Claiborne guardian. [volume] (Homer, La.) 1877-188?, 1877-10-03

Can you doubt, my friends, that the
South wants peacef Go look mt her
ruined fields, the misrules under
which she has lived for twelve years,
and you will doubt it no longer. DO
you men of Illinois doubt her SINGER.
ity! She has been charged with
fanlts, but among these faults her
worst enemies have never said she
was hypocritical, or that she spoke
with IA double tongue. ImpetuOus,
rash, she may be; but thank God,
false never. Cheers. DO you want
proof of her sincerity Look in the
recent past and tell me if you can
find evidence more conclusive than
is given by her conduct: Need
tell you to look back to those trying
days when the Presidential contest
was unsettled! What was the
course of the South tllcu!
Gov. Hamptno alluded to the pos.
sibility of civil war in which fami.
lies would have been divided in civil
war had not the South stood firm
for peace, and said:
] tell you, men of IllinOis-and |
speak not as Democrat; don't
know and don't care whether speak
to Democrats or Republicans-J
speak rs an American to Americans,
aud say to you today that you owe
IA debt Of gratitude to the people of
the South cheers in Congress, to
what some people of the North have
called the Confederate brigadicrs-
preventing tilibusteIirg and who
stood by the result of the Electoral
Commissions work. During the re-.
cent strikes and riots, too, she evinc.
ed her feeling by upholding laws
and standing conservative. She has
given bonds to fate to preserve the
peace, and she wants peace. She
wants you, men of the North, to I'M
dcrstand her condition. She wants
you 80 realize precisely what she &C.
ccpts as the result of the war. She
wantsyou to understand the motives
which have aCtuated her not only
before and during, but since the
war. | for myself, my friends,
have no concealments to make for
the past. | have taken part in the
war, nor wonld your respect for me
be increased were to offer any I'M.
manly apology for it. | did what
You did Obeyed the command of
my own State as you did yours, and
you men of the North were guided
by your own conscienccs as we of |
the South were guided by ours; and t
| say to you that up to the beginning
of that war | used all my influence |
topreserve the Union. Cheers. ]
was u Union man. Renewed |
cheers. j did all could To prevent
it; | did all could to avoid war, |
but when South Carolina called her |
sons, rs Illinois called hers. obeyed |
her conmaud; and, men of Illinois,
| fought you as long and as hard as
| could, and | have no apologies to
make for it. Loud cheers and laugh.
ter. ! remember especially that |
fought the Eighth Illinois, and |
thought 1t one of the best regiments
in the Federal army. | fought them /
very hard indeed. Great cheer.
ing and laughter
Now, my friends, we went into |
the war believing we were right, |
but when the war ended we surren. !
dered, and | want to impress that
npon you. We surrendered in good
faith, and challenge any man living
to say that from that day 10 this | |
have violated in any degree the
tenor of my parole, or done anything
inconsistent with my honor as a
soldier ora citizen. Loud applause.
When | shcathed my sword | re. |
newcd my allegiance to the United |
States government. pledged my.
self to support the Constitution of
the United States. When | took
my official oath the other day as !
Governor Of South Carolina, swore
to uphold it as it now stands, and
SO help me God | intend to keep it.
Loud cheers. We surrendered in
good faith. We accepted the Con.
stitutiOn of the United States with |
the amendments. Though we op.
posed the latter We accept them
now, and propose to obey them,
right or wrong; that the constitu.
ton shall stand equal tor the pro.
lection of South. Carolina and of
Massachusetts, of Illinois aud Louisi.
ana, and we have the right to ask
that every citizen in every State
should be equal before the law aud
under the constitution of the United
States. Cheers.
+ So much, my friends, for the views
we entertain. Then we come appeal
ing to you for peace. We come ap-
pealing to you because it is not only |
the highest wisdom to restore peace |
not only because it il statesmaDlike |