The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1871-09-21

1
| ard confidence from constable or justice Of the
peace up TO the highest once in their gifts dis
! franchsement of thousands and hundreds of thou
| sands all over the South. reaching the best ana
most upright in every town and -fghborhooo
| And when you add that universal and unquaiaed
| suffrage was given TO all the negroes. whereby,
through the intrigues of carpetbaggers and scala
| wags II use these words for Others VIII descrlDe
| them and the power OF the army, the white pop.
ulation subjected, in fact, to the dominion OF
| their former slaves. whose ignorance mace them
| the easy tools of designing men te tax and plum
der them and cause more destruction OF properly
than itself. you easily understand the ut
terness of feeling produced at the South by these
| reconstruction measures NOW Whst Is cone =
| done. and cannot be recalled But what can we
| d to remove that bitterness of feeling which
has led 10 many disorders at the South: one
| thing We certainly cannot do; we cannot take
| away suffrage from the negro because a franchise
| once granted though unwisely or pTematurely,
| cannot be taken away without involving sui
| greater evils, il may be bloody war. But ole
thing we can do: we can remove the d1sfrauchlse-
| nent Of the white people without producing EVIL
| of any kind. We can allow their experience ana
intelligen-e to exercise once more their leg1t1-
| mate inflence in mitigating all lie evils now SUI
fered al the South.
! Fellow citizens the States of the South are
! part of our common country. The people OF the
South part Of our people; our interests, our
hopes, our destiny is one. We cannot destroy the
South or suffer il TO be destroyed, without destroy
| ing ourselves. know they brought the war upon
| US, and the upon themselves. They imposed
upon the terrible necessity OF waglng war upon
| them until they surrendered. But after they did
| surrender fter peace came, We are just as much
| interested in rebuilding those States "a they are
| themselves. They are in part our States Ihey
| are not foreign States. l doubt if you are fully
| aware of the terrible scourge upon those States
| which has been inflicted since the ended, in
| the shape of theft and robbery, under the forms
| Of law. 1t il no answer to say that. IN New ork
| State men claiming 10 belong 10 the Democratic
| party have been guilty of theft and robbery: for
there the people are left free punish the guilty.
| and to place honest men in places OF trust and
power: and the true Democracy OF that State Is as
| certain to do as the rising OF the sun. But in
the States of the South the intelligent people
| disfranchsed. They held, bound hand and
| foot, by the army; while they are robbed, taxed,
| and plunderel by the designing knayes of North
| ern and Southern origin. Change places for mo-
| ment; place yourselves in their condition; judge
| their hearts by your own, and then tell me, my
| Republican fellow-citizeDs void You not feel it
| to be grevous wrong to be held in that
| dition for single hour? What reason can be
| given for il? Mir. Morton says If tnoE sre en-
| fraachsed they will bring the Democratic party
into power and will repudlste our national debt
| or compel to assume the Confederate debt
| They will refuse to pay the pensions to our sol
diers, or compel Us 10 give pensions TO the reoel
| soldiers. In reply, l say we have the testimony
of all the intelligent OF the South that they,
| as well as we, are bound by every property inter
| est upon earth TO sustain the credit Of the
| tnted States, and the credit Of the only m ney
| they have, based upon 1t; tina not dollar OF the
| Confederate States will ever become due. because
| it is not payable until six months after the indie
| pendence of the Confederacy shall be recognized
| by the United States. man must be insane to
| think or fear, imagine that the people OF the
| South or of the North would ever tax themselves
| 10 pay debt of $4,000 000O which Is never to
become due. and which is not now and has not for
| ak years been worth one mill on q thousand dol
| lars,
| And as TO pensions whatever we may say of
| the rebel soldier, one thing is certain the Union
soldiers of the North recognize in him to say the
least, bravery and manhood, and il is impossible
| to believe that any brave or msnly soldier would
| take from the wounded Union soldier the pension
| awarded to him by the government he served, or
| that any brave manly soldier OF the rebel my,
wounded in the rebellion, would ever ask aims or
! aLn q sip n
| ing to destroy. No, fellOw-citiZens no. This Is
| but an appeal to our fears, and is based upona
| dstrust of the br very and manhood OF the sol
| ders of the Sonth.
CM- Doolttle here read an extract from the
| speech of ex-Gov. Reynolds, delivered in the
| presence of 1920 Confederate soldiers, in Ms
! sOuri.)
| NJ. Morton says he is unwilling to give amnesty
| to jefferson avis, Robert Toombs and John c.
| Breckinbridge. If he will not do So why will he
not bring them TO trial? The courts are now open.
| Federal judges and marshals are in every State;
and if this Administration desires TO single them
| ont Why have they not done so. The truth IL, the
! time for their trial has gone by. All the world
would say is now too late, and there Is no such
| danger TO he apprehended from these three men
to make that sUttci mt reason for holding all the
! leading men of the States South under the ban of
| Acknowledgement.
| further objection is. that # prosecuted now
they would become the objects of sympathy to the
mass of the Southern people, and the very thing
we seek, viz. restoration of fraternal feeling,
| would he still further postponed But some fear
| they might be returned to Congress if they were
| enfranchised. Suppose they should be? Suppose
even Jefferson Davis should be returned TO the
| Senate, what great power would he have there
| that should excite our aoprehensons? Would he
be more dangerous than LOngstreet, who, next to
Stonewall JAG son, perhaps led the rebel armies
10 the hloodiest work, ard killed more of our
troops than any other rebel Of the South: Ger
tainly, those in the Senate who met him in debate
before the war. when ne vas indeed q leader in
the zenith of his power, would not be appalled,
| to meet him now; by the side of TFumbull,
! Schurz, or Morton, what would he now he. e.
| feebled by age, having staked all and lost all in
the bloody war; dirappointed' conquered mau,
| re-enfranchised and admitted once more to seat
| among his maguanimous corquerors:
The laws of war and OF nations. as well as the
! Constitution and laws of Congress, would have
justified his trial if tried at once after the sur
| sender. But it would be useless now. and the oc
casion of increasing bitterness and strife.
But let not from any childish fear of any
harm he might exercise refuse amnesty TO the
mass of intelligence and character at the South.
These States need their wisest and best men to
! build them and 10 restore their prosperity, and
we need their wisest and best men in power in
those States to save them from utter ruin.
| FIGURES.
| ton 10 their condition. They are truly appalling
From the best information | can obtain, the state
debt of Louisiana in 1866 about $40 CO0OOO;
it is now stated to be s3G 900 coo; increase 500
| tOo000. The state debt of North Carolina in
1855 was about sl9,5O0,O00: it is now stated to be
S35, 600; increase, Sl1,500,000. | do not pre-
! tend to precise accuracy. rely for the present
| upon statements of newspapers from the South,
which, believe, are qnconradicted. In other
| States it is nearly as bad
| Since 1865, the carpet-bag, negro government of
! Louisiana, according to newspaper accounts, has
increased the debt of that State by S2 00O 600 and
there is nothing 10 show for it. They issued their
State bonds which have been sold at some fearful
| rate of discount, and they have pocketed the
| proceeds. The same is said to be true of North
Carolina and several other States, under this car
| pet-bag rule. Tell me. felow-citizens, is it not
time to put an end to all this? Is not time to LET
the men who know how to save those States from
| robbery to be restored to citizenship, in order 10
take charge of their public affairs:
| . THE RADICAL REMEDY-THE KLUS BILL.
| And what remedy Is proposed for all the disOr-
dcrs of the South by the Federal party: Do they
| propose amnesty: l rejoice to say many liberal
| Republicans do, but MIR. Morton and those who
lead he party say no, and party necessity says no.
| If we grant amnesty they viii carry ali these
States solid against the party in power
Instead of amnesty that gre at measure of peace
! and reCoICiliatiOG-they give them a hu-hlux
bill; instead of fish they give them serpent; In
stead of peace, sword. Excuse HE, ieliow,cti-
| zens, if l express myself in strong language.
| There subjects upon which can speak in no
other. But cannot condemn this hu- klux legis-
lation in any stronger terms than it is condemned
| by leading Republicans. l VIII read from the New
| York ECtni,,g Post.
Freedom cannot exist under a centralized gov
! eminent. Take from the States those local and
municipal powers and duties which the Coustiu-
! ton secures them; make the Federal courts po-
| lice courts, the Federal narshas policemen, de-
teclives and spies: give the Federal Executive au
thority TO interfere at his will. with soldiers
with his civil officers, in the internal affairs of the
States, and you break down the .ly safeguards of
| HDeEty, anu open way !Or an imperial ueSpOt
Doubtless many men in Congress
act in ignorance, and out of N tiyes OF humanity
and generous regard for those whom they believe
| to be weak and injured; but behind those stand
other men whom one imagnes to be humani-
tarlans, whom no one expects to act in lguOrauce
| who comprehend but too well the diff and mean
ing of the uncous UtutiOna and Cenralizng legis-
| aton they urge; who are preparing revolution;
/ fostering and increasing disorder; accus-
| tomlng the people TO violent measures and
repressive legislation to force bills and standing
armies IN times OF peace, because every day which
sees their rulnous policy con inued brings nearer
| the time when they may snatch supreme power,
crush liberty, destroy the safeguards of the Con-
sttution, and make themselves masters OF the ma
/ ton. That is the real meaning of the
hu-hlu1 legislation. Its promoters are the eLe-
les OF the MON, the haters o. liberty the secret
plotters OF our ruin as a free people. They will
not succeed, for the people cannot long be de-
/ ceived. But it Is for the Republican Leaders
TO say whether they viii cast of these evil guides,
| or whether, following them, they shall be over
whelmed III the same condemnation with them by
an alarmed and indignant people"