Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1868-06-02


that it was better TO accept it, bul
the feeling was so overwhelming
against it that no voice could sustain
it. unwisely, the Southern States
promptly rejected those terms. I.did
not then suppose we would ever get
better terms. | was satisfied We
must submit to worse ones. What
was that constitutional amendment
There was but one living issue in it,
and that was the suffrage question,
and that Congress left for the States
to settle for themselves. If we al
lowed the black race to vote we
might count them in our representa-
ton. If we refused them vote we
could not count them, that was right.
ECheers, great applause cries OF
right, right i
l. With reference 10 the federal debt,
there was no question. There was
bat one other important question
the provision that disqualified me
and others from holding office. That
was no living issue. |, and others
like me were soon to pass from the
stage, and we did not, there were
others, better men, to take our places
therefore. in my judgment, we acted
very iujudiciously.
| What nextfollowed? The supple.
mental bill and the supplemental acts.
| advised, on the passage of that act,
that we accept it. At that time it
would have been easy for me True,
without vanity, | may say had
some popularity in my state, and had
four times been elected the executive
of my state. / might have retained
and eoulted popularity. But duty
dictated to me a different course, and
/ took it and / have received the
hearty denunciations Of my people,
or large proportion of them, for
| having done SO. | have been. de-
nounoed as the enemy of my race
and q traitor to the lost cause | had
>muoh at heart. / do not think SO.
I,h,.a, ny course more honorable
.hanthat ae -hs man who rehelled
and sought the sa NC a'tas e my
receives the same pro, ss' -. .v na
the Government that rece. s.a ~
then stays in it's bosom prepared -
sting it when opportunity Offers
{" Good, good" and applause.]
WhenI fought, | foughty you open
~ and boldly. Whom | surrendered.
/ surrendered in good faith, and
when took the oath, I took it with
religious purpose TO observe it.
When l had formerly taken the
oath to support the constitution of
the United States, | understood it to
bind me only while my state remain,
ed in the Union but If she with>
drew-which | believed she had
right TO do--for just cause, according
to the necessity of the case, of which
she must be the Judge, did not feel
that had violated that oath when
| went with my state, bnt the oath
Il. which the President of the United
States bound me when he offered me
pardon was very different. | was
sworn to support, not only the con-
stitution, but the union of the States.
TAppIause.1 When | did that, /
Abandoned the doctrine of secession,
for | couldn't support the union OF
the states and encourage secession.
The Virginia and Kentucky reso-
lutions that included this doctrine,
as | understood them, have always
been the platform upon which the
Democracy have stood, but when
the platform was knocked from I'M,
der the feet of my party, had moth
ing left to take hold On. AS | under-
stood the doctrines OF the Democrat
ic party, they were sovereignty and
the right of secession. The sword
has established q different doc Urine,
and hence it is that / am no longer
bound by party allegiance to stand
by the Democratic party. Where do
/ naturally fall thenP The Hamil-
tonian and Websterian construction
of the constitution has been estah>
lished by the sword. | have acqui
esced in that, and as find the Rec
publican party on that platform to-
day. my oath has bound me to- aban-
don the doctrine that the Democrat.
io party stood upon, and that natu
rally leads me, as | think, into the
Republican party. [Cheers. |
know this is q very unpopular doc
trine in the south, but | believe it is
the true doctrine. But let me tell
you, Mr.. President, and gentlemen,
that there are many white men in
the south, there are large numbers
of original Democrats in the south,
there are large numbers of secession
lists in the south, who to-day stand as
firmly by the Republican party, and
will support the great captain OF the
age, Gen. Grant. [Great applause.l
Our democratic friends have APP
pealed to the whole country against
negro suffrage, and denounced it as
an outrage upon manhood and upon
society and yet in the late elections
there, the negro who--would vote the
democratic ticket was really very
respectable fellowl Laughter while
white man who voted the Republic
can'ticket was scallawag and trai>.
lori rCheers and laughter.] They
tell us, then you establish negro SUI
premsAy in the south. Not so, not SO.
While we grant to the colored people
all their rights, civil and political, we
do not expect them to be our masters.
Much as you have seen 10 the papers
on that subject, it is not so. In the
state of Georgia, for instance, when
those who are included within the
constitutional amendment, and who
will be voters although they have no
right to hold offices under her consti-
tuition, come to the ballot box, thore
are 10000 majority Of white men
there. We have the advantage of ed
ucation. We have the advantage in
experience, and we claim that we
have superiority of race. Tell me
not, then, that the black people of
Georgia can rule Georgia, when they
are 20, 900 in the minority, and We
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