The Fairfield herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1849-1876, 1871-06-28

| luB IHe OOuIncTH OtoCeS 10 tnclT ola
places in the Union, aud then, when
they had triumphcd, refusing to let
them take those places, denying them
the rights Of sclfogovernmeut and rep.
resentation 10 Congress, putting thcih
under bayonet rule, and afterward re.
constructing them by uprooting all
the foundations Of their society, dis
qualifying all men of intelligence aud
property from holding office or voting,
and placing their Governments in the
hands of the ignorant aud vicious
He spoke Of the Republicans as Jaco'
bins without conscience or consis.
tency, whose purpose was to estab-
lish centralized, despotic gov
ernment, and to destroy the liberties
Of the people. All of the Rcconstruc.
! tion legislation Of Congress he bclicv.
ed to be unconstitutional, fraudulent,
aud void. The XILlth Amendent he
admitted to be valid. because it had
been ratified by tho righ,ful Govern
! ments of the Southern States -th,
Governments de jure, aud not tb,
Governments dc fucto afterward estab
lishcd by bayouets. The XIVth ano
XVIII Amendments he clamed were
no part Of the Constitution, bccaus,
their pretended ratification had beef,
effected by force and fraud. The,
we're not results IF the war, as ,h
Radical leaders falsely claimed, bu,
were conceived after the war wa
over, az q part Of the scheme Of cen.
tralization which those leaders hao
concoctcd to keep themselves in now
er. He did not mold the XVIII
Amendment to be invalid he
cause he opposed negro suf.
frage, but because of the usurpation
and outrages upon the Contiturion by
which it was wrongfully adopted.
He did not believe the ballot would
ever be taken from the negro if the
XVIII Amendment were declared
v"id, and the control of the suffrage
placed where it rightfully belonged,
under the exclusive jurisdiction of the
States. In such a case, if it should
nc proposed to deprive the negroes Of
the franchise, the white men would
divide into two parties upon the
question, and the one that opposed
the measuse, with ahc aid of the votes
ef the negroes, would carry the day.
Bot TIE fact that universal suffrage
Was So firmly established did not, he
said, lessen the. duty Of all lovers of
constitutional liberty to oppose the
AVth Amendment. This u,urpltion
should nesef be permitted to pass
without proper rebuke aud condcmna.
ton, even by those who favor the oh
jeot aiHied at by it. The de jure
governments Of the Southern States
he said, are i'll in; condition Of
Tepressi6p, and he DECLARED that the
history Of no country shows grosser or
more palpable usdrp4tions Of power,
Or more glariug acts Of wrong, vio-
lence, fraud and perfdy, on the part
Of thoss in authority; than were com
mitted by tia nspdbIicah party in
thu pabsago Of the so~called amend-
mepts and the rectu5,ruction laws.
Mr.: Stephens talked for hiore than
ah hour ip this Wannef, rehearsipg
qll the old arguments. with which
Demoeratio orators aDd newspapers
have made people too familiar for
the past few years. III answer to an
ibauiry as to what he thought Of the
new departure Bf the Northern De-:
mocra6y; he reid HE COPY Of
lohg, letter Fecently sout to a friend
in PepnsylSauia, who had asked
his opinion OF tito blatf5rm lately
adopted by the Cohventi5h in thit
State. The letter EXPRESSED very
pobitiFe opinions; and these he ehlarg.
ed upon in. conversation, bit he es.
pecialIy uesired lie to make no
mehtibn Of his,views upoh this subject
as lie wishSd that they should not 30
made public, and had cautioned his
Pennsylvania friend t9t to let his
letter get into priut. lie expressed
the belief that the movement toward
ceptrali&ating pogHr in the General
Governments; which he said 8ds g5ipg
on with christianity accelerated rapidi-
ty; You'd end in Destroying dill the
po%er aud independence of the States
and next the libortlea Of the t6ople.
| This, he said; was the deliberate pur-
pose Of the Republican leaders, aud
he looked for It, sPdedy acoompHi,h.
meht. Uue ptetext after another
#8uld be found to invade the libcr-
ties of the people iud deprive tbcm
! of the right Of sSif.goSerndleu Il
may not livS to See it," Bs said; "but
y6a are young, and will yet witne6s
TUG d5wnfall Of R4pulbi6an Govern.
tfient iif this 6outitry and tho es,ab:
Iishmefit Of centralized despoti,m."
Unlike Mr.. Toombs, Mr.. Stephens
does not believe that another War is
tnssible between tie North and the
South, and he thinks n remedy for
the evils Of which hs complains can
be feaGheq only through peaceful
means: Hs aaid be believed the
Democratic partY cotfld ySt s2ye The