Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1872-08-08
HE NOW COMPANIONS WITH THE ENEMIES
OF EQUAL RIGHTS.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 2.
The following letter was handed to
Senator Sumner to-day:
AUGUSTA, Me-, July 81, 1872.
To Hon. Cids. Summer, y. s. Senator.
DEAR SIR-Your letter published in |
the papers this morning will create pro-
found pain and regret among your for
mer political friends throughout New
England Your power to injure Gen.
Grant was exhausted in your remarka-
BILE speech in the Senate. Your power
to iniure yourself was not fully eXer-
cised until you announced an open ALI
ance with Southern secessionists in their
efforts to destroy the republican party OF
the nation. I have but recently read
with much interest,", the circumstantlal
and minute account given by you i'll the
fourth volume of your works, OF the
manner in which you was struck down
in the Senate chamber, in 1856, for de-
Tending the rights of the negro. The
democratic party throughout the South
and, according to your own showing, to
some extent in the North, also approved
that assault upon you. Mr. TOombs OF
Georgia openly announced his approval
of it in the Senate, and Jefferson Davis,
several months after its occurrence.
wrote a letter to South Carolina In iu!-
some eulogy of Brooks, for having 50
nearly taken your life. 1t is safe to
say that every man in the South. who
| reioiced over the attempt to murd'' you
was afterwards found in the rebel con-
| spiracv to murder the nation. 1t IS still
safer to say that every one of them who
survives is, to-day, your fellow lab0rer
| in support of Horace Greeley. In 1856
he would indeed have been a rash prOph-
ct who predicted your fast alliance IL
wears afterwards, with Messrs. ToOmbs
| and Davis in their efforts to reinstate
| their own party in power. In all the
startling mutations of American poll
tics. nothing 50 marvellous has ever Oc-
CURED as the fellowship of Robert
ToOmbs. jefferson Davis and Charles
Sumner. in Joint effort to drive the re-
publican party from power, and hand
over the government to the practical
control of those who so recently sought
to destroy it.
1t is OF no avail for you to take ref
uge behind the republican record of HOr-
ace Greeley. COnceding for the sake
of argument, Gas | do not in fact be-
licye) that Horace Greeley would remain
firm in his republican principles; he
would be pOWerless against the Congress
that would come into power with him.
in the event of his election. We have
had recent and striking Illustration in
the case of Andrew Johnson, of the in
ability of the president to enforce pol
lev. or even a measure, against the Will
Of Congress. What more power would
there be in Horace Greeley to enforce
the republican policy against a demo-
cratic Congress, than there was in An
drew .JohniOn to enforce democratic
! policy against a republican Congress?
And. besides, Horace Greeley has al
ready. in his letter of acceptance, taken
ground practically against the republic
! can doctrine, so often endorsed by your
self, of the duty of the national govern
| mpnt to secure the rights OF every clt1-
zen to protection Of life, person and prop
crtv In Mr.. Greclcy's letter accepting
the CincInnati nomination he pleaScS ev-
cry KuKIux villain in the South by re
ppAtinr the democratic cant about local
self government" and invei%hingin good
/ rebel parlanCe against Capitalization, and
finally declaring that ''there. shall be no
federal subvprsOn of the internal policy
/ Of the several States and municipalities.
/ hut each State shall be left free TO en-
f ,rcr the rights and promote thu we'll
being of its Inhabitants by such means
as the Judgment of its own people shall
prescribe" The meaning of al this in
| plain English that no matter how the
coIorcd citizeus Of the South NAV be
abused. wrOnged and oppressed. Con-
! grcss shall not interfere for their pro-
! lection. but leave them to the tender
Al, i
/ administered by the white rebel" Do
you. as friend to the cOIOred man. APP
/ prove this position of Mr.. Greeley
You can not forget, Mr.. Summer, how
often during the late session Of Congress
vou conferred with me in regard to the
! possibility of having your civil rights
/ ducnd by your personal friend Mr. Coop
err, and nothing prevented its passage by
| the House except the ranCerOuS and fac
tious hostility of democratic members.
1 IF I have correctly examined the G1obc
/ the democratic members, on seventeen
! different occasions resisted the passage
! of the civil rights bill by the parliament
/ arv process known as filibustering. They
would not even allow it to come to a
vote. Two intelligent c0lOred members
from South Carolina, Elliott and Rainev
| begged Of the democratic side of the
! House to merely allow the civil rights
| bill to be voted on, and they were an
| swered with denial that amounted to a
! sCCrnful ieer of the rights of the COlOred
| men, and, nor you lend your voice and
! influence to the reelection of these dem
| Ocratic members, who are cooperating
| with you in support of Greeley. Do
| you not know. Mr. Sumner, and will YOU
not as candid man acknowledge that
with these men in power in Congress,
the rights of the cOlored men are abso-
| lutely sacrificed, so far as those rights
depend on federal legislation.
| Still further, the rights of the cOlOred
! men in this country are secured only by
the three great constitutional amend
ments, the 18th, 18th and 18th To give
! these amendments full scope and effect,
| legislation by Congress is imperatively
required as You have so often and so
| elOquently demonstrated but the demo-
! cratic party are on record in the most
| conspicuous manner against any legisla-
! ton on the subject
1t was only in the month of February
| last that my colleague, Mr.. Peters. Of
| fered a resolution in the House of Rep
| resentatives affirming the validity of the
constitutional amendments and of such
reasonable legislation of Congress as may
/ be necessary to make them in the letter
and spirit most effectual This reso1u-
ton, very mild and guarded, as you will
see, was adopted by 1874 yeas to So nays.
| Only eight of the yeas were democrats.
| The resolution of Mr.. Peters was follow
ed a week later by one offered by Mr..
! Stevenson, of Ohio, as follows:
Resolved, That we recognize as valid
and binding all existing laws passed by
Congress for the enforcementof the 18th
14th and 18th amendments of the Consti-
tuition of the United States, and for the
| protection of citizens in their rights IN
| der the Constitution as amended
On the vote upon this resolution, there
! were LOT yeas to g. naYs Ii the yeas