Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-03-14

diction of the existence of any organized
bodies of disloyal and evil-disposed per-
sons in the State of North Carolina, which
have in view or threaten resistance to the
action of the laws of the United States,
or denial to the citizens of the United
States of equal protection of the laws
etc.
The minority say the concurrent testi-
mony from the United States ofiicers
ought alone, and of its own force, to sat
isfy the Senate and the country how lit
| tie Foundation there is for the charge of
organized resistance to the Government
or its laws in the State of North Carolina,
and how the President of the United
States could have considered it as tending
TO prove the existence of "disloyalty" in
North Carolina, the undersigned are un-
able to conceive.
An examination of the dispositions
taken before the committee, and their
comparison with the documents appended
to the messages of the President on these
subjects, will exhibit o mere repetition of
the same facts by the same witnesses,
thus making each case of outrage do fire.
quent service in the way of exciting new
horrors and arousing additional animosi-
ties. Again, it is observed that different
witnesses recount the same cases of out
rage, with such variations as their imagi-
nations may create.
An examination of this mass of testi-
mony will disclose the fact that no out
RACES are proven to have occurred in more
than six or eight counties, all of which
are named, and of these counties Ala
nance and Caswell were chiefly alleged
to be the scenes of such lawlessness.
These were the counties selected by Hol
den as the peculiar objects OF his yenge-
| ance, and which were committed to the
mercies of Kirk and Bergen. And yet
| the chief sufferer, whose case has been
recited by almost every witness called
| from that section-One Casweli Holt, q
colored man, who was most cruelty beat
en- by band of disguised men, and sub
sequently wounded severely-was brought
| before the committee to recount bis suf-
fering. His personal knowledge of all
the cases in that county was limited to
| six, and four of these Ou'rages had been
committed by band of disguised colored
men, whose leader confessed it to Cas-
well.
The number of these outrages, detesta-
| bic and wicked as they are, is neverthe-
less grossly and wildly exaggerated; and
this no one can doubt who will examine
the testimony, aud has had any knOwl-
edge of the credulity and insccuracy of
statement characteristic of our we'll
meaning colored people. az
| North Carolina is enc of the largest
States, territorially, in the Union, and is
divided into eighty-seven counties, and
| contains one and half millions of people.
No act of lawlessness is actually proven
| to have been committed, excepting in
one or the other of six-perhaps eight
of these counties, and yet it is proposed
to employ violent and stringent measures
of coercion and repression to the remain
ing nine-tenths of State sgainst which
no breath of evidence or proof of law
lessness has ever been addueed, but
which, on the contrary, exhibits condi-
ton of quiet almost suggesting the in
stnsibGty of despair.
| What cause can be alleged2 What
| justification to the American people can
be used for this renewed and wanton in
vasion of peaceful community
The statement that anarchy there ex-
lists is absolutely untrue, and the testi-
mony now laid before the Senate over
wbelmjngly establishes its untruth.
If aggressive laws are to be enacted,
let all disguise be cast off and the true
reason avowed. 1t will not be less vio-
lent or wrong, but it will be less hypo-
critical and m re manly. To any fair
minded man we confidently commit the
proofs contained in the testimony now
presented by the committee, and aver
that, in the face of such wrongs as have
been inf cted upon our unfortunate and
crushed people by the rulers placed over
them, not by their own consent, but by
the exercise of despOtic powers by the
Congress of the United States, no exam.
pie of equal submissiveness and patient
endurance can be found In history, as is
now presented by the people of the State
of North Carolina.
This is tie truth in a nutshell: That
Holden and his official supporters have
failed to maintain themselves by any
means, foul as well as fair, in their State;
they have appealed to popular elections,
and have been rejected with something
near to ubanimity by every taxpayer in
the State, and now Congress is asked tC
step in and force North Carolina down
again under the feet of her Radical mas
tiers, and we fear that Congress will at
tempt to do this unwise and wicked
thing.
VIII the people Of the North (free a.
YETI see this thing done and sustain ii
promoters2 We hope not, we pray not
When will the men now IN power Learn
the truth of what the great statesman OF
our century said 80 wisely and well wheI
similar attempts were made to govern
British Indial
'It is the nature of tyranny and rspaci
ty never TO learn moderation from the il
success of first oppression; on the con
trary, all men, thinking highly of th'
methods dictated by their nature, attrib
, ute the Illustration of their desires to tn,
want of sufficient vigor. They then re
, double the efforts of their impatien
cruelty, which producing, as they mus
produce, new disappointments, the.
grow irritated against the objects of tbei
rapacity, and then vague fury and malice
(implacable, because unprovoked,) re
cruiting and reinforcing their aVarice
their vices are no longer human. Fror
cruel men they are transformed into saw
age beasts, with no other Testiges of req
son left but what serves to furnish tn
, incentives and refinements of ferociou
, subtlety for purposes of which beasts ar
: incapable, and at which fends woul'
? blush " FRANK P. BLAIR,
T. F. RAYARD.