The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-10-10
CHI HARL ES It N.
SATURDAY MORNING, OCTOBER 10, 1868.
Democracy, North and South.

| Democracy, NOrLn a nu Soutas
The letter of Mr.. JOHN QUINCY ADAMS,
accepting the invitation of the Democratic
Central Executive Committee to deliver an
address at Columbia, is not more remarka-
BILE for its force and clearness than for its
evident sincerity. Mr.. ADAMS admits
frankly that he cannot say those things to
our people which would be delightful for
them to hear or pleasant for him to speak;
and it must be admitted that his words will,
in many respects, cause gloom and discon-
tent.
In this State it was believed that the lead
ing conservative men of the North would
be able to enlighten the popular mind and
disabuse them of their reverence for Radi-
cal want of principle. But now we learn
that such men as JOHN QUINCY ADAMS are
more powerless than we, in causing kindly
relations and fraternal feelings to replace
sore and angry suspicious; and that there
will be no dispassionate consideration OF
our case until after the Presidential cleo
ton. We are told emphatically by the
Dem ocratic candidate for Governor of Mas
sachusetts, that "if the Democratic party
sis defeated in their canvass, it will be
"because the people fear its success would
sjeopardize the substantial results of the
"war," and that emo party could maintain
sitself which should repudiate the war or
"surrender its acquisitions"
Mr.. ADAMS plainly announces that the
sword is higher than the constitution, for
he says, of the right Of secession, "consti-
etutional or not, it will never again be prac-
"ticable." Whether the South was right or
wrong it matters not. The cese, it seems,
is decided against US, not by the constitu-
ton, but by defeat in war. This we, at
least, have always believed to be the temper
Of the Northern people. Slavery the South
will acknowledge to be ''stone dead;" but
in regard to negro suffrage Mr.. ADAMS
holds what is sometimes known as "Massa-
"chusetts doctrine''-one law for ourselves
and another for you. He says that "the
"North is ell aware that there is wide dis
"tinction between civil rights and political
"privileges, nor were our wisest and more
"practical statesmen Of the Republican
..party at first inclined to adopt the danger
sous experiment of placing political power
sin the hands of your poor, ignorant field
sshands upon q mere fsnciful theory of the
ssna.ural equality Of man." It was admit
ted that "we may and must temper theoreti-
zeal equality with practical tests of "6tness
'for public duty;" but "this was ignored" in
the case of the South, because, says Mr..
ADAMS, "it was urged and believed that
.thus alone could the blacks protect them
ssselves, and it was said that any admitted
qualification would be abused by you to
stheir total exclusion from the franchise
sand consequent helplessness. The North
"ern people having freed the slaves and
cleft them still mingled with their former
"masters could not, with decency or hu-
ssmanity, abandon them naked to the saw
sage enmity which they were taught to be-
sslieve you felt to them, nor could they
"calmly look on to SEQ those oppressed of
"whose comfort and happiness they had
s.beoome the guardians.
The right of suffrage was given to the
negroes for their protection The whites
were to be destroyed that the blacks might
be as safe in fancy as they were in fact.
Destroy the wealth of the South. Set the
African above the Caucasian. Allow negro
votes to determine the destinies of New ork
and Ohio, California and Maine. This was
the creed of the Republican party, and Mr..
/, ADAMS does not say that he would have ad-
vocated a different policy, nor does he de-
clare his hostility to negro reconstruction.
On the contrary, he condones this offence,
and says: "The Northern States pardoned
'ahe palpable usurpation of power never
''granted to Congress, upon the plea Of
necessity" Congress did usurp powers
which had never been granted to it. The
Democrats know that Congress was guilty
of this usurpation, and one of their leading
candidates deliberately declares that the
usurpation was pardoned "upon the plea of
"necessity" Further, ho says: "It was
ssnot cheerfully that the North sacrificed
sthe constitution for which it fought 80
"long," and the North did sacrifice that
"constitution to secure freedom and fairness