Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1868-01-16


and believe all time should be spent
profitable if possible, l will drop a few
items for the benefit of the editor of the
Gallipolis Dispatch. The first time l
saw him to know him, was at Green
townhousc, on the 9th day of October,
1867; he then and there made speech
He said in that speech that he had been
there years before that time, and had
told them if Lincoln was elected we
would have war. That moment pro-
nounced him a rebel. He further said
the rebs, or copper bottoms, proposed
to bring back the seeded States into
the Union, that had been kicked out,
just as they were under the old Con-
stitution, meaning secession was right.
He then used some of the most vulgar
language I ever heard made use of in
company, it made some of the ladies
blush at shocking rate, yet some of
the Democratic sex boasts of his speech,
while l say il was full of treason and
as vulgar as any flat boatman could
have made it, yet it took well with
Democrats.
Next, on the 9th of November. he
took occasion to say in his paper some
thing about man from low down in
West Va. The facts in the case qualify
him to be good Judge of such char
acters. He only has to look back to
the days of his youth for sample of a
low downer of West Va. Before the
war there was three grades of white
persons, four of negroes and slaves.
What was called the first class of
whites, was men that owned negro
property; the second grade was descent,
industrious families, possessing some
property. Here laid the great fountain
of virtue, piety, respectability and 10y
atty to the great government of this
great nation, and this is the grade that
saved West Va. from treason and
shame. 1t is the second grade that
holds the aristoeracy of West Va. by
the nose, and makes Mr.. Stakeholder
take the back seat in political matters
in West Va. The third and last class
of white men in West Va, was low
grade ofwhite people that was shade
lower and less thought of than the
meanest negro or slave in that country.
Their hands refused to labor, they fire.
quented the low grades of negro kitch-
ens,- they laid around distilleries and
grog shops, drank whisky, and if they
could pilfer or lie any person out of a
little money, the next thing was to en-
gage in dram selling and public high
way robbery. By their hellish course
of business but few of them ever got
sufficiently high to set up grog shop,
and had to follow a lower business.
Some of them, when driven by extreme
want, were compelled to take negroes
place and pack salt to get little bread
ft r their starving whelps, while others
would not do that, and their continual
indulgence in idelness and traffic with
and no visable means of sup
port, under the head of the vagrant
act, they were arrested as a common
vagrant, tried by aJustice of the Peace,
and when found guilty, sold to the
lowest bidder, and then became prop
erty for the period fixed by the Justice.
This might have been the reason for
the editor of the Dispatch coming here
| only judge by his pursuits since here,
as actions speak louder than words. |
The first grade of negroes was prompt
and industrious, and could be relied |
On in any case, and would not associate
with a man of Morehead's grade when
a youth. The second grade of negroes
was lazy, indolent, and could not be
.rusted in. any respect. They would
suffer degraded white men to associate
With them. Morehead is so familiar
With this class of negroes, and knows SO
we'll all about the disposition of mean
negroes and mean white men, that he
5 continually crying mongrelism and
legro equality, and mongrel slime.
Stop right here, Judge Morebead, aud
ook at your past course and origin,
hen learn that men who live in glass
louses should never throw stones.
More next week.
W. w. GIBSON.