New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1871-05-04

upon them, including even negro suffrage, they
would have raised storm of indignation
amongst the Southern rebels that they dared
not provoke.
This awkward and embarrassing condition
Of affairs forced upon the selfconstituted lead
ers OF the Democracy whose names are appended
to the address the necessity of initiating the
old Regency practice of COUGHING all their utter
ances upon disputed public questions in Ian
guage that may mean much or nothing, and be
construed to mean one thing in one locality
and something else in another, as the interests
of the party may require. Ii was clearly the
intention OF its authors so to word the address
as to mean death to ell the reconstruction
measures at the South and acquiesce in them,
including even negro suffrage, at the North
Two or three quotations from that rare docu-
ment will show that We do not misrepresent it's
authors. Here is their appeal for "peace and
order -
=" We earnestly entreat our fellow citizens in
all parts Of the Union 30 spare no effort to
maintain peace and orasr to carefully protect
the rights OF every citizen, to preserve kindly
relations among ali men, aud to discountenance
ana discourage any violations OF the rights OF
any portion of the people secured under the
Consultation or any Of its amendments.
That sounds beautifully, all will admit. Sim
ple-minded people who have never watched the
dark ways and vain tricks" of the Democracy
would believe it was sincere advice to their
party to acauiesce like good citizens in the sit
uation. This is the peace and order" face of
| tho 81 Cor
let US see the rebel face of the same document,
designed to keep rebels in line by advising
them to organize for the overthrow of the if
tsenth amendment and the abolition of negro
suffrage 1t says:
"No Democrat is asked to accept negro suf-
frage or abate his aversion to the fifteenth
amendment. We have already made our pro-
test against the one and the other. Each is
until it be set aside, fixed fact. The record
of the past is made up. The question presented
to US now is this shall we make the repeal of
the fifteenth amendment and the abolition Of
negro negro, suffrage ~, an issue in the Presidential
mo question is dead issue in the sense
that it may not be revived for we might re-
scind any part of the Constitution at any time,
or alter or amend the whole instrument if the
public exgency should require it,
Here you have thetwo picturesque intended
to keep alive the hopes of the rebel Democracy,
that every reconstruction measure of Congress-
negro suffrage, and the fifteenth amendment
especially, are to be abolished, and the other
sop to cOlored voters and the friends generally
of peace and order In hypocrisy the address
will do credit to their old Regency teachers but
in every other respect it is a bungling, miserable
failure. There are few men so dull that they
cannot see the fimsy attempt to set forth their
| views in language that may be explained to
mean one thing North and another South, that
might satisfy colored men that negro suffrage
is to be accepted as a fnality," and rebels
| that it is to be abolished forthwith. If this is
their best card, they had much better abandon
| the contest.