The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1874-09-02
To the Voters of the, Third Congress
sional District of South Carolina.

FELLOW CITIZENS: I offer myself a
candidate for your votes in the election
which takes place in November next, tt
select a member of Congress for this
Congressional District.
! Deplorable as is the condition of the
State, think you will agree with me
that State party organization docs mol
promise us ielief. In the whole State
the Republican party is in majority
although that majority is undoubtedly
enormously exaggerated. But, still, al
organized party opposition brings the
Republican party to the support of its
its candidates in every portion OF the
Stote, and thus where we are locally
strong, we are not allowed simply to
fight our own battles, but are forced III
conflict with the whole strength OF the
Republican organization. Worse stlll,
in the present condition Of national par
| ties, q State party organization is sure to
be misrepresented as being on opposl-
ton, not to the iniquitous administra-
tration of the Republican party of the
Tnion. and especially to the admins
tration of Gen. Grant, and the preJu-
dices and power of the Federal Govern
ment are thus enlisted against Us. Now,
I am perfectly safe in saying that, at
present, to the people of this State, Fed
eral politics are obsolete. Their one-ab-
sorbing, vital interest is the honest ad-
ministration of the honest adminlstra-
ton of the State Government, and they
ask for power only so far Us events have
proved that power in the hands of the
hands of the property-holders and tax
PAYERS of the State is absolutely neces-
sary to secure such honest administra-
ton. And they need representation in
Washington, to be heard before the Con-
gress of the Nation and by the Presi-
dent, in order that the truth as to their
conditions and feelings should be known;
in order that the influence of the Cen
eral Government shall not be used
against them, in entire misconception
of their sentiment and their purpose.
This representation has been purposeiy
and pertinaciously denied us. Take
your own Congressional District as an
| ILLUSTRATION. Whatever may be the
strength of the Republican party in the
whole State, or in other portions of the
State, here certainly they are not ma
jority. That there are some Repuoll.
cans, I admit-some of them selected
without reference to party affiliations
holding County Offices and seats in the
Legislature, and they have proved use
full and faithful officers. This condition
of things was we'll known to the Re-
publican Legislature, when last winter
| it undertook the re-distring of the
State. What did it do? The Act OF
Congress, of 1862, required that each
Congressional District should be COM
posed of contiguous territory" So
when they had grouped together Oconee,
Pickens, Anderson, Abbeville, Laurens
and Newberry, in which a reasonable
effort would have secured the people
such representative as they really de-
sired, they added Richland, which is
not contiguous territory" which
touches the rest of the District at no one
point, simply and only because Richland
was entirely in the hands of the Repub-
lican party, and experience had shown
that any number of Republican votes
could be manufactured to order in that
County to meet the requirements of a
contested election. This Congressional
District, has, therefore, for the express
purpose of excluding you from represen-
tation, been constructed in deliberate
and fraudulent violation of the law OF
the land. If there were no other issue,
this is one which you ought to make in
vindNation of the supremest right
which belongs 10 free men, and one III
which you can apleal from the narrow
and selfish tyranny of the Republican
party of the State, to the justice and to
the lawful authority of the Republican
party of the Union.
But there are other reasons why you
should earnestly endeavor to secure for
yourselves a fitting representation. The
section of the State in which we live
and with which our fortunes are identi-
fled, is the only one in which there is
marked evidence of material improve
ment. We have u homogeneous pope
lation, the advantages of our soil and
climate offer sure if slow Inducements
to immigration, our population is in
creasing, and the opening of new chan
uels of communication is fast bringing
this country, hitherto so isolated, into
direct relations with our ncighbors,
West and North. Old party issues are
fast diving out. Those which are shap-
ing themselves in the future are tinan-
cial and industrial questions, in which
we, as an almost exclusively agricultural
country-especially country of small
farmers-are directly interested, we do
not want as representatives, political ad-
venturers, foreign or native. We want
men owning our own soil, bound to US
by ties of neighborhood and blood, who
know us, our ways and our interests.
Believing this: believing that nothing
is to be gained by party organization
and complicated issues; believing that
if ANYTHING is to be accomplished, some
one man must begin and bear the bur-
den of the contest, come before you
simply as one citizen asking of his fel-
low citizens tlleir confidence and sup
port. The argument wish to make 10
you, I cannot make in this shape With,
out wearying your patience. l Will
speak to you and say what have TO say,
face to face, as soon as l can make my
arrangements to commence this canvass.
In the meantime, I submit myself to
your consideration, merely stating the
three following propositions as an out
line of the ground shall occupy.
lst. With the Republican party of the
Union I have no controversy. do not
belong to it. but the issues upon which
we have differed, have drifted out OF
practical consideration. Our misfortune
has been that this great party, with its
immense power and its heavy RESPONSE
bility, never comprehended the true
temper or the real condition of the
South, for the simple reason that since
the South has never been represented in
the councils of the Nation. think that
the policy of reconstruction was harsh
and unwise. I doubt if to-day any
thoughtful Republican thinks other
wise. Bue it is not surprising or unnat-
| ural that it should have been SO. AT
any rate what has been done, has been
done. We have lived through it.
Whot we have the right to ask of the
the Republican party to-day is, that