New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1868-03-01
SPEECH
W.JASPER BLACKBURN
DELIVERED BEFORE 4 REPUBLICAN MASS MEET
ING AT THE MECHANICS INSTITUTE, Nh"
ORLEANS, FEBRUARY %, 1868.
OF CLAIBORNE PARISH.

| RFptrRI loan FRIENDS AND FELLOW CITIZENS;
The right peaceably to assemble and
freely interchange views in regard to
cannon destiny has ever been the boast OF
1 American citizenship, and it is for this pur-
nose that we as freemen have met together
to-nigbt. But can we resist the reeollec-
tion that the lapse of time has been brlei
since the day dawned upon the tree exer
else of this right in the land we love-
the glorious, smiling, sunny South Let
us moi. however. dwell too sadly upon the
past. but proceed to enjoy the present, and
build for the future.
Nv friends, is there a man now before
ME among all this great "sea of upturned
faces" OF every hue, who can lay his hand
upon his ''naked left breast and feel the
| throbbing pulsatiens of his quickenlng
heart and then turn his face to heaven and
| fail to thank the God Of mercy and OF all
| goodness that be is an inhabitant, cltlzen,
Of the land of Columbia, the land Of
Washington, the land Of freedom! And
| does not bis warm and gushing blood
course with increased and accel-
lerated auickness as he calls to mind
the living, glsddening truth, that we are
] now lust treading upon the sacred affairs OF
! n new liberty anu d new klNAAAANNASh
gball soon far eclipse, not only the past Of
orr own history. but all the history Of the
| civilized world For whereas, my friends,
the bot, the whitening curse Of slavery
has heretofore, until recently, bedimmed
the otherwise cemely brilliancy of Ameri-
can craftsmanship, and marred the other
wise glorious pages Of our country's record,
it is now no longer SO, but henceforth the
soil of America is to be, as it should ever
have been, in fact and in truth, the " Land
of the free, and the home of the brave"
Does not this thought make your heart
throb with Joy and gladness, and with in
creased awe and generation toward the
God of love? No longer can any slave
tread the soil OF America, dedicated anew
as it is to freedom, and baptized afresh in
the blood of the martyrs Of liberty. Let
this fact he recorded here tonight; let it
be "printed in a book, and "graven with
an iron pen and lead in the rock forever"
as the spirit Of the immortal Washington on
whose birthday we are assembled, locks
down from the jeweled walks of Heaven
and blesses the record.
This much. fellow citizens, by way of
generality. Now you must bear with me,
If l seem somewhat slow and tedious for
1 design that what say here tonight shall
be printed. and | desire that it shall ap-
pear Just as l deliver it, and l ask, respect
fully, that no reporter will misrepresent
me or change what say, unless it be for
the better, in style OF expression.
We have mel, my friends, to ratify the
| Radical Republican nominations for state
officers at the ensuing election. Let us
see how the land lies. OF course we will
pass resolutions ratifying and heartily in
| dsrsing every regular nominee on the state
/ ticket. That is easily done, and will not
take long. But the thing for us to do is to
meet our enemies and defeat them and as
a skillful general will arst try to ascertain
the strength of bis enemy, and next his
plans Of operation, let us, in like manner,
look to this in a political sense, and inquire
into the purposes Of our adversaries, and
scan their means of accomplishment.
l lay ii down, then, as a starting point,
and as q proposition which can not be
successfully met and refuted, that the main
purpose Of our enemy is to defeat the
present plan Of reconstruction, aHd thus
destroy the political power Of the true
friends of the national government as
against the exploded theory Of state SOW
ereignty; and that the main weapon to be
used in the accomplishment of this pur-
pose is the hypoeritical hue and cry of love
for the Union, and concern for the welfare
of the sO-called negro. And as there are
many other speakers present to address
| you, will devote my time specially to my
| own immediate sectiOn-the fifth congress
sional district. For data l will look to the
public press there as an Indication OF
| what may be termed q rotten, Though a
| predominating, public sentiment, among
that class known as eniranchised rebels.
First in this line / will quote froR the
organ Of the so-called Conservative Demo-
crazy in my own town and parish
a paper which eulegizes those who
pander to treason, and vilifieT the friends
of liberty. A scion Of played out chivalry
Just retiring from the editorial tripod of this
journal INDUCES in the following strain:
He gives this, among other reasons, for
selling out his interest in the paper, viz
'Finding, too, that the so-called convention
would not prevent our continuing to prac-
tiee law, we concluded to sell out to those
who had more time and money than we,'
etc.
So You see how be appreciates our len
/ ieney in allowing him to practice law, for
ne is sort Of q lawyer; but you may see
more plainly his sense of gratitude from
| some other sentiments in his valedictory.
He proceeds as follows:
Gas for ourself, we think the strong arm
Of an emperor wall soon be required to
govern the nation.n
"We verify believe the leaders Of the Rad
icals would, and will, force another war,
rather than fail to cram down our throats
the hetish reconstruction bill Of congress, =
etc.
zone more civil war, and farewell to de-
moeracy and repnbiicanism. The para
| lyzed, oppressed, robbed, insulted, heart
broken South, God bless her ~ etc,
''We are passing through the different
stages OF national existence more rapidly
and on a grander scale than other nations,
il may be, but their history will be our his
/ tory. Repablicasism must give place to
monarchy IN few years, at most 1ial
God speed the dayl If u ioHI be 0iiy reid
from the oppression and sCrongs Of radical
ism and a negro equality party. We, fol
one, are ready to fight again at any mo
ment, If the battle cry Is sounded agains
the party now in power in congress-
Tins you can plainly see that this ex
edltsr is mad, and that too without any
system; Il mad because the rebellion failed
and because the former slaves are now free
Then comes bisretiring gentleman s sue
cess0f one Allen Q. Hill, q real live
brother Of The immaeulate and never to bt
loFgetten Ben ldill, Of Georgia; but as Der
q sald 70 carry all the brains Of the family
tAe honor Of carrying siI he mldriH Is Nv
mutual consent accorded 20 Allen. Bnl
Allen Is my neighboe. and n vopv rlnrn,