Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1872-08-07
Fred Douglass Choice of Candidate.

EAtA ltASSs III q 4EIGIl 7ttGNA al 4A4GL4-
mond Virginia, gave the following reasons
for preferring Gcn. GRANT to Mr.. GREELEY.
But let US come to the great question that
we are here 10 discuss to- day. We are going.
IN the course of few months 70 choose a
president and president of the United
States. and you and | and all of Us are to
have a voice, a free voice, an uncontrolled
voice, an untrammelIei vote on that ques-
ton. We ate gong To have 1t, and now 1t
Is of the gravest possible consequence what
the choice OF the American people shall be
IN regard 70 that. hear from several
sources that all intelligent colored people of
the South are going 70 vote for Horace Gree
ley and b. Gratz Brown. Well, | hope YOU
won't have many such intelligent ones IN
Virginia
Now, did not come here 10 abuse Horace
Greeley / didn't come here to saw harsh
things of him, nor of Gratz Brown. I can
call man a knave and a fool, or a mean.
miserable wretch and all that sort of thing.
If / want 70, but that don't prove anything
| should like right well u be able to v0,e
for Horace Greeley. / should ike ID do IL
On the score that he BIS q working man, and
on the score that he is an editor. "a brother
editor with me | should like to vote tor
Horace Greeley 1t | only knew which Gree
ley my vote would elect. But that Is lust
where the trouble Is with me. lie Is many
sided man. There have been a good many
Horace Greeleys You know when Cough
presented himself at the door OF the Iaber-
nacie OF New York, he said to the door keep
cr e Let me in: / am Cough. IN be
ID it do. SAID the doorkeeper. .. there
are no less than seven Coughs gone in here
alreA dy. There have been great many
Horace Greeleys in my time. / knew one
once " no uspt IN say rod htr fhIr.rS asr4fDs,
slavery. | liked that man Capital man
be Was II ny vote would elect that HOr-
ace Greeley. and 1 was sure Ec would STAY
- put, why, | would vote for ham But
there Is Just the trouble, gentlemen. In
voting for Horace Greeley we don know
which Greeley we are trying u elect
whether 1t is the Greeley of thirty vears
ago, OF twenty years as0, or of ten wears
ago, IN the van of the Republican party. OF
the Greeley Of today at the head OF the
Democratic mart
Now, my friends, Will be short W hat
the South wants, what Virginia wants. what
the whole country wants at this time above
all things. after TINS terrible ten wears of com
motion, after this terrible ten years of agita-
ton aud suffering, is quiet and rcp1se. by
which all the old wounds in the BODY polite
shall be healed, and the nation come into
one homogeneous whole. That Is what we
want We want that above all things
You and ! know as well as we know any
thing, that there can be no repOse, no securi-
ty without certainty. Ny objection to Mr.
Greeley is that he is an uncertain man
that he is a vacIllating man; that he is at
the present moment in doubtful company. "a
say the least. Any uncertainty and doubt at
at the head Of our affairs cannot be other
than disastrous to the highest interests oil
this country. w hat we want at the helm
is clear head aud firm and steady hand
and these we have in Ulysses 5. Grant. We
want certainty. We do not want a can.
dIdate hat is neither fish, flesh nor fowl
| object to Mr.. Greeley on the ground that
he is ambiguous, a sort OF amphlbOus ami
nal, living on neither land or water, neither
republican nor democrat, neither a pro
tectIOnist nor a free-trader; in favor of cen.
tralIz alton and against 1t; IN favor of ku- klux
laws and against them opposed to Tammany
and with it. Well, | said | was not goipa
to say any harsh things about him, but lei
me tell you, my fellow citizens, speaking az
colored man, | regard the election of Horace
Greeley as one of the most calamitous events
that could possibly befall this republic.
What we want, repeat, Is certainty We
know Ulysses Grant, we know Henry VIII
sOn-a straight line, no sinuosity, no double
dealing, no divided voice, no uncertain sound
to their trumpet. Ulysses Grant is friendly
to all classes. The worst enemies that be
has cannot accuse him of malice. He did
not approach &c neral Lee with haughtiness
nor with malice. They had met and dis
puted on great principle. The priu ciple
was decided in Grants favor. He bore him
self meekly; he bore himself IN a manly
way, and to-day cherishes as atfectionate feel
ings toward the people of the South as
toward any other people in the whole coun
try. | know the man. like a man in the
presidential chair and the man that sits next
him such as the poor people of my own race,
as well as poor people of every other race
can approach, and approach easily Talk
about military rings and inaccessibility 1t
is false, every word of it. General Grant,
next TO Abraham Lincoln and Charles Sum
ner, is about the easiest man 70 approach,
holding high public place in this country
that have ever known. The humblest man
may approach him, and in his presence will
be put Thoroughly at ease. 1t is good to have
such man down there at Washington, at