Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1871-05-17

a man as ever lived. He was kinC
r and affectiOnate. he taught my chill
dren and grand children how to ride
o. in short, as 1 said before, he wa
N known throughout the neighbOrhOOC
q IS nv friend. He died during nay
j, absence from home, and among the
e last words to his wife were, Always
4 / remember to do what ole mas5a tell
e yOu.' 1 am now
n TAKING CARE OF BIS FAMILY,
T and shall do so as long as they live" "
J, Changing the subject, now, Mr..
i Huger, do you know of a bribe ever
e having been offered in the Legisla-
= ture Of South Carolina before the pre-
g sent regime commenced?
r "a BRIBE, sIRI A BRIBE"
and the old gentleman raised his
hands as if to to express holy horror
at the question. "Why, sir, l must
plead the poverty OF language. have
no expression to convey to you an idea
Of the contempt that would have been
bestowed on any man in the General
Assembly Of South Carolina even sus-
pected of such a crime as receiving
bribe. Had a man dared to move that
the Speaker should receive a donation
of q thousand dollars, as is done now,
he would have been instantly expelled
! for personally insulting the Chalk"
"What would have happened to
member had ne received a bribe?
GOOD GODl BE WOULD NOT HAVE
! been permitted to occupy his seat one
| minute. He would have been ignO-
miniOusly expelled. Socially, he
would have been Ostrscised, and
neither his family nor himself could
have lived Comfortably in the State"
''What would have occurred to a
man offering a bribe?".
"His blood would have paid for the
/ insult HeJ would have been chal-
/ lenged-in fact, l think he would not
/ have received the warning of a chal-
/ lenge. I remember an incident as
/. plainly as if il had occurred only yes !
! terday, which illustrates the tender
ness of honor on this point. You
/ know that it is a habit Of our people
TO EAT PEANUTS,
/ or, as we call them, pindars, ground |
I nuts. Well, we used to do it in the
] Legislature. 1t is a sort of popular
/ appetite-just as the French take snuff !
One day a worthy man, whom we had |
! elected tax collector several times, |
! walked into the legislative chamber |
with his hat full of these pindars, and, /
with no more intention of doing wrong /
/ than you have at this moment, ap- /
| preached General Williams, then a /
/ distinguished man, who had been
THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE,
and offered him a handful. The tax /
collector had been re elected only FIVE |
minutes before, and suppose that in /
| the excess Of his good feeling he de-
sired to show simple courtesy to his
friend. The General looked at him
for a moment with an angry cOUnte-
nance, and then in a voice perfectly
audible ne exclaimed Indignantly, Il .
do not wish 10 hurt your feelings, sir,
but you do not seem to hesitate to
hurt mine. I wish you 10 leave me,
sir That was the consequence Of
OFFERINGs , FEW NUTS.
1 leave you to infer what would have
followed the act of offering money"
"What is your opinion of the kU-
KlUX business, Mr.. HUger?"
81 think it is simply the operation
OF the instinct of seltdetense. What
they do is contrary TO law, but, as in
ali unsettled communities where the
law itself is preserved, criminals e5-
cape justice or are promptly pardOned /
after the commission Of heinOus
crimes, and protection is not afforded
to the people, the
AvBNGING STROKE FALLS SILENTLY
and secretly, and 50 the public are sat
ished. 1 look upon the Ku-KlUx, |
without knowing any more about it
than you do, as a species Of Vigilance |
Committee, born Of certain events
aud terminating with them. They {
do not plumber or burn. They simply
punish and purify, although they
adopt unlawful means to do So"
"DO you think there is any antagO-
nism existing between the whites and
COlOred- -peOple2"
" Not at all 50, certainly not on the
part of the whites. On the ntrary,
the general feeling is one Of kindness,
and if let alone the two races would |
move in perfect harmony"
" Have you
ANY OBJECTION TO SEEING NEGROEs
in possession of a portion of the Off
ces, provided they are competent and
hOnest2'
None in the world. 1 myself
voted for Robert c. De Large, the
c0lOred member of Congress, and
believe a majority Of the white peO-
pie would be perfectly satisfied to give
the negroes a fair representation uu-
der the conditions you name. There
are such cOlOred men as Dereef, HOl
lOway, George Shrewsbury and
others, in whom 1 have full conf
dence, and I have said in response to
inquiries fWm the young men who
are kind enough TO consult me, that
in making up municipal ticket, it
was their duty to select certain num-
Der Of
THE RESPECTFULLY COLORED CITI-
EENs."
What do you think Of Stephney
Riley?"
d" 1 have the greatest regard for him.
1 would as soon put him in an office
for which he is competent as to go
there myself
" What were your views with refer 1
ence to secession and nullitcatiOnp'
" / thought both were inexpedient. |
I believed the South was
ALWAYS SAFER IN THE UNION
than out Of it. I was a strong State |
rights man, because 1 thought state
rights essential TO the Union, and the
Union equally essential to State rights.
South Carolina, however, is the god of {
my political worship. My feeling for s
her is like the affection entertained by
a child for its mother, and / followed | !
her as 1 would 90 with my mother, I
right or wrong, if l saw the hand Of
A STRONG MAN AT HER THROAT.
The first object of my reverence is
the Almighty; the second always my
country"
"Were you interfered with by Sher- {
mans troops during your residence in
COlumbia?"
Enough to prevent my singing
psalms of praise to them. They in {
vaded the sanctitie5 of my chamber {
while my wife was, as l supposed, in
the agOnie5 of death, and there, 10 the !
presence Of helpless women and chill ,
dren, commenced their work of rob
berry and arson. One Of my Sons was
a captain in the Confederate navy,
and had
FALLEN AT NEW ORLEANS
while commanding the HOn-clad !
McRae, during a naval engagement,
ia which she Wss surrounded by four
ships and torn to pieces. His five 8
children were with me In Columbia.
His body was taken to New Orleans
and there treated with great respect ]
by the Federal troops, the officers, in
citizens dress, following it to the {
grave. His wife was the sister Of {
General Meade, who has frequently I
been in my house in the days OF my {
prosperity, and who has since visited {
u.