The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1868-10-07
To All the Colored People of the United
d. Sfatas- (,rppfin0.

ana appointed at mass hieo'ihs, o""0" -"
gether of the citizens of Massachusetts,, In
the city of New Bedford, Aug, 81 1S6S,tc
take into consideration the peculiar and very
distressed condition of all our race, especial
in the Southern States where the much
larger portion of our people are now found
Facts were brought before the meeting show.
ing. in the first place, the great poverty and
distress of our people who, after having been
made free from bondage and slavery, have
been left destitute of all things at the doors
of their former drivers, owners, and task
masters; from this condition being turned
out with no home or hope OF shelter, so that
our old and young who cannot Obtain re-
lief for themselves must perish nom the
earth. -'," 80.
Fellow-citizens and brethren, in addition
to this dreadful condition, q most danger
Gus crisis is now upon us as whole pco.,
pie; we have just been made free citizens OF
the United States in which we live. This
act of Justice on the part of the government,
in placing our people equal before the law,
enfranchising us to the privileges OF citizens,
the great and Necessary right for freemen,
has been most justly awarded us by the
Congress of the United States, but it has
piyen great offence to the Democrats OF both
the South and North and now two great
antagonistic parties have their candidates in
the field for the next Presidency of the
United Statesmen one oil all the men who
were ever slaves can he mistaken in the fact,
that all that party who were originally OPP
posed to your freedom, are still opposed to
your rights as citizens.
The Democratic party among whom you
live will use for the next two months all the
means in their power to deceive you, to
make you believe that they are your friends,
that as you have no homes for your families,
no employment for yourselves, they only can
give these necessary blessings to you, you
must 90 with them,-must vote with them.
Suffer not yourselves to be deceived in any
such way because to vote Democratic
ticket is to vote to repeal, annul, and forever
destroy all the laws which have been made
to establish your rights as citizens; and when
these laws are all set aside, to make such
laws as will place you toreoer under their
power. How can we as people live In a
country in which we have no equal rights
before the aw2 We must fall back into
slavery, or even into condition in some
respects worse. The speeches of all the lead
ing Democrats is clearly to destroy NEGRO
Nomination. they call it-meaning to
destroy our freedom.
Fellow citizens, we know that it has been
all the work of the Republican, or Radical
party that under all sorts of opposition, has
made US free, and given US all the rights of
freemen. We cannot now afford to give up
these rights. Will one colored man in all
our land dare ruin himself and his race by
voting Democratic ticket, to put the
chains around his own neck and that Of his
race9 If any one shall do so let him know
that our whole race will most especially look
down on such as would destroy his own peo-
pie. When Israel had been made free from
Egypt and then desired to go back, God de-
stroyed such as would ruin his people. So
every one who votes Democratic ticket will
try to destroy his people.
But now, dear telow-citizens, we know
the condition in which all of you in the
South are placed; you do not know what
to do, you are so dependent upon the Demo-
Gratis for homes and for labor to get bread
for yourselves and families; you fear that if
you do not vote Democratic ticket you will
be driven off to starve, for this is the way
that all the Democrats have pledged them
selves to serve you, if you do not vote with
them, and thereby ruin yourselves and our
entire race.
To meet this difficulty In which you are
placed, to keep from being ruined forever,
ana from losing your freedom, to save our
whole race from ruin, Convention has been
called by the meeting which took place in
the city of New Bedford on tile 5Ist of Au-
gust, to consider and inaugurate means for
your relief, tG obtain and secure homes and
shelter for your aged and starving poor. The
Convention is called to meet in the City of
Boston on the second day of October next,
which will be on Tuesday. Two delegates
from every Congressional District in the Uni
ted States are desired to be sent to this Con-
vention, to be elected and chosen by the
people of the District by calling Conven-
ton as soon as you receive this letter. We
shall petition the government of the United
States to grant and relieve your condition
with all possible dispatch, to give and to
bestow upon our nation some part of the
millions of dollars worth of produce. the
result of our labor during the last three
years of our slavery, which the government
of the United States took charge of, sold,
and put into the treasury of the government.
Our freedom is to US boon-a blessing
which we cannot let any but God himself
cue! Come up as one man to the polls on
the Sd of November next. Be sure to cast
your vote for our great deliverers, Grant and
Colfax. Oh, do not fail for your right arm.
Tell all tell both white and colored that
they should not expect you to sell your
birthright. Tell the Democrats that you
are friends to them, will always be, but you
must ruin yourselves. No tale they can
tell you ought TO induce you to vote Dem
ocratic ticket, and vote against yourselves
and your race and destroy your freedom for
ever.
But, dear brethren, all over the United
States, if one should be so lost to all his in
terests, to the rights and freedom of his race,
take his name, and be sure to return it to
the residing Secretary, ~ ---, of
New Bedford, that we may place such a
name on the roll, for we must pray God to
turn him from the evil Return his name to
the Secretary of the Central Committee of
your State, who will return it to the Cen
trail Committee at headquarters in the city
of New Bedford. Now, brethren, tell all
Your friendly Democrats that they must not
think hard Of you, and dislike you, because
you must try to preserve the laws which
have made you free, and which secure to us
our privileges as freemen. See to it, breth-
rem, that you all he friendly. And moreover
brethren, we call upon you and all the min
listers of religion of every church to call and
have general prayer-meetings every Sunday
night, to pray Almighty God, for the sake
of his dear Son, to bless tue purpose of this
Convention, to bless and help the good men
who are now laboring in this cause and
especially, we call upon the women to pray