Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1868-09-01
Extract of a Speech made at Macon,
Georgia, by the Hon. Howell Cobb.
Something for Northern Men to Tell When
they 90 Home fran tie .South.

Meygo Home from the .Soueh.
Fellow-citizens, being in counselling and
advising mood to-day, 1 am disposed to ask
favor OF another class of our telloW-citizens,
class of whom 1 have not asked favors here
tofore. They have been. amongst us for the
last three years, men of the North, some of
them in high military position, some of them
wearing the simple vestments of private life.
Now the time has come when many of these
are to leave us and return back to their homes,
and in the part which they have played to
return no more forever. [Applausel Now,
OF these gentlemen personally know nothing,
but have word to say to them and to ask
them to bear message from the people of the
South to the people of the North. You have
been here for three years. When you retarn,
to, your homes tell your people that you came
here and found our land one general plain of
desolation; the ashes stand or stood then,
where this beautiful city now stands. You
found our people overwhelmed by numbers,
a conquered people, if you please, but brave
and generous people still. You have been
in our midst and have seen the wrongs that
lave been done this people. You have seen
their old men and their young men torn from
the bosom of their families, and from their
labor and occupation without warrant or au-
thority of constitutional law. You have seen
them carried to the dungeon, and. from the
dungeon to the courts which had no jurisdic-
ton under the Constitution. Tell your people
of the North these things when you GO
Tell them, toe, you have seen the polls opened,
YOU have seen Georgia's nobest sons, born
upon the soil and reared. under her institu-
tions, sons whom she has delighted to honor,
sons whom you have received with welcoming
arms in all the Northern States-you have
seen these sons, upon whose character not one
single blot rests, you, have seen them driven
from the polls. Tell them that Tell them
that you have seen the poor, ignorant, de-
based, unhappy, unfortunate and deluded
negro taken, not by the voice of persuasion
and of argument, but by power which he
could not and dare not resist. and you have
seen him go and fill up that ballot box that
formerly received the votes Of the. good and
true men of Georgia. Tell them that you
have stood here, in erlegislatiye hall Gray
headed fathers have told you that these seats
were once filed by the noblest and truest
men of the land-her Crawford, her Troup,
her Forsyth, her Berrien, her Lumpkin, her
Wayne-her great and good men in the days
that are past Around me here I see the
gray headed fathers of this land who once
filled these seats. Tell them whom you saw
there on yesterday. True, some of her sons,
good and true men, are there to try to save
and rescue their State from wrong, but tell
them that the seats of Troup and Clark were
filled by two negroes who could not write
their name. Tell them that my own old
county of Clark-thcse men will recognize
the name when speak of Clayton, Dougherty,
Hull and Hope, and Thomas, and, in later
days, the brave and gallant Deloney, and
other good citizens-tel' them when you go
to the North the seats formerly occupied by
these men were filed by illiterate negroes.-
Tell them when you go there that in times
pas. you we're, told that. the good men of
Georgia assembled at her capitol to inaugurate
her government, these men whose names |
have mentioned to you but never in all the
history of this Statewas any man, be he good
or bad, placed in that chair, with those insignia
of Office, but in response to the voice Of the
people of Georgia.
care not, gentlemen of the North, mill
tary and civilians, with what prcjudices you
come here; [ care not how passion has been
infawed. These are solemn truths, and it is
your duty as honest men to tell the message
this day giye. you. Tell tham that on the
9Th day of Jply-a day. memorable in the
history of your country-a day honored and
celebrated by the good men of the land
Georgia was summoned by the party who now
ton at her Capitol. You were here and saw
that scene, Go, ask it as favor; will
humble myself so far as to beg that the truth
may be carried from Georgia and spEcad
broadcast among your people. You witnessed
that assembly. 1t was mass meeting Of the
Radicals of Georgia. Twenty white. men
were there, and probably all who deserved
the name Of white men, outside of spectators,
did not reach quite half q dozen. They
were motley crowd of negroes. They spoke
of Georgia; they thanked, this benefcent
Legislation that had brought the great Blessing
upon the land. Men stood upon that plat
form who had bcsn. Aonored by Georgia, and
addressing. that assembly of dark faces and
kinky heads, with net one, white map scattered
here or there, called them ''ny countrymenw
Well, if they are his countrymen, let him and
his countrymen seek some more congenial
climate. Africa is open to him. and not
knowing Joe well as l do, the people of
that continent might bid him come.
Go, gentlemen of the North, and tell your
people that there was assembled in Georgia
this great and noble old State-that crowd
and more respectable one works on my
plantation every day, because they work for
their daily bread and meat land are respectable
compared to the set of worthless creatures
whom the Radicals of both North and South
pretend to call the people of Georgia.
Tell them that that was the people in whose
hands and under whose control you left this
noble old State, when you turned your back
upon me to seek your own homes, and then
tell them that on the 23d of July there was
another assemblage calling themselves the
people Of Georgia. Come now, and stand here
By my side. ! want you to cast your eyes
over this vast assembly. Come and look
upon those daughters of Georgia, and, gen.
tlemen of the North, tell me-you have hearts
you have souls-you have in your own
States mothers, wives, and sisters | ask you