Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1875-02-25
The Southern People Advised to
Bear and FOrbear.
The Black Man to be Protected in
All His Legal Rights.
Discord and Strife Deprecated.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18-The
following address hat just been
issued by the Democratic men,
bers of the South and South
west:
To the people of the South
west-"You have confded to
the undersigned in this conjunc-
ton of affairs the delicate and
difficult task of guarding, in the
Federal Congress, your public
interests, your rights and your
reputation. You will, therefore,
pardon the liberty. we take of
addressing you at period so
critical upon a matter affecting
your destiny. You cannot have
failed to observe the persistent
efforts of some leaders of the
Republican party to revive the
animosities of the late war,
which happily are fast Civ
ing place to spirit of concord
and unity in every section Of
our common country. 1t is i'm
possible to predict with certain
ty the effect of these appeals to
passion. We believe through
the honest representations of a
few upright and conscientious
Federal officers and agents, an
independent and able press, and
of many citizens without re-
gard to party, the true condi-
ton Of the Southern States and
the real sentiments of the South
ern people are being gradually
made known to our felIow-citi-
zens Of the North. We hope
for their f .vorable decision when
fully appraised Of all the facts
The great ends of good govern
mcnt will be reached when the
people of all sections forget
that we have ever been enemies,
and come together again as in
the early days of the republic,
cmulating each other only in
devotion to the best interests
of the whole country. With
this exalted purpose in view,
there is nothing inconsistent
with the honor and manhood Of
Il brave people to resolve to suf-
fer with heroic patience, what
ever their provocations and
wrongs, looking through the
fearful present to the hopeful
future, and repelling unjust ep-
ithets and gratuitous insults
with dignified moderation. Let
every white man in every neigh
borhood in the whole South re-
gard himself as a commission
er of peace, maintaining the
kindliest relations toward the
black man, remembering that
the responsibility for the ex-
IRENE poverty to which we have
been reduced, and the corrupt
governments his vote has sub
jected Us to, rests not so much
upon him as upon the bad men,
who, with assurance of Federal
support, have, by appeals to his
worst passions, sought to make
him our enemy, while we labor
by all honest means to con-
vince him of the truth that
our interest and his are identi-
cal, and both must be preserved
by good government, and that
those who stir up strife between
us are the enemies of both ra-
ces. Let us at the same time
see that he is fully protected in
his guaranteed rights to vote
as he pleases in all elections
Let us continue to deal with
him honestly and fairly, and let
us continne cordially to invite
to our midst those of any po-
litical party who either seek
to know the truth or find homes
upon our soil. We do not ex-
aggerate when we admonish
you of the disheartening fact
that every street disturbance,
every homicide of whatever
character, by whomsoever COM
mitted, by black or white, Re-
publican or Democrat, such as
are incident to every commu-
nifty upon earth, is perverted in
10 evidence OF a spirit OF law
lessness and violence and a pur-
pose to accomplish political
ends. We well know the gross
injustice of such charges, which
have weight only where igno-
rance of our true condition pre-
walls.
Strenuousefforts are now being
made by those who msirepresent
you to induce the, passage, by
Congress, of a most dangerous
measure ia order to irritate our