The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1874-03-14
DEATH OF CHARLES SUMNER.

nesday afternoon, the 18th inst, from
disease of the lid art, and the mourn
full intelligence will cause pang of
sorrow and regret to thrill the breast
of every true American.
Mr.. Sumner was born in Boston
in 1911. Born wealthy, ample means
were afforded him to become the
great scholar that he was. Gradua-
ting at Harvard he spent some years
abroad, and afterward became a law
lecturer and editor. Early in life his
liberal instinctS led him into the
companionship of Lloyd Garrison,
Theodore Parker and Wendell Phil
lips, the fathers of the abolition move
ment; but, unlike them, he saw his
way clear to fight the giant evil of
slavery at the polls and in the halls
of legislation. While the radical
Garrison proclai med the. constitution
a league with death and covenant
with hell,' Mr.. Sumner was enabled
to support that instrument as he
understood it,
with a few daring spirits he or
ganized abolition into politics, and
constituted the third party in Massa
chusetts newer strong enough to
,, carry an. election, but gradually accu-
mulating such strength as made it an
important element in politics-so i'm
portant that the famous coalition of
the Freesoilers and Democrats broke
the back of the venerable Wing party
in 1850, eleeting George S. Boutwell,
Governor and Charles Sumner to the
Senate of the United States, in place
of Daniel Webster.
Mr.. Sumner has held his seat in
the Senate front that day to the hour
of his death, without intermission,
being reelected three times. This is
the only political Office he ever held.
The free soil party of his early man.
hood became the national Republican
party of to-day. There were, for
years, but thre&. free soil Senators in
Congress of New Hampshire
was the first, and the other two were
Chase of Ohio and Sumner of Massa-
chusetts, all of whom lived to see the
principles they struggled for become
the law of the land, and, receiving
the honors their great merits entitled
them to, by coincidence, all three
of them died within the last twelve
months.
Sumner, like Hale and Chase,
having spent bis best years in strug-
gle OF the weak minority against
power and numbers, became intract-
able when of the majority, and al
though honored in the party to the
highest, he was boldly indepen dent of
its discipline.
Z" The colored people of the country
have lost their most devoted friend
IN Mr.. SUMNER who was always more
radical than his party. While he
struggled to blot out the rude scars
that civil war had left upon our nation,
he fought increasingly for the fullest
civil rights fof the colored people.
The Massachusetts Legislature at
tempted to rebuke him because he
proposed to strike the names of their
well fought engagements from the
battle flags of her volunteers, but
never was a rd buke more deity turn
ed against tho pc who invoked it than
IN thiscase, when Massachusetts, took
second thought of the indignity of
fered the gray4headed old statesman,
who was the M ost loyal of them all.
1.-The assault committed upon Mr..
Sumner In the Senate Chamber by a
South Carolina Congressman at the
close Of his famous speech on the
barbarism of slavery seventeen
years ago, will be remembered now,
and ltsWiil be remembered that that
speech, unans werable save by the
Dally's bludge6n, was about the open
ing scene in Z political drama, the
events OF which b were terrible, but the
results glorious.
"Mr. Summers remains will be
taken to his home for interment.
Inc family tomb at Mount Auburn
wiz receive them in its holy keeping.
Men OF all parties and all nations and
races Will mourn his taking off, for his
ifAis labor Uaa fnr oil ,,ao~1 |