The weekly standard., 1870-08-03
Gen. ]. M. Leach in ST

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For thu, n'nn .rd.
Gen. J. M. Leach in ST
Mr.. EDITOR The Conservative candi
date for Congress of the Fis'h District
has just passed through Surry, i, can
vassing tour / heard him ST. 1t Mt.
Airy en- the 11th. Unfortunat. zen. w.
L. Scott was not there, but hao, ,een in
formed that he will be in SurI, =, week.
The absence of Gen. Scott seenr- !. % exas,
perate and terrify Mr.. Leach : much.
He had letter from Gen. Scot. hich in
formed him that he (ScotD woul '..cet him
at the earliest practicable momen' Or as soon
as he could possibly get through with the
appointments he had already made, and
that he was dcsirous to meet him; where
upon General Leach passed his letter in
chagrin, and censured Gen. Scott harshly,
because he didn't meet him promptly. ]
conceived that Gen Leach's affected willing.
ness to meet Gen. Scott was all pretense,
and that he was glad to get rid of him in
order that he might engage in the stu
pendous exaggerations with the least pos.
sible difficulties. He began to speak at Mt.
Airy about o'clock, and spoke until after
o'clock. His speech was long, scattering.
worthless oratioD, favored with much Will
fication and vituperation against the last
Legislature and the present administration
in tine State of North Carolina, denouncing
the officers with fraud, corruption and ex-
travagancc, and never said .$20 Robbins
the first time. At the commencement of tile
discussion. of what he called the political
issues of the day." he said he would' speak
eth the truth and nothing but the truth. ;"
and would prove the assertions he made.
Now, Mr.. Editor. to give you q few points
he did make, and let you and your readers
be your own judges whether he was armed
with the panoply of veracity and fastened
his assertions with the strong pins OF truth
He spoke at great length to the colored
people. He talked soft as sponge to them,
and cast two electioneering balls at the
blacks, while he only threw one at the whites,
and ultimately invited them to meet him at
the academy that night; but didn't go;
know not what he said or did to them
there; but he unmlstakably appealed to the
coiorcd men in his speech during flie day
with clasped hands and upturRsa Eyes f5r7
their patronage at flic hallot box. He plead
piteously andssorrowfuliy to them for their
votes tried to make them believe he had
been their greatest bencfactor all his life,
and no doubt would have had them believe,
if possible, that he had opened the ecstacy
of his existence in administering solaces
i. and nursing negro babies. Poor Leach Can
the thirsting aspirant get colored mans
vote in old Surrys The poor fellows condi-
ton will be deporably miserable after the
announcement of the ultimate catastrophe
on the first Thursday in August, when Gen.
ScCtt has ridden triumphantly over the
thirsty, believing demagogue of the 9th
district
Mr.. Editor, Gen. Leach had the bare faced
assurance to tell the colored people of Mt
Airy that the conservative party were
their greatest friends and benetactors, and
the depravcd, corrupt, and rascally Repub-
lican party were their worst enemies; that
the Republicans would take them and
squeeze the votes out Of them and then
throw them away, as the boy squeezcs his
orange over a glass ofliquor and then throws
away the hull" As you seemed ready to give
the lie to many things in your speech, say,
without hesitancy, Gen. Leach these are glar-
ing falsities In the name of common sense,
don't every thinking man i'll the State of
North Carolina know, that this language is
at variance with truth, when the great Re-
publican party OF the State and nation. has
been the only party that has lifted their
the extension oil universal liberty, freedom
and equality before the law. Republicans
have been the only people that have laborcd
to extend the privileges and immunities of
citizenship to "all men without regard to
race, color or previous condition OF servi
tude" While the party which Mr.. Leach
now represents--wllile the members of the
company into which he has fallen have
striven with all their vast mental and physi-
cal powers to prevent this, and trampe
them into the dust, bind the fetters ot vas
sala &c, and drive the bands of slavery tighter
and tighter. The very men which he now
represents in his candidacy for the next
United States Congress are the people WHO
implicated our lovely nation in the widest
strife, fury, contention, and agonizing civil
war, deluged our country in blood for four
long years, and pledged "the last man and
the last dollar in the South. For what
For what, Gen. Leach. was this done? 1t
tinuation of miserable, ignomineius, and de.
grading slavery upon the colored people of
the South. THIS was done by the men
whom ycu Call 1.-THE great benefactors of
the coored race" What else did your
brother Conservative friends do as a great
benefaction to the freedmen After the
emancipation, they met in 1866, in State
Convention at Raleigh, to frame Constitu
tion for us and the colored man to live
under, and said in the Constitution, that the
colored man should work roads, pay taxes,
and that all other labors incumbent upon
free citizens of the government should rest
upon their shoulders; and that same Con-
servative instrument provided that those
men should not vote at the ballot box, or
hold any office in the State of North Caro-
lima down to the 10th generation. What a
glorious Conservative benefaction to the
colored man! There are mahy other chari-
ties that have been offered the colored man
which are of an analogous character. They
used their strongest means against them at
the ratification of the Constitution framed
by the Convention of 1868, and this was the
great instrument which extended to ihem
the elective franchise, the political and civil
liberties which they now enjoy. They
viewed this with scorn and contempt, and
harangued and howled against it, with the
utmost indignation, and the widest horror,
and cried in disdain, NEGRO Government"
Negro Supremacy" Negro Equality" &c.
And they all endorsed the policy of Frank
P. Blair, to " "disperse the carpet-bag gov
ernment at the South, and allow the white
people to organize their Governments, and
elect Senators and Representatives" THIS
policy breathed treason, dislnyalty, and be-
hgerency against the government. No man
would have been the author of such an in
strument, but black demon inspired with
the worst diabolism, and these Cunserva-
tives approved his policy, tried to carry his
wicked designs into effect, and snatch away
the freedom you received at the hands of
the Republican party. yet Gen. Leach said
it was not the Republican party that freed
you, but he said it was God that freed you,
and he never informed you who were the
instruments in Gods hand to do the work.
All he was afraid to tell you that. He
knew that Gods efficacious instrument IN
that achievement, was the great Republican
party oil the nation.
These are some of the brilliant little truths
that gained expression from your big vesti-
bule, "yirtuous Jimmy" Look at the great
Conservative benefactions of which you
spoke in Mt. AirySGen. Leach.
eHe prated good dsAl about the squan-
dering Of the present State school fund, by
the last Legislature, which is an infamous
falsity, and Leach well knew it. This is an.
other low descension and mean resort of
| Conservative argument, and they seem never
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