Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1876-09-30
TO THE COLORED PEOPLE,.

1O HE COl5URED EEUHLhs
In his speech at Spring Hill, Satur-
day, 10th, Maj. w. j. Sykes made the
following very sensible talk to the col
ored people:
To you, my colored friends, wish
to make few remarks specially
When / say my colored friends / mean
exactly what say. Before the war /
was the owner of slaves. They are
now free, and I am not here to grieve
or complain at their freedom and my
loss of property | have towards them
the most kindly feelings, and / have
every reason to believe they entertain
similar feelings towards me. AS it is
with me. so it is with nearly, if not
quite, all the former shareholders of
the South. Your freedom was one of
the results, or rather one of the acct
dents, of the late war Neither party
is entitled TO your particular gratitude.
The Republicans did not commence
the war to secure. your freedom nor
did they prosecute it for any such pur-
pose, if their declarations are to be
believed. Could they have restored
the Union without the abolition Of
slavery, they would have done 50 dur
ing the first three years of the war.
The persistence of the Southern States
In the continuation of the war resulted
In your emancipation. From this
statement of facts, which is true, it APP
pears that your freedom was one of
the accidents of the war, and not the
purpose of either party in the contest.
You are free, and all parties, at the
North and at the South, are pledged
to maintain all your rights. / am
aware that you have been told that
the Democrats, and especially the
| Southern Democrats, wish to deprive
you of your rights, and some go so far
as to say that they wish to place you
again in bondage. The men who make
such assertions know them to be I'M
true. They presume upon what they
consider your ignorance, and their OBJ
ject is, by such statements, to control
your votes and to use You as machines
you have for years voted, without let
or hindrance, in opposition to your
employers and to the men on whose
land you live aud cultivate, shows that
you are undlsturbed in the exercise of
the voting privilege. No man here or
elsewhere in the Southern States pro-
poses to interfere in the slightest de-
| gree with your voting, and all asser-
tons to the contrary are intended for
political effect. We desire the utmost
harmony and good feeling between the
races. Our interests are your inter-
ests. Laws which injure US injure
you. We are all alike interested in a
good, cheap and honest Government.
| am aware that many of the leaders
ofthe Republican party are trying to stir
up strife and create disturbances be-
tween the colored and white races of
the South, because they think they
can make political capital out of these
unfortunate feuds. | do not say that
such are the purposes of the whole
Republican party. / know many Re
publicans who, | think, would scorn
and despise such conduct, and who
would frown upon all attempts to get
up collisions between the races with
indignation ard disgust. But that
such ale the purposes of certain lead
ers of the Republican party at the
North, and some at the South, is evil
dent from their speeches and all their
articles. We must cultivate peace
with each other, and promote harmony
and good feeling among those who are
to live together and to enjoy the bene-
fits of said government, or the evils OF
misrule in one and the same country.
What good will strife and contention
do either you or us? How will it ben
eft either you or US, if, by the loss OF
your lives or of ours, votes may be
made for the Republican party in the
Northern States? IF we differ in po-
litical sentiment, let us bear and for
bear with each other, and disappoint
those who expect to gain or retain p0-
litical power by engendering i'll will
and strife between US.
The Constitution made by the Ten
nessee Democrats in 1870, secured to
you the right of voting and all other
rights. That Constitution, by its
thousand dollar clause, saves most Of
you from State taxation. The poll
taxes are devoted to purposes of edu-
cation, of which your children enjoy
the benefits. The Legislature of Ten
nessee, which has been Democratic
since 1870, has established a public
school system of which your children
receive the benefits as we'll as the white
children. You enjoy, under Demo.
cratic rule in Tennessee, the same pc.
litical rights and the same educa tiOnaI
advantages that your white neighbor:
do. What more can you ask What
more can you desire The burdens
which are expressing you are imposed
E by your own political friends. The
Republican party taxes your clOthine
, and your food, your labor and YOU
) income. The average Federal tax
, upon every member of your family i,
, seven dollars per head, whether yor
, have any property or not. The State
Government taxes men according tt
their property; the Federal Govern
, ment taxes them in proportion to wha
! they use. Under this system the poo
! laborer often pays more than the ricl
land, owner. Every man from whom
you buy anything is tax-gatherer
; You pay taxes upon your blankets
, upon your wooden aud cotton clothing
| your salt, your iron, and in fact upol
everything almost which you wear o.
/ use. And this is what is keeping you
! as we'll as the white people aroma
/ you, poor. The Government, by it
tax laws and by its system of finance
is impoyerishing them, aud that is re
acting on you with terrible effect. |
you choose to continue party in pow
! er that has produced and is producin!
3 these direful effects, you can vote will
them and no one will interfere will
you. l feel it to be my duty to la.
these facts before you, and now, do a
, you will, will not complain, but b!
, all means let US disappoint those VIII
/ wish to make strife between US.