Robert E. Lee goes TO the
poll and gives his one vote, 1t counts equal 10
the two votes of General Grant ana General
Sherman; and that is fact. Now, in the hgnt
OF that fact, let all these three plans be traced
by the shadows which they cast
Andrew Johnson's plan is that negro shall
have no vote, and Rebel shall have two. Tue
Constitutional amendment Is, the negro may
have no vote, the Rebel may have one The
military plan is that, as the white man OF thu
South has a VOTE the black man OF the Soutr
~
TO the three, and that plan simply to consist II
an amendment to the Federal Constitution
which, at one benefcent stroke reaching to thu
North and South alike, wherever il sees al
American cilZen, whether white or black
whether in South Carolina or Connecticut shal
give to that American citizen the American
citizens franchise. (Applause.)
While a few months ago II was OF COnse
uuence to consider the plan OF Andrew John
son, it is of consequence no longer. The yer
dict of the people tell upon it like milestone
and ground it to powder. What shall be sale
Of the man who for This office is to be honored
who for himself is to be dispsed? This is thu
man for whom the police cleared open patti
through half a nation OF astonished spectators
that he might make the pilgrimage OF Billings
gate from Abraham LIncOln's chair TO Abraham
Lincon's grave. Shame ! say. Hear hin
say " With the Army in my right hand anC
with the Navy IN my left, were 1t not To-
my exceeding grace of humility, should stanC
your dictdtOrn An insult to every soldier an,
sailor of the republic; a double insult to hi.
two travelling companions, Grant ana Farragut
for it was as much as to say, with gesture
speaking louder than words ''Ihese two Lieu
tenants OF mine, whom you cheer Wmle me yol
hiss, are but the patient serVlJOrs waiting Il
hear Of my supreme design, and to leap TO m
side, and TO cover me, like Mohammedi unde
tue shadow OF their crossed swords
But this is the man who denies consttuuoI
allty to the Congress which was elected at In
same time he was elected Vlce-Presldent.
the Thirty-nlnth Congress was uncOnsututlona
what then Is Andrew johnson? A Congre'
before whose sober Senate l saw M
ne signed or whose bills he vetoed, until tn
Vetoes, IKE that applauding echo that doth ia
again, feOounded upon the President. vetolng
veto. Congress from whose appropriations
money ne pays Tor his daily bread, and for b
daily drink and perhaps the last costs mo
than the first. A Congrnus hefore the SOlCn