The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1868-01-04
The Ni1'giaedG Convention
ORDERED BY CONGRESS TO
FRAME A STATE CONSTITUTIONS
SIXTEENTH DAY.
RICHMOND, January 8, 1868.

SIXTEENTH DAY.
RICHMOND, January 8, 1868.
The Convention met at the usual hour.
Prayer by the Chaplain.
A quorum being present the Convention
proceeded to business.
FREEDMEN's BUREAU.
The vote by which the resolution offered
by Mr.. ALLEN on the goth December was
passed, was, on motion Of Mr.. CURTIsS, re-
considered.
Mr.. HAwXHURsT offered the following:
"Whereas the Freedmen's Bureau has
proved great blessing to the poor of the
South, both white and black, and its with
drawal at this time would be calamity
impossible to estimate; and whereas the
volunteer officers heretofore in charge
have been mustered out, in accordance
with general orders therefore
RESOLVED, That Major General O.. O.
Howard BIO earnestly requested to con-
tinue the operations of the Bureau under
his charge by the appointment of such
agents as he may deem best suited to The
service"
Mr.. ALLEN said that he had already
offered resolution similar in design to
| this, and while the purpose Of the amend
ment was identical with the original resolu-
ton, it had been modified with Wow of
avoiding the recurrence Of the objection
made to the resolution offered on the goth
of December, that the officers had proved
recreant to their duties. He argued for
some time on the necessity Of retaining
the Bureau until q system Of charity
equally bencficent with the FreedQen's
Bureau could be established in the civil
| government Of Virginia.
HODGES (ncgro) said that he had hearn
his friends speak Of dc blessings of de
Freemens Beroo. He acknowledged the
wisdom and kindness Of the Beroo, and
that it was in the interest Of dc people.
He was very fond of Ginerel Howard, and
| had hearn people where saw MIN say that
| he was man whar was best loved whar
| best known. IIe.was in New York; an
| he had left dar in 1868 to come down here
| an answer to the cry for help that riz up.
| He found thousands and hundreds of thou
sands in want, and pcdled up on five dol
lars a piece. When he come on and found
dc people, he tole 'em he was pinted to
come down and help 'cm and he cut
piece out'n de Tribune and all de other
papers whar had ii in. LIE had, when
he was at home dis year, seen
good many men laboring on Government
farms apply to the Beroo for jestlce, and
iestice wasn't done for it. His brightest
hope was to see de Bcroo got away. He
wanted to see dc time when "lyal men
would not be persccuted-dose "lyal :"
men whose wives and husbands had went
forth to de free battle to meet dc inwadin
foe, Dey loved dar wives and homes, but
dey loved dar country better. And he
had seen men speckerlatin on the clothes
sent these "lyal" men by the instertushin
which he represented. Yes, he had seen
them speckerlatin right at thar doors, and
he had seen men walkin down de streets Of
Norfolk, Portsmouth, and ForchesS Mon
roe. He had told EN- that the white folks
had hogs, and they must kill en- and eat
EN- before they suffered for somethin to
eat. He tole EN- to pull the corn, which
was bendin the stalks down, before they
should starye. He toie en- this, too, On
Wise's farm, and he was ordered back to
| New York, though he riz his voice against
it. Ole men and men in his county had
been cold and were shot, and they was
freezin, and Lieutenant uavens had
his floor covered all over with
blankets. De truth must prevail, and he
intended to write book on de testimony
Of his people, which would make dose men
where had prosecuted desc "lyal" men in
de dark dens which their dark deeds had
brought upon them. Dis history of de
Freemen's Beroo which he intended to
write would astonish de Convention and
astonish de world. The State was to be
governed by honest men, and dey intended
to drive de rogues off. He was compelled
| to speak desc words because dey were true.
Dey intend to organize New Virginia.
De ScripSher tolds us that old things
should pass away. De power of desc
dislyal" men, whose larnin and houses
had been gained by de labor Of de
blacks, and de very stones under
their feet had been got from their
blood, must pass away. lie remembered
when his father used to have good many
hogs to feed, and the hogs would keep on
Squeeln and squalin round de pen intel
dey was fed and they wouldn't go OFT to
work till you fed 'em. Now, the Freemen's
Beroo was ,jes like dat, and the blacks was
suualin round, and couldn't go to work till
dey was fed with handful O. corn to keep
'em from hangin arOun. God had pro-
yided for de hog, and he could provide for
de black man CESS as well as de hog. He
had been called corn-ield niger. He
was: but he thanked God he had been
born free. De Freemen's Bero agents got
thirty five per cent. of what de black man
made.
BE had come to the conclusion that the
blacks must root or die to dccolate de
reproaches against 'em, and he prayed as
cheerfully as he ever did in his life that
God would help 'em. He hoped de Con-
vention would vote for the mendment.
BAYNE (negro) ventured some remarks
upon the amendment and in favor of it,
but said nothing new, except that he had
attended political meeting in Princess
Anne county, "and not being dressed as
good as usual, a man who thought he was one
of the 'roughs,' spoke many things which
he otherwise would not have spoken"
When this individual learned of his pre-
sence he put forth prayers that he
wouldn't mention what he had said. He,
of course, wouldn't make any compro-
mise, and when he got up and spoke, he
spoke all the evening, so as nobody else
on,ld snool, and he said dat dis man mus