The daily gazette., 1876-12-15
Hampton Made Governor.
HIS TRIUMPHANT INAUGURAL
TlON AT THE CAPITAL OF
SOUTH CAROLINA YES.
TERDAI.

AN ABLE AND ELOQUENT ADDEEsS-I
PLEDGES OF THE CONSERVATIVES
PARTY.
COLUMBIA, s. c., December 1l.-The |
Inauguration of Wade Hampton took |
place in front of Carolina Hall this af- |
ternoon. The square in front of the hall |
was densely packed with people of both |
races, and the house-tops were covered
with spectators. AT $50 p. NJ. General
Hampton was escorted to the stand amid
demonstrations of great enthusiasm. The
members of the General Assembly oc-
cupied the space Immediately surround
ins me stand, with the crowd in the
rear.
AT the close of the address the oath of
Office was administered by 1rial-Justice
Marshall to General Hampton as Cover
nor and to w. d. Simpson as Lieutenant
Governor, the crowd standing uncovered
while the ceremony was being perform
ed. The chair in which General Hamp-
ton was seated was draped in the nation
al colors, and the Governor was borne
on the shoulders of dozen men to his
hotel, escorted by the multitude. Several
prominent gentlemen addressed the null
titude from the front of the hotel, the
Congressional committee occupying
prominent position on ono of tho bal
comics, after which the crowd quietly dis
persed. The followingis Governor Hamp-
tons address:
GOVERNOR IIAMrToN's INAUGURAL.
Gentlemen Of the Senate and House of
Representatives: 1t is with feelings of the
profoundest solicitude that / assume the
arduous duties and great responsi bilities
OF the high position to which the people
of South Carolina have called me. Ii is
amid events unprecedented in the Re-
public that i take the chair as Chief
Magistrate Of this State. In a time of
profound peace, when no legal officer
had been resisted in the proper discharge
OF his functions, we have witnessed q
spectacle abhorrent to every patriot and
fatal to republican institutions Federal
troops used to promote the success of a
political party, Undismayed though
shocked by this gross violation of the
CONSTITUTION Of the country, our people,
with determination that no force could
subdue, no fraud could defeat, kept
steadily and peacefully in the path of
duty and resolved to assert their rights as
American freemen at the ballot-box, that
great court of final resort before which
must be tried the grave questions OF
| supremacy of the Constitution and the
stability of our institutions. What the
verdict of the people of South Carolina
has been you need not be told. 1t has
\ reverberated throughout the State and it.
echoes come back to lis from every lane
| where liberty Is venerated, declaring il
tones that cannon be mistaken, tina,
standing on the Constitution of our coun
try, we propose to obey it laws, to pre-
serve as far as in us lies its peace and
! honor, and to carry out in good faith
every pledge made by lis for reform and
honest government. Weintend to prove
to the world the sincerity of our declara
ton, that the sole motive which inspired
the grand contest we have so successfully
made was not the paltry ambition fol
party supremacy, but the sacred hope OF
redeeming our State.
| THE CHAMBERLAIN UsURPATIoN.
But it was sought to wrest from us the
| fruits of this victory by a gigantic fraud
; and base conspiracv. When the mem
bers elect of the General Assembly re.
paired to the Capitol to take their seats
armed soldiers of the Federal Govern.
ment confronted them, and their Ger.
| tificates OF their election were examined
and passed upon by u corporal of the
guard. 1t was amid these appalling
SCIENCES that the members of the General
Assembly We're called on to assume their
duties as Representatives of free State
| and that State one of the original thirteen
which won our independence and framed
our Constitution, debarred the free exer-
else of their rights by the presence of
mr. aH fnrpa A lana1 Of h.,
lower House, after placing on record a
protest, quietly withdrew from the Capt.
tol and proceededto organize that branch
of the General Assembly. You have
seen minority of the House usurp the
powers of the whole body. You have
! seen the majority expelled from hall by
threats of force. You have seen persons
who have no shadow of n claim as mem
bers admitted to seats rs Representatives
by the votes of men who themselves
were acting in direct violotion of the
Constitution, and you have seen the last
crowning act of iufamy by which a can
didate for the office of Governor, de-
feated by the popular vote, has himself
declared elected by his co-conspirators.
strate of the Commonwealth to place
on record my solemn and indignant pro-
test against acts which l consider as sub
yersive of civil liberty and destructive of
our form of government.
DUTY OF THE CONSERVATIVES.
A grent task is before the Conservative
party of this State. They entered on this
contest with d platform so broad, SO
| strong, so liberal that every honest citi-
zen could stand upon it. They rocog-
nized and accepted the amendment of
the Constitution in good faith: they
pledged themselves to work reform andtc
stablish good government. They prom :
ised to keep up an efiicent system of
public education, and declared solemnly
| that all citizens OF South Cai olina, of
; both races and of both parties, should be
regarded as equals IN the eye of the
l.w all to 9 iu ly protected in the enjoy
ment of every political ,iei now p ls-
sessed by them. To the faithful oks .rv-
ance of these pledges we stand committed
and as The rt preventative of the Con-
servative psrty, hold myself bound by
every dict ,te of Of honor and # good
faith TO use every effort TO have thes,
pledger redeemed fully and honestly.
THE WAY TO PROSPERITY.
Let us show all of them that the true
interests of both races can best be Sc.