The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1873-10-23

! your satisfaction, and can afford to call upo
nv opponents to trot out some other question
Now it is my turn, and will put questio
to ssall whom it may coneern''-to all an
each of the Conservative candidates now II
the field for Office 10 Virginia.
The State constitution has, in article l
section 20. the following declaration
''All citizens Of the state are hereby de
clared to possess squsal civI and pohsttca
rights and public pr,uileges." zas d.
And article 3, section +, provides that
"Every person, before entering upon tn
discharge Of any function, as officer Of this
state, shall swear that he will support anc
maintain the constitution of the United
States, and constitution and laws Of the state
Of Virginia, and that he recognizes and &C
cepts he civa and political equality Of all
men before the law''
Now, I ask the Conservative candidates
who have been waging the war ofrace against
me and the Republican party, what those Of
them who may be elected BY the people Of
Virginia are going to do with this oath p
Either they have made up their mind to
commit perjury for the sake Of Office, or else
they mean, after abusing and villifyiug us in
the canvass for standing by RI publican prin-
ciples, to plant themselves, when in Office,
upon the very principles which they de-
nounce us for advocating.
Another part of the scheme of falsehood
adopted by our enemies in this canvass, is
that Of charging PIE, in my Lycchburg
speech, with
THE ENDEAvoR 70 INACCURATE CONTEST OF RAJ
and to work upon the passions of the colored
people, with view of arraying them In body
against the white people. The charge is like
that of the wolf who stood above the lamb on the
brook, Of muddying the water which he was to
drink The Conservative wolf stood above me
on this brook of race hatred, race bitterness, and
race invective., u titt
1t is the Conservative leaders who are respon-
slble for whatever of race antagonism there is in
this canvass. Was. there any feeling of this sort
exhibited by our party previously to the Lynch
burg convention? Has there been any feeling of
the sort shown by our party since No one can
say that there has been with truth. We are
fighting this canvass on principle we are fight
with the honest weapon Of argument we are APP
pealing to no passions, prejudices, but only to
the reason of the people. In this respect, we
claim that our conduct has been in noble con-
trast with that of our adversaries. -
THE CONSERVATIVES BEGAN THIS WAR OF
9TH their ac7.ite mans movement in 1868.
They did not dare to push the question of
race too far in 1869 and in 1872; but they
opened it anew long before the present car
Yass had been inaugurated by the two late
nominating conventions. [ will prove that
they made that issue of this canvass. from
the utterances of their leading organs
On the second of April last, four months
before my speech at Lynchburg. the Rich
mond Wing had a passionate appeal to the
whites against the blacks, II favor Of ruling
Vairginaa By aczite Vsrginsans, aad against
stne pestiferous carpet-bagger, scalawag and
negro" couched in language Of which the
following rather puerile paragraph is fair
sample: : :
g Virginia for Kirginsans called forth the
youthful braves-stimulated Che hearts of
matrons and maidens in the desperate strug-
gle for the honor of Virginia and the right
Of her sons to rule and govern her. Twas
Vayginia for Vvyiasams that caused the
sword Of Lee to leap from its scabbard, and
fred the hearts Of. Stonewall Jackson, Stew
art, and thousands Of the bravest of the brave
to the struggle against the armies Of the
Union"
Passing over almost daily articles in the
same strain, on the 22d Of April, supei added
the idea Of social ostracsm to that of race
appeal in an article containing this para
graph
"Let the lines be drawn and the roll be
called that we may. see whether it be true, as
is charged by the adversary, that treason has
left our ranks deserted. Ia this contest there
can be no halfway house no neu.rals. It
is not Grant or Greeley, finder or anti-fun-
der high or low interest, this or that railroad;
It is Virginia against her enemies, the whites
for the supremacy Of their race,
and he aoho noU proves recreont to has state,
has hoaoy, bis Kindred and color, and enters
the camp Of the enemy should be made to an
aerstoasd that he has left all hope behind
The Richmond Enquirer was all the time
singing in chorus to this music Of The Wing.
On the 9TH Of May, The Enquirer said:
'sThat is the real issue; white or black
It should be the only one, aud must be with
Ill men who are not blinded by prejudice,
passion or interest"
On the 9Th Of june The Enquirer said:
'sThe question is whether the people of
Virginia shall control our state government,
Or the negroes and their allies"
On the 18th Of june The Enquirer had
not abated IN this appeal, saying 4
'It will be incumbent upon the white
men who want white men to control our coun-
ellis. to consider the question white OF black
superior to all other questions /" : ~ Z ''
On the I'd Of July The Enquirer was still
not weary Of the song of three whole months,
but SAID: =
.The true and patriotic people of tb state
must and will insist that it shall be deter
mined which race is to rule before they can
consent to turn away fo1 4 moment from the
0itaS the italics theirs] to discuss any ques-
ton OF secondary consequence"
On the next dag, the Sd of July, The En-
quirer repeated: ~ is''9
+, tThe great issue of white and black will
be distinctly presented. There viii be no
middle ground. All men who have votes
must be on one side or the other. x n X
The great question is the ascendency
Of this race or that Ia our state government;
and there can be no neutral ground for any
man to occupy when the day of election ar
rives. He who votes the Conservative ticket
can be on the side Of the white man he who
votes the Radical ticket, or refuses to vote