The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1869-03-04
MISCELLANY.
OUR LEGISLATURE.

'mong the Marylanders and Pensylva-
'nians visiting this State last December,
writes as follows of the reconstructed
Legislature, In the concluding number
of" '"Et;torial Notes" for his pupcr:
We stopped day In Columbia to see
that wonderful production of Southern
'soil-a Negro Legislature. We saw
but one brunch Of it, for the Assembly
'on the day previous, Friday, sfser an
animated debate as to the propticty Of
voting a Christmas dinner to its eth
ployees, had adjourned over until Mon
day fer tile purpose of attending cir
Gus that was to exhibit on Saturday
afternoon. The members thought thdt
there would be uouse in holding session
on Saturday morning, as their minds
would be so full Of joyful auticipations
of the pleasures which the afternoon
had in store for them, they would be 50
inten,ly dwelling upon the prospective
mule race, the mad gallop Of the bare,
legged, painted eques:rienue, the peril
'ous leap Of the acrobat, and the Won
'derful jokes of the clown, that they
would be entirely unified for the grave
business of law making. One hundred
and eighteen of the one hundred and
rhirty-tWo members of this body are
Radicals, of whom sixty seven are nc
igroes and Are balance white carpet bag
gers.
There are tlirfy:two Senators, cigh,
teen ofthem being white Radicals, nine
black ditto, aud i've Democrats. The
proportion ofbIacks in this body being
less, it was more sedate than the lower
House, and had Session on Saturday
morning, taking very good care, howev-
e t, adjourn in excellent time for the
circus. The Senate Chamber occrpies
the FIRST hvvr Of building 10 the busi-
ness part ofthe City, the room having
been apparently intended for IA Store ol
a drinking saloon. The 'chairman's
desk stands about the midllc Of The
side wall, and the august Senators have
desks in front OF him, fenced uff from
tire common people that come IN to see
the meuaga,ic, by railing that curv's
'clliptically around to the wall. The
words that fell from the thick lips in
that elFipse, Sanford or C!!.'risty could not
eclipse, in tlicir peculiar Style Of utter
auce. Beverly Nash Was there occupy
Jug Wade Ilampton's former place us
representative Of Columbia; a tall slim
tlarkey, who fer many Years was the
porter in one of the pfiduipa! hotels Of
the Capital. Two >tolid looking colored
gentlemen sat in corner whose appoint
ed business seemed to be, to second all
the nrotions made by their dusky fellow
Senators they seconded the motion 10
adjourn for the circus with great ap.
parent cheefllucst Mr.. Raney WIS a
portly black man, who looked as if he
had placed great deal of hog and
iiotHiny under his jacket. He was
Chairman Of the Judiciary Committee,
and bis foruier profession was that of .
barber. He had had the Gus ON of all
the lawyers Of tile town, and was sup
posed to have acquired an ample legal
knowledge from his uumberless nanip-
hlations of the legal head; hence he
was made the legal luminary Of the
Senate. Mr.. Wright is accounted the
orator of the body aud is its leader; he
is a mulatto, and a native of Pennsyl:
vauia, but is said to have been Admitted
to the bar in one of the Northwestern
States. During the war he got Gown to
Hilton Head, which district he now
represents. He distinguished himself
while We Were listening with wrapt at
tention to his soul-stirriug eloquence
and earnestly striving to fud out what
he was talking about, by moving that
'de bill be laid on de shelf )" we were
somewhat startled and involuntarily
looked for that article of furniture, but
failed to see it. On the next subject
that he handled, Mr.. Wright made
himself moro clearly understood; he
wanted to be paid for his services as a
aw-maker, and suspected that clause
in bill which had been introduced for
that purpose, might operate to delay
The replenishment of his pocket book
The bill was entitled, "a bill to make