Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1876-01-20
A Field Day in Congress,

Congress. 1t was Blaine's great day.
He went INTO battle with heavy
numerical odds against him, and
came out victor at every sallie. He
was regarded as the leader of the
Republicans in Congress, but his
great power as a debator and his
skill in the use of parliamentary
tactics were under estimated. The
debate was upon proposition to
restore to equal rights as citizens all
the rebels, so that Mississippi could
send Jeff Davis, back to the United
States Senate The bill, which was
called general Amnesty, was intro
duoed by Randall, of Pennsylvania.
He attempted to force the bill through
without opportunity for debate or
amendment. Mr.. Blaine asked to
amend by excepting only jeff Davis.
Randall refused permission to amend
and called for a vote on suspending
the rules so as to pass the bill at
once. Not quite two-thirds of the
members voted for the suspension,
and, to the astonishment of the
Democrats, Blaine obtained the floor
and made one of the most electrify-
ing speeches ever delivered in Con-
gress. He opposed relieving jeff
Davis of disabilities because he knew
of and was personally responsible for
the oathesome horrors and crueties
practiced upon our soldiers at Ander-
sonville and Libby. He showed
Davis's hand in all of it, and that be
was altogether too base man to be
restored to equal rights with the
patriot soldier. Hill, of Georgia, re-
piled to Blaine, tho next day. He
claimed there were no atrocities at
Andersonville. That there where it
has been proved that our wounded
soldiers were allowed 10 lie in blood
and filth until their flesh rotted from
their bones, and they would step out
over the dead-line and ask TO be shot !;
that there where our soldiers were
starved until they could not walk,
and when they were brought into
our Union lines would become raving
and CHASTITY maniacs that there
where the water they were allowed
to drink was filtered through the
offal and excrements Of the rebel
camps, there were no atrocities. lie
said, too, that worse cruelties were
practlced upon rebel prisoners in our
camps at Elmira and Chicago than
upon our soldiers while anybody
who can read knows that the rebel
prisoners in our hands had every
comfort that our own soldiers had ;
that in addition they were permitted
to buy anything they wanted,
while if our soldiers had anything to
buy with when they fell into rebel
hands they were at once robbed OF
it. Many times, too, the rebel prison
ers were fed by jowelsd fingers, and
comforted by sympathetic rebels OF
the North. Yet the fendish rebel
Hill had the audacity to say, in the
presence of the men whose unpar-
alelled magnamiuity permitted him
to occupy the place be did, that our
soldiers suffered no atrocities at their
hands, and that Jeff Davis deserved
honors while Grant deserved the
penitentiary
When the bill finally came to tets
vote it failed to receive the requisite
two-thirds. The vote was 1872 for
passage to 81 against. Blaine swung
ia and beat the rebels by getting the
floor for another speech. He and
Ca field utterly discomftted Hill, by
showing that every statement Blaine
had made concerning the rebel out
RACES were attested by the unanim-
GUS vote of an investigating commit
tee, four Of whom were Democrats.
He showed that a Confederate com.
mission had also reported those prison
crueIties in detail TO Jeff Davis, when
be was the Confederate President,
which report characterized the con-
dition of the prison as a reproach, and
that Davis, instead of removing
Winder from the command over that
prison, made him Commissary Gem
ersl of all the prisons. That Winder
had such a VIGOROUSLY inhuman
character that when he was first sent
down TO take charge of Anderson
vile, the Richmond papers thanked
God he was gone out of the city, and
added, "God have mercy over those
placed in his charge Afterwards a
Commanding General removed Win
der, and Davis revoked the order.
Shame For Shame, on the Northern
toady who is willing so far to forget
the conduct Of that inhuman, peticoat
beast as TO give him chance TO APP
pear again in his perjured seat IN the
u. S. Senate
Complimentary.
-; II, Hh;n,