The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1876-08-02
MIR. WheeIer's Letter of Accept
ance.
FH~oy11 tt,a Nav Voy.r C1171
From the New York Sun.


| From the New York Sun.
Mr. William A. Wheeler has writ
ten long letter formally accepting
the Republican nomination for Vice
President. The letter is not unim-
portant. 1t does not follow the ex.
ample Of Mr.. Hayes. and advocate
an aristoeracy of officeholders but
it is ardently in favor of that system
of paternal government to which the
Democracy are unalterably opposed.
He says that there will be a good
deal Of unavoidable friction in get
ting things to work in the Southern
States, (Which will call for forbear-
ance. and a0hjch qUiU haze to be re-
heoed by the temperate, fostering care
Of the Government"
The fostering care of the Govern
ment !! And it is for no short time
that this fostering care will be re-
quired. AS Mr.. Wheeler says:
awe of the North delude ourselves in
expecting that the masses of the South,
so far behind in many of the attributes
of enlightened improvement and civil
zation, are, in the brief period of ten or
fifteen years, to be transformed into our
model Northern communities. That can
only come through a long course of pa
tient waiting, to which no one can now
set certain bounds.
Ten or fifteen years he regards as
of little account in comparison with
the unknown period of time that the
South must be watched over by the
North, that the fostering care of
the Government =" must be extended
over the old slave States, that car
pet-bag Governments must be main
tanned.
The grave question presents itself
to the voters OF the United States,
whether such a condition of things is
best for either the South or North.
Will it benefit the South? Tt has
been tried there for ten years past,
and what is the condition oftheSouth? !?
Is such q policy consistent with
Northern interests? This foster
ing care of the Government that
Mr.. Wheeler speaks of as is costly.
The phrase " fostering care is a
pretty phraze, but when you come to
put it into practice it is expensive.
And who pays the expense? The
farmers and mechanics, the labOring
men of the North, have to work hard
er this intensely hot weather to keep
up this fostering care of the Gov
ernment over the South. It comes
right out of the bones and sinews of
our working people,
Now, we do not think the South
needs any fostering care. The ne
groes have all the rights of the
whites. Who would be free, them
selves must strike the blow. Who
would be free, themselves must main
tain their freedom. We are for leav-
ing the white and coiored people al
to themselves, and helping neither
side.
We have sacrificed the lives of
hundreds of thousands of our own
race, and billions of dollars of mon
ey, and saddIed ourselves with bur,
densome taxes, to give freedom to
the slaves. Now that they have their
freedom, and have it guaranteed to
them by the Constitution, let them
enjoy it. If they cannot, it ia not
our fault. And if Mr.. Wheeler's
neighbors in northern New York are
not satisfied that their taxes are
heavy enough already, lot them vote
for him, which is voting for contin-
ued and increased taxation. Let
every voter make the question prac-
tical. and put it to himself: "How
many hours would 1 be willing to
work to-day in this hot sun, to ex-
tend the fostering care of the Gov
ernmene over the free laboring ne
groes Of the South?" For that is
what it amounts to.
Toward the close of his letter Mr..
Wheeler tries to be eloquent, and
imagines he recalls to mind a pass
age in the Declaration of Indepen-
dence. "Emancipated millions" he
says, "look upon the ensign of the
republic as the symbol of the fulfilled
declaration that all men are created
free and equal
Bnt, unfortunately for Mr.. Wheel.
er's accuracy, the Declaration of In
dependence contains no such pass
age. It says " all men are created
equal" and not that they are created
free and equal. The Declaration of
Independence contains another pass
age, which we commend to the at
tention of Mr.. Wheeler in short, it
would do him no harm to make HIM
self better acquainted with the whole
document. 1t says Of the King:
"He has erected a multitude of new
offices, and sent hither swarms of Off
GERS to harass our people and eat out
their substance"
We submit that this precisely de-
scribes the carpet-bag policy of Mr..
Wheeler and his party for the South.