The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1874-07-02

| prefer to-day to take the language of a
northern gentleman, not because he is
northern, nor because he is republican,
but because when | first read his words,
| they struck me as solid and thoughtful
and wise, exhibiting maturity of judg-
ment and tremuluos anxiety for the
welfare of his country which l did not
expect from so young a man:
sFor the last few years the infamy and dis
grace OF certain Southern Sta e governments
/ have been constantly on the increase.
There have been corrupt electors and have
/ been double Legislatures. double governors.
/ double representatives in this House. and
| double senators year by year in many States.
/ here have been bad men in these States
who have bought power by wholesale bril-
| berry. and have enriched themselves at the
expense of the people BY peculation or OPEN
handed robbery Corruption and anarchy hare
/ occupied and possessed these unfortunate
| States"
| | read from a speech delivered by the
gentleman from Maine Mr. Hale) in
1872, at the second session of the Forty
second Congress. Now, Mr.. Speaker,
have heard gentlemen allude, with some
significance of manner, to the fact tn at
the pains and penalties of treason have not
been inflicted upon the South; that their
subjected to confscation. ask you, gen
| tlemen, can a greater calamity, more
awful curse be visited upon people than
to commit them to the possession of an
archy and corruption? Contiscation passes
away with its victims and its authors; but
anarchy and corruption entail ruin,
wretchedness and blood upon untold gem
erations
Here the hammer fell.
MANY MEMBERS. Go on.
Mr. SYPHER. | move the gentleman's
time be extended.
THE SPEAKER. If there is no objection
the gentleman will proceed.
There was no objection.
Mr.. LAMAR. | was saying that confis-
cation is not the worst of evils when it is
followed by good government, for then it
gives you security for the present and
promise of guarantee for the future. But
anarchy and corruption are the linger-
ing death that brings decay with life
enough to realize its own loathsome deg
radiation.
We have, indeed, as a bare recital of
facts-known to many and denied by none
would show, condition there that even
the eloquent words of the gentleman from
Maine fails to depict. Language is mad
equate to convey distinct conception of it.
There is, however, one mistake which |
must correct before leave this topic. The
evils of that condition are in no way, as
is so often alleged, the result of terrible
civil war and the social convulsion pro-
duced by the abolition of slavery. Those
States were far removed from the field of
invasion, except for q short time, and to
small extent. They were never torn
by civil strife until the desolating furies
of peace came among them. They were
not subjected to intestine connections.
They were united during all the war.
But, sir, the border States, Virginia, Ten
nessee, Kentucky, Missouri, were the
field upon which the great armies of the
two sections met. They were the theatre
the same social transformations, and were
besides ravaged by the war of factions
| le-e--4Iy IIIinglvd. TeB those states,
their affairs restored to the control of their
own people, rebels as they were, have stag
gered to their feet, and are exhibiting a
degree of prosperity and progress re-
/ and ruin of their unfortunate sisters far
ther south.
Why this difference? If | have not
trespassed too long upon your time, |
will give you a brief ANALYSIS of the
cause. Mr.. Speaker, the point at which
Government affects most vitality the in
terests of people, for veal or woe, is it
fscals action ''The fsc is the state"
once said great French statesman. The
function of collecting and discussing the
revenues places the entire resources of
community at the command of those in
whom it is vested. 1t has in all ages
been the machinery by which arbitrary
governments and those who rule them
can plumber a people and raise themselves
to the greatest degree Of riches and
splendor. According to the views of
great American statesman and profound
thinker, (Mr. Calhoun even in the
best regulated governments, the action
Of this part of the system naturally
divides society into two antagonistic
classes-those who pay the taxes and
bear the burdens of the government,
and those who receive the taxes and are
supported by the government; the latter
class being interested in swelling the
revenues and expenditures to the highest
amount, and the former in keeping them
down to the lowest figure. There is but
one principle by which the people who
bear the burdens of taxation can keep
themselves from being despoiled and
ruined by those who impose and consume
the taxes; that is the principle which
will not permit taxes to be imposed eX-
cept with the consent OF the tax payers
or, in ether words, which. makes the
tax consumers, the men who impose and
receive the taxes, responsible to the men
who pay them.
Such was the relation OF these two
classes of the South before the war.
Men who imposed the taxes we're respon-
sible to the people who paid them. The
consequence was, their governments were
models of republican simplicity and
prudential economy and virtue in the
administration of affairs.
Sir, the events since the war have
reversed these relations. When, in
order to consummate your policy, you
divided the southern country into mill
tary districts, your military commanders,
distrusting the purposes Of the southern
people and knowing the negroes were in
competent to manage the affairs of
government, and called to their aid and
installed into all the offices of the States,
from the highest to the lowest, set of
men from the North who were strangers
to our people, not possessing their conf
dence, not elected by them, not respon-
sible to them, having no interest in
common with them, and hostile to them
to a certain extent in sentiment.
am not going to characterize these
men by any harshness of language /