Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-09-26
! NPOLdTIOAIt.S
6reeIey's speech at CORY, Penn.
-EaH 81 pl3b 9sGT3
Terrible I,ashing Of Carpet. Baggers.
9 Radical 0utrages in Arkansas.

necessarily brings into review the action OF
yotlr government and the measures for
good or Ill which affect the prosperity OF the
country and the welfare Of liz people. Now
the significance Of that, its purpose, is not
that A or B, who may be persons of very
moderate capacity or still more moderate
worth, should be President or hold sorre
other Office, but that you, the people, should
look over the whole ground, see what is
right and what is amiss, and use your best
efforts 70 correct evils and sustain what is
good. Now you are aware as well as am.
that our country has not been reconciled
and regulated and brought into peace and
order, and that nearly eight years have
elapsed since tbs war ended, and
security ought 10 have been at
tanned much sooner than this. Look at
the difficulties and obstacles to be overcome
now. First in point of view and
urgency was what we call the Ku Klux
outrsges Of the South. Certain persons,
mainly open rebels, and not a part rebel
soldiers, c0nsplred together, formed them
selves into companies of the saffie kind. end
In hideous disguises pafaded the country;
mean certain portions of the Southern
country, abusing innocent, quiet and main
" black men. / don't mean to say there
were not excuses for these sassiraQes. There
were; but | say there is no justification for
any such conduct as that pfetense generally
was. What they called the carpet-bag
governments were aboninable, is probably
trues but that Is no excuse for battling Quiet
people out Of their beds at midnight and
subjecting them to all manner of indigni-
ties Gn that / coid I d;1 v,of ,-coo,,,.,,o..yl
particular or extreme measures, but said
no doubt it lie the duty Of the States to pro-
tect their citizens respectively, and put
down ali lawlessness. But suppose they
don't or can't or won't, the people
are entitled to protection, perfect
protection. If State government wont
give 1t, there nlust be power somewhere
that viii give it. We look after man who
Is not more than half a citizen, and all the
powers Of this great nation is put TO work
to protect him. That man NAV perhaps
have only declared his intention to become
a citizen, but all the cannon and all the
force we can command are employed for
his protection. 0urgovernment must have
the power TO protect its own people at
home as well as abroad. So said, a year
ago last spring, let the President tell us
what sort of legislation he needs to pnt
down those Ku-Klux, and will back him
up to the full extent. He said what he
needed; laws were passed, and after all,
his did the work. You have not heard of
any serious Ku-Klux outrages since these
acts were passed. Since these acts were
passed year and half ago mob Ody has
heard Of any serious outrage there. Though
here have been trials In one or two
States, especially in North Carolina,
ret they are trials for offences
committed two or three years ago, long
Iefore the act was passed. So the work
vas done, the Ku Klux conspiracy crushed
'ut by act Of Congress, and although these
'utrages occurred in a very narrow district
Il territory, they discredited and damaged
Il Southern people who may be suspected
or any sympathy with those who made the
,utrages done. But still there remained
hat other element of discord and discon-
ent at the South which was called
The Carpet-Bag Thieves.
When they went into the South with our
rmies a number of shrewd, cunning, un-
crupnlons men undertook to make them
elves rich out of the poverty of the van
uished South, made themselves special
saders of the black people. Then they or
anized Union leagues and other secret So
ieties ofwhich the first effect was to COM
Inc all the black men of the South in con
olidated phalanx and thus give the direction
I real government and management of
hese black men TO these white leaders who |
re called the carpet-baggers. So then they |
ominated these for Office, and they made |
themselves Governors and Congressman |
nd Secretaries soon, and they COM |
lenced through the machinery |
f legislation using the sim |
lie, ignorant negroes, some as legisls- |
OTIS, and commenced measures OF gigantic
obbeIy. In the first place they made for |
themselves great salaries, such as the poor
'oUhern States were unable to pay, and |
hey pretended to start great many inter-
al improvements, issued bonds in behalf |
r in aid Of these improvements, and they
ontriyed to steal the bonds, sell them for
be most they could get, make no improve
lents and leave States, war-wasted and
isolate before, overwhelmed with debt.
Oubt whether these debts ever can be |
aid, and sure there is very little DISPOSE
ion to pay them among the people who
wn the property of the South. They re-
ard them as frauds, simple iniquities i'm
osed upon them, and the the charges of
be unjust burdens they can't bear. / ap-
rehend if they were to sell out all the pro-
erty in South Carolina to-day, it would
OF very much more than pay the pretend
d debts which have been imposed |
pom her by the carpet baggers
Tho rule the negro legislators, some of
hem merely simple, some of them rogues,
nd all of them being without property,
7ithout proper responsibility. Here is an
cement of discord and hatred, a general be-
eff on the part Of the Southern people that
re Of the North sent those Williams down
here to rob them, and by enfranchising the
lacks and other measures of reconstruc-
on we have delivered these people bound
and and foot into the clutches OF these
)rrupt carpet baggers to be robbed at their
lercy. Now let me try to give you an il
lstration of the way the thing works.
len say, Suppose they, do steal; what
lal We do about it? You pretend to be
| favor Of local self government. They
ave got it and thir local self governing |
lthorities are the robbers. What are you
oing to do about it?" l will tell you of
Use. In the year 1868 the State Of
Arkansas
nong other States was reconstructed I'M
er our Republican legislation. They re-
instructed a very large portion of her peo-
e, probably one half of the white people
cling disfranchise1 and not allowed
, vote. The blacks and those they
llled scalawags, that is the poor
hites whom they regarded of no account
oted, while property holding whites were
and allowed no voice in the
of their government. So
len Powell Clayton, Kansas man who
Ime in there as commander Of regiment
our soldiers or else following in their
axe, and one of the leaders of the carpet
ag crowd, was elected Governor of the
tate. The Constitution then prescribed
lat all whom Congress had disfranchised
louid be denied the right to vote. Well,
ongress proceeded very properly, though
ably, to take off this disfraDchisement, so
lat Dinety-fve or ninety-nine, certainly
nety-fve out of every one hundred of
lose who had been disfranchised as Rebels
ere re-entranchised by Congress. But
lie carpet baggers said, "No, Congress has
Othing to do with it. Our State Consti-
ltion which we framed in 1868, disfran-
lised these men whom Congress had then
sfranchised, Now Congress takes off
le ban and we do not. We are GO
g to keep them tight" Then
lis Gov. Clayton, he appoints the board of
glstration for every county, and from the