Vicksburg weekly herald., 1870-08-27

Byrd, colored, Of Charleston;
Mn. President: I came un.
trammeled to this convention, and
II / ever was in earnest I am
now. GApplause. I believe
every word which has fallen from
the lips Of General Butler and
General KershaW. Sir, I have
full, unlimited confidence In South
Carolina and her sons. [Applausel
I see here Col. Simmons and Mr..
Mikell. Their fathers we're my
associates, and these, their sons,
have been born and raised since /
lived in Charleston. I came to
that city in June, 1915, flfty-Ave
years ago. Certainly, / should
know my people from A to z, and
that l do; and what a South Caro-
linian tells you he is going to do,
that he will do. Applause. |
They don'tsay one thing and mean
another. They regard their
honor too much for that. ZAP
plause.l l know the people Of
whom l am speaking, and had l
not faith in them / never would
have put my foot in this conven-
ton. Applause. Some Of my
friends told me that l was going
back on my race, Said I "pooh-
pooh! nonsense! Applause. If
| take a brick out Of your house,
/ must take it out of mine also /;
for you do not see that II l am
running my race into any risk, I
should run myself into the same
risk? l see my way clear. l
know what l am doing. If /
thought there was the least inten-
ton on the part of the Reform
party to do otherwise than what
they have laid down in their plat
form, / would suffer my right arm
to be severed from my body be-
fore l would become q delegate to
its convention" Applause.
And now, Mr.. President, in ref
erence to the other party in the
canvass, we have no animosity
against them. They came to our
State in swarms from the North,
when the smoke was scarcely
cleared from the battlefield. What
was their purpose in coming here?
They had next door to nothing
when they made their appearance
among us, and as for morals they
had none. Laughter. Now they
are gentlemen of leisure! Re-
newed laughter.l They hold a
full hand Of trumps and are get
ting high, low, jack and the game
at every deal. Prolonged laugh
ter. They adopt as o motto,
Glands for the landless." Well,
money was voted by legislature to
purchase lands for those who had
no land, and commissioners were
appointed to make the purchases,
and the money put in their hands.
They purchased land paying the
owners therefor $4,000, and
pocketlng 100000 themselves in
the same transaction. GApplause
and laughter. Only keeping three
times as much for themselves as
they expended for the poor-gooG
Samaritans that they were
Laughter. And yet we mus
say nothing Of these things at all
because they are the acts of oul
"friends," the Republicans Well
l am q Republican, but l want to
know if any gentleman who calls
himself q Republican will conde.
scend to shake hands with a man
who. with the other hand, is pick.
ing his pocket. Laughter and
applause.
Mr.. President, God being my
Judge, say, without the least by.
pocrisy, there is more prejudice
felt against the negroes, as you
call us, in the North than there is
in the South. [Applausel. The
South has played with an even
hand, and has shown you her
cards; but when Northern men
come amoug us-I do not say all,
for there are good and bad in all
classes-they say one thing to us
and mean another. In q Radical
paper Of yesterday it is stated
shat the colored delegates are paid
to come here, and that white dele.
gates are stopping at the hotels,
the colored delegates are eating in
the kitchens. Sir, l am well stu
ated in a nice clearinghouse II
is true we are not at the Columbia
Hotel; but as for myself prefer
to stay where 1 am; and l have
always had the desire to let every
man enjoy himself according to
his own mind and feeling, so long
as he don't trespass on others.
know of many Northern men who
have come South and married
Southern ladies, and they have
been more rigid and exacting Of
their slaves than Southern mas
tiers as a class. Applausel,
know them and could call names
but / forbear.
4 STRANGE CAUSE OF DEATH
An Euplish n1Oer savs. A wo