The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1876-02-24
THE CENTENNI NL---EHE SPEECHES
In CONGRESS.

Very certainly, the speech of Mr.. Rob
the heartfelt aspirations of the great body
of the intelligent people of the South, and
it is only objected that the appropriation
in behalf of the Philadelphia Centennial is
made without constitutional authority and
that the shareholders in the exposition
scheme propose to make it ''fat take"
out of a lean, tax-burdened people. Every
Southern soldier in the ranks of Southern
armies sympathlzed keenly with Mr.. Rob-
bins, OF North Carolina, when he sail on
rnff fhaafe haer at at t&af t&fpPHdfmfftox, PHdfmfftox wren WERE
waiting to see whether old Uncle Robert
was going to tell US to charge or to surren-
der and did not know which, l went into
little church which stood close by, and
there lay large Bible on the stand and
opened it. The words which fell first on
my eye were these, and they seemed pro-
phetIc: 'Lo, the winter is past; the rain
10 over and gone; the flowers appear on
the earth; the time of the singing of birds
is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard
in our land" l thought, Mr.. Chairman, 1t
was prophetic. l welcomed it as the har-
Why have we not had peace? The soldiers
fought the great question out with bayo-
nets and muskets and Cannon; but they
have quit fighting. It is because a few
restless political dgitators still want to keep
up the fight, and their only weapons are
asses jaw bones. Great laughter. have
no capacity, Mr.. Chairman, to participate
in that kind of battle, and | am opposed to
it as au unworthy afterpiece to grand drama.
| want peace"
If we could afford to squander ten thou
sand millions in ruinOus war and sacrifice hall
million lives, surely there are none to object
if million and half be invested in silenc-
ing Blaine and Morton and restoring peace.
There is not a bg-hearted brave Texan who
would not grasp the hand of the generous
Moth Carolinian and thank him for saying,
of fearless Union soldiers:
would go to Philadelphia and shake by
the hand the brave men 1 used TO meet OF
the field. | admire them, | love them,
respect and honor them. o, sir, with wha
reverence | stand always by the soldiers
grave, whether he wore the gray" or the
'sblue," because there sleeps man who
| dared to die for his principles. Great ap
plause. We want to shake hands with The
gallant soldiers of the North. We hope tC
ses such greeting of the soldiers and pat
riots of the North and the South as vii
show to the whole Union that the tlOod-tld'
of sectional hatred has ebbed forever, anC
that it remains no longer to float an!
freightage of usholy and unpatriotlc am
bition. And we want to show TO the mul
titude of visitors from other nations how
lnvincible we are when the heroes of th'
blue and the gray stand together In ont
common phalanx of amity and concord
There, my countrymen, let us renew ou
vows of ferveDt devotion to that common
country which the righteous Arbiter of al
things has decreed shall be forever one anC
undivided; and, turning our backs upon al
bitter memories of the past and leaving ou
gallant fallen comrades on both sides to re
puse in ''trembliug hope" on 1.-THE bosom o
their Father and their God" let us go for
ward with courageous hearts and patr,ou
aspirations in that patA which duty and des
tiny have marked out for US. Much ap