The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1869-04-15
Negro Sufrage-A Radical Pa.
per on Indiana Republicans.


the Terre Haute Express, the st. Louis
Democrat thus pays its compliments tc
the republicans of Indiana:
| We are not aware that the republican
party of Indiana has ever attempted to
meet the question Of negro suffrage
honestly or fairly. 1t has avoided the
discussion of the principles involved
and, unless we are mistaken, has made
no effort to break down that prejudice
of color upon which hostility to the
party mainly rests. Meanwhile, the
democrats have constantly resorted to
such appeals to prejudice as that of Mr..
VOORHEES, in his recent speech at Ter
re Haute: Republicans generally have
evaded reply. With hands tied behind
them, they have stood to be pounded
by their adversaries. Every appeal
that could be made to the prejudices of
the people has been used by their OPP
ponents, and they have not made res
olute effort To overcome or break down
those prejudicss by frank and thor
ough discussion of the question. Even
during the presidential campaign did
We not see republican papers and can
didates in Indiana declaring that they
were not in favor of negro suffrage,
and never would be Did we not hear
of eloquent speakers from other states,
who were earnestly urged not to dis
cuss the suffrage question, nor to pre-
sent those arguments which in other
states had proved so powerful
Consequently, when the constitution
al amendment was submitted by con-
gress, the republicans OF Indiana were
not prepared to give it an unanimous
support. Some papers denounce it;
even then they did not dare to stand
up to the vital principles of the repub-
lican party. Others were silent. The
democrats, with solid fronts, opposed
the measure. They knew what the
principles of their party we're, and
were faithful to them. But can We
say that the whole republican party
took a brave, manly, and honorable po-
sition ? Is it brave and honorable
for republican candidate to try to
make the people believe that the re-
publican party is more hostile to ne
gro suffrage than the democratic ?
Does not every republican of sense
know that the large majority of his
party are in favor of negro suffrage?
Is it anything less than a mean and
cowardly falsehood to tell people that
he rep ub..ican party is better anti
niger party than the democratic it.
self? The language is harsh, friend of
the Express, but in all kindness and
candor, is it not perfectly trueY And
do the republicans of Indiana believe
that anything worth having can ever be
gained by deception !?
We do not blame those republicans
who are honestly opposed to negro suf-
frage for saying so, and voting ac-
cordiugly. Nor would it have been
deception in them had they frankly de-
clared that as part of the republican
party they differed from majority of
Its members in that and other states.
But when they tried to make voters
believe that the republican party was
opposed to a measure for which almost
every republican member in congress
had voted, which almost every repub-
lican paper in the country had advo-
Gated, and which almost every repub-
lican legislator in every state has voted
or will vote to ratify, did they not pre-
sumo the voters to be fools !? Is it so,
friend of the Express, that men calling
themselves republican leaders in Indi-
ana, really think the people so ignorant
that such a story will be believed?
We give full credit to the republi-
cans of Indiana for sturdy fighting
against great difficulties, but we think,
nevertheless, they would have over
come those difficulties more completely
if, instead of always lodging negro
suffrage, they had years ago begun to
boldly assail the mean prejudices to
which the democratic party owes its
main strength. People admire frank
ness and manhood, and they do not ad-
mire an attempt to deceive them. Mis-
souri, has no boasts to make; we have
towards, twaddlers, and trimmers here
as well as in Indiana, and never hest.
tate to call them by their right names.
But the bold and honest attitude of the
party at large, in this former slave
state, certainly gained us strength even