The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1872-08-24
SPEECH OF LIEUTENANT.GOyERNOR
PINCHBACK.
In Convention, on August -, in Reply
to Speech of General Hugh J. Camp.
bell, Advocating Liberal AfRliatiOn,

who preceded me General Camp
bel): agree with him fully in much
that he has said, and | differ with him
some points, and those points, | take
embrace nearly the whole jist of his
speech.
In order that | may stand before the
people OF this State in the light | de-
sire to be min the light | wish to Dre-
sent myself-it will be necessary for me-
to go back Il little in the political his
tory OF this State. On the ninthof Au-
gust, one year ago, we had Il disruption
OF our party, on the occasion of the as
sembling OF the State convention.
The delegates were divided j.; part of
them remalnedln the CustOmhOusc and
part OF them went to Turner Hall, and
both OF these factions proceeded to or
game what each claimed to be the reg
ular Republican party Of the State, and
Il StTuggle TOT supremacy ellbued.
we, on the Turner Hall side, claimed
tina. we were labOring underditficultics,
arising out of the action Of the federal
0fhclals, and We appealed to the Presi-
dent Of the United States for relief.
We sent a committee, of which I was q
member, to wait on the President, to
explain Il troubles, and that commit
tee failed to accomplish anything, and
we returned home. Last winter anOth-
er desperate struggle was made by the
two factions, or rather by one of
the factions, to get the other out of the
control OF the State Government and to
get themselves III. Things were done
during that time that no man can say
we had not a just right to complain Of.
AtfidayitS We're made by members of
the House of Representatives, against
the Governor, Lieutenant-GOvernOr
and several members of the general
Assembly for their arrest. We thought
that when a fair and impartial state
ment OF these grievances was made to
his eXcellenCy, the President, he would
remove the guilty persons and give us
a chance to unite the party. Represen-
tations setting fourth all the facts were
made to him by Senators, and by at
least one or two members Of Congress {;
but all to no effect. He would not re-
move them. OF course that makes a
heavy count against General Grant
from side Of the house. But the
evils which bcset us, the troubles and
difficulties under which VIC labOred
were not COn1inedtO Louisiana. InmaDy
of the other States the same troubles
were complained Of. Federal interfer-
ence was becoming common in the
other States, and was carried to such an
extent that it was found necessary to
take some steps to check it, and correct
the abuses growing out of it. To this
end many Of the influential and best
men OF the country determined on the
creation Of a new party, andissued call
for a convention. Those Republicans
who approved of the purposes which
the original movers i'll the Liberal par
ty had in view, met at Cincinnati and
adopted a platform which they thought
would correct these evils, and if it did
nothing else would defeat General
Grant for the nomination at Philadel-
phia. Well, the Philadelphia cOnven-
ton met, and without paying any at
tentlOn to what had been done at Gin
clnnatl, proceeded to nominate General
Grant by reclamation, an act which if
my knowledge Of the political conven-
tons OF this country is correct, is with
out precedent, except III the case of the
father of his country, George Washing
ton.
Now, | feel as sore against General
Grant as anybody, and I think it is not
his fault that was not murdered last
winter, as vas one of the members of
the House Of Representatives. Yes,
murdered! cut off in the very bloom of
his youth through the instrUmentality
of these people who had caused all our
troubles, If not by their direct order,
| thought Whenthe Liberal Republicans
met at Cincinnati and nominated Mr..
Greeley that it Wasa Liberal movement
in spirit as well as in profession, and
that it would bring about the result
so glOwingly described blythe gentleman
who preceded me General CampbelD.
In this State, another party had
| sprung up it was known as the Reform
party, and in speaking of it I propose
to state the facts plainly. I say
there sprung mp in this city a party,
and it spread throughout the State, or
ganized under the name of the Reform
party. It made and adopted platform
OF principles which no man, disposed
to be just, black or white, could COM
plain OF a platform that guaranteed
the black MAI every right which the
laws have given him, and Ii which
was sustained both by their press and
Their than the platform, and said he was
not only willing to accord the black
man his civil rights, but his public one
as well. I was asked to go into the Re-
form party, and many of my friends
were asked, but I said, TIL wait and see
what they are going to do ; whether
they are going to carry out what they
profess or not. Well, what did the Re-
form party do? They held a cOnven
ton in which there was but two cOl0red
delegates. It is true, they might have
desired to have more and I believe
they did, but it was the wish of the
colOred men, and [ desired myself to
see that convention, exclusively of
white men, put a ticket in the field that
would prove the sincerity of their pro-
LESSONS and their devotion totleir plat
form. At the same time the RefOTmers
and Democrats, and these gentlemen,
who made such fair promises to the col
0red people ignored the fact, that there
was a large and organized element OF
disaffected Republicans in their midst
They did not think we were Of sufficient
Importance to pay any attention what
ever to.
They did appoint a conference com;
mittee to the Democratic party, and
mans ticket-which the Democrats re-
fused to ratify and rejected. The Re.
form party finally went to the Baton
Rouge convention, and | am told they
dictated the ticket that was nominated
. there. This is a fact, as I was told by
gentleman of their State Central Com,
mittee. This looked like a blending Of
races, this going in with Republicans tC
get a ticket which wOnld fairly repre-
sent all parties and give us a govern
ment Of the people and by the people
They no sooner did this than they
turned their backs upon their friends
at Baton Rouge, and proceeded tomak'
terms with the Democrats by forming
the united State ticket. | would sug
gest to these gentlemen that they mod
|. fly that name and call it " the United
; Sfates y ticket. They mioht Get q few