The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1876-02-03
A Startling q~aestian-!s' the South Still
for War.

1910. NJ. iii SAIL:
Fellow citizens, ! look 10 the contest
OF 1876 not only as the most important
that ever occurred in American history
but rs the IA % important in the history
OF the world; for if the people of tht
country cannot be aroused to give al
"verw ielniing vote against this Republic
van party it will prrpgtuate itself in pow
CT in the United States by precisely The
same means thai The President has taker
III Lou!siana, and the people will b.
powcrless to prevent it ercept they 90 I"
,cnr. Aprlausc.1 If We fail with tn,
ballotbox in 1876 by reason of force, &
startling question will present itself to
the American people. ] trust we will
not fail. | hope the Northern people
have had a sufficient subsistence of pas
sim to see this question fairly. If We
mus have war; if we cannot preserve
this Constitution and constitutional gov
eminent by the ballot; if force is to de.
feat the ballot; if the war must conc
God forbid that it shall come-but If i!
must ccme, if folly, if wickedness, if in
ordinate love OF power shall decree that
America must save her Constitution by
blood, let it come; | am ready"
1t is useless to cndeavor to conceal The
fact that the delivery Of such u speech
must have been prompted by motives
commensurate with the language employ
ed and the influence of the sneaker. Ii
Is useless to try to explain away the i'm
portance of the words. The speech WIS
delivered by Mr.. Hill, who had been a
Senator in the Confederate Congress and
the mouthpiccc of Jefferson Davis, whose
infamous orders cntaiiing suffering and
death on Union soldiers he either JUST
ties or makes light Of. Mr.. Hin spoke in
Il State witch had joined in the rebellion
ill the hope of destroying the Union; a
State which had annjhiiiated as far as it
could the coIorCd vote and the vote of
white Republicans; a State that had
failed in It's duty to provide fully for the
education of its colorcd citizens and their
children, and to atltrd them the protcC-
tion Of the law and that had been VIC
GENTLY wrenchcd from Republican control
by Democrats who had obtained their
present status through the lcnicncy Of
amnesty laws passed by a Republican
Congress. To such Democrats Mr.. Hill
made his address. They were nen opposed
to the reconstruction of the South as ,ro
vided for in the reconstruction measures.
They had no sympathy with the cause
that triumphcd in the war; no sense of
obligations that rested upon them to &C
ccpt the situation in good faith; and no
intention Of OBJ ying those Federal laws
which made 10 Discrimination in citizen
ship between the whites and blacks.
The immediate audience surrounding
Mr.. Hill when speaking were spcll-bound
by the manner in which he dealt with the
subject. But kc knew, and they knew,
that he addressed through them the
whole South; that his words were record
ed with the iRteEtion of beng circulated
among the leading White Liners, that
pestiferous class of fire eaters, most of
whom nave received amnesty, but who
keep the South in perpetual agitation by
maintaining the old claims of The late
slave States to subordinate the Federal
Government and practically diSfranchise
the blacks. The whole speech is peryad-
I'd by a spirit CT t~ruCulent disloyalty.
Mr.. Hill stands upon a very fierce plat
form-the blood and thunder platform so
grateful to rebel ears-whLch calls upon
the people to prepare for war if the Re
publican party IS successful in 1876.
Such an appeal was expected to meet
with a ready response; and it did so.
49,
Mississippi responded in its late election,
where the platform was War, and where
treason was rampant and the murders of
colorcd men followed as Il natural con
sequence.
The loyal PEOPLE of the Union have
nov an opportunity Of knowing who ard
what it is that causes disquiet in the
South. 1t is not Mr.. Hill alone, though
he is largely responsible; but it is the
kind of speech which he and other speak
ers go about delivering that stirs up the
worst passions of the people and leads to
murder. This is no ''bloody shirt" 1ic-
ton; no recommendation to shoot down
the six blood-thirsty negroes that had
armed themselves to overthrow and ex-
terminate the six hundred White Liners
r,,,o vcro aeci,c hoforo Thorn. n snn
gestion to keep the peace in localities
whore were negro maiorities, by calling
,non uhito mo, n flo nna;n1
h,,+,os 70 osso,,h1a ,onotLor ,,a 10
indiscriminate slaughter. This is insig
.;G,.,o. ;Isals nonf9ora1 ,,;th uh,t NJ.
1Iiu had !, ,io,. iGo
are Of
he aroused to give an overwhelming vote
against the Republican party it will per
petua,e 'lS'lI...Nhu tie people VIII &c
TF,,e f,J ,ojtL re xix, Xxx zoe
If acS ugyt hare 1ear. If h ,cay Ulyxt
come. let IL come: / am ready.'
Let the people look at it. Dirested of
all eXtraneous matter, you haye there
the current sentiments of the Southern
leaders. Soldiers, you who fought in
the field to preserve the Union and its
causc-is this what you expected us the
result af all your sufferings and exposure
when you faced death on the battle field
and put down the rebellion? The con
test at the ballot box in $50 will I'M
HrnhtndIy In the m4st imn.rt,pt th1f !
ocor.rea !, ,or;c,, bistorr ,r tho 1
,,,or,1 WIZ tne C~o,fodrr,to ,r,ios,r
,oOt;od o,a hrca,nirr vo,re,rco o.ni,st
the Re,rb,ica, n,,tv w 1T eocpritv i /
,ba.o ;s d;eJo,.,1tv hall tr;rnrh r,r tho,