The Sumter watchman. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1855-1881, 1870-06-29

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can, that they have, in ths,reauit Of
their labors, embodied that idea. You
Mr.. President, and all the gentlemen Of
this Convention; arc we'll, aware that il
ia a peculiar aud difficult thing which
we propose to accomplish in this plat
form. UP to this time, there have been
two peoples in South Carolina, whose
interests arc identical, whose feelings
andsympathies upoa almost all subjects
are identical, but who have been brought
into direct and even antagonism upon
political subjects. And that antagonism
upon political subjects. Aud that an
tagonism has been wrought, not upon
any sound or truthful basis, but by the
artful interposition of different people
between those two fraternal races of in.
habitants Of South Carolina. That diff
ferent people have artfully seized upon
aud interposed certain pre-. existing facts
to lay the foundation OF perpetual dis.
cord between this Jacob and this Esau,
IN order that they mny iniquitously profit
thereby. [Applause and laughter I
am sorry to say, for my race, the artful
intrigues Of these artful men have, to a
certain extent, engendered antagonism
in the hearts of the whites toward the
colored races and antagonism that did
not exist before they interviewed. On
the other hand, We know that our col.
ored friends have acquired false ideas as
to the intents, purposes, sentiments and
feelings of their white bretheren from
the same source, aud that when we ap.
proach them in the words Of conciliatiou
and kindness, they are assiduously
taught to regard us as serpents in dis
guise, and seeking to enter into and
disturb that political paradise which
these parties have constructed for their
own benefit. [Applouse.l Therefore,
when we approach them to offer the
hand of conoiliation to our friends on
the other side, we have to guard against
double misconstruction. We have to
guard against our extreme but honora
BILE and ever-to. be courteously aud kind>
ly referred to old State Rights Seces>
sionists of South Carolina. We have on
the one hand, to convince aud demon.
strate to them that when we do ap-
proach our brethren on the other side
it is not with the view to entrap them
into position Of dishonor and disrepute.
On the other hand, we have to convince
our colored friends that we approach
them in all sincerity, kindness and fidel-
ity, to stand by what We Say here to day,
[applause,1 and to ask them to unite
with us in an honest, fraternal effort to
uphcave the old State of South Carolina
and place her upon a greater emil
ncncc than she ever attained before Ap.
plause,
Well, sir, what have we to do the
first thing? We have first to demon
strate to the white people Of South Car
olina that there is no trap in this thing
for thcm and their ideas, that their
dignity and their honor, aud even their
sentiments (because sentiments are
sometimes sacred things,) are not COM
promised in these movements. How do
we do that ? We lott by meeting this
objection. That class of men say, "We
regard this Fifteenth Amendment as
law as much as you do. We know that it
is a fixed fact. We know it because. in
our every days experience, we 60 to
the polls aud ask these people to vote
for our candidates, and know that they
exercise the functions of office, and that
they are fixed upon US as law. But we
cannot say in our conscience that we ap-
prove of the process by which the thing
has been brought about" Now Mr..
President, when we construct a platform
we must lay its foundations broad and
deep. We must respect the acquisitions
of the most extreme and most conscicn.
tious scruples of both parties. With
that view the language Of these resolu-
tions has been framed. They deal with
these things as facts, having the sanctity
of law, acquired by that vast change in
our system, brought by tho war and the
circumstances which ensued. We did
not 50 back and say that we can trace
we do not require these parties to sub,
scribe to form that they can trace as
constitutional arguments in favor o.
every proposition contained in these
measures-we bring them to the poin
that they commit themselves to the san
oity acquired by force of circumstances
and I think any man who regards then
as facts accomplished, must regard them
as having acquired tho sanctiiy and OBJ
legation and force of law. Ifthey come
up and take their standpoint there
they have right to claim the cooper
alton of every honest colorcd man ii
the State of South Carolina in thi.
movement. Because it says "althougl
some Of US may not agree with thcs,
things as rigbtfully done, VIC regart
them as having acquired that sanctit,
which belongs to acknowledged law
and we are going to deal with then
as law, and we mean to carry them ou
practically in all tho relations Of poitica
life. [Applause.]
Z Mr.. President, am not going t
infict a speech upon this Convention
but felt duty to explain tho ide;
upon which this platform was prepared
The language was carefully weighed
aud considered before the paper wa
brought to this city. They were twic
written anA re- written, and amended