Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1877-12-29

THE OLD SPIRIT DOMINANT
The old southern spirit of anti-bellum
days is again at the front in the halls of
Congress. And what else could we ex-
pect? The Democratic party have so
nearly the control of tine Legislative de-
partment of The government that this
spirit of domineering audacity. which
from policy has been held in check, is be-
coming bold and outspoken. In the days
that are past, any denunciation of the
barbarities of the slave system was taken
by the southern leaders as personal i'm
salts, aud free speech i'm the halls of Con-
gress was met with the bully's cane, or
the duelist's challenge.
To-day, terrorism and violence have
accomplished great political revolution
at the South, and again this same spirit
appears in the halls of Congress,
and attempts to prevents any &C.
nunciation of the atrOcious means by
which these men have again come into
PoNCA' "A AC iotO ottNf SptAOu WuiCii toVn
place between Senators Conkling and
Gordon shows plainly what we are to
expect in the future. The collision be-
tween these men cannot be explained by
the trivial circumstances from which it
seemed to spring, for there was absolute
ly nothing more offensive in these than
took place i'm the Senate daily. Senator
Gordon had taken a personal affropt,
all those denunciations which Sena-
tor Conkling had heaped upon the
methods by which men like Cor
don and Hamburg Butler had
gained political supremacy at the South.
In the debxte upon the admission of
Butler made brief speech which stirred
the blood of the southern Democracy,
and in which occurred this eloquent and
bitter passage upon the testimony of the
c)lored captalp OF the militia company
which was leeimated at Hamburg, and
the southern eulogies upon the aristo-
cratic lineage Of the contestant Butler:
''Some principles will be disputed i'm the
case OF any claimant, even one wearing
such proud distinctions as we have heard
OF in this debate. a gentleman. gentle
man deemed important enough by a SOW
ereign state TO be talked of Tor Senator,
and SUCH a parsonage is entitled to no
more consideration than the humble
man whose testimony has been read and
who. whatever his lot, fate, or color. issa
born leader OF men lie may be unleI-
tered; he may haye been painted black
by NATURES brush; he may be decended
IRON tiger hunters on the gold coasts of
Africa; bqt OF whatever race he is, no
man ever did the acts he recounts unless
he had in him the stuff and metal which
constitute primacy among men. He may
not be a gentleman in the estimation of
the proud and dominant, but whether he
wears robes or rags. | wOulo accept his
piighted faith with more confidence than
i would take the word or the oath of any
man, no matter if the blood OF all the
HOwards be running in his veins, who
was eyer, In coidness or III passion, ac-
cessory before or after the fact, when the
deIenseless, the ieposant, the inoffensive,
the harmless. were brutally shot down as
the testimony recouuts,"
Again, in other cases, be spoke with his
usual etfec ivcness upon the shotgun
the rifle CLUBS" and the mississippi
plan," together With the other effective
agencies which haYe had hand in solidify-
ing the Democratic south: These southe, n
Democrats do NOT want their political
methods spoken of in the Senate any more
than they did the system of slavery. and
hence they adopt the same tactics to pre-
vent it THAI They did in that matter. and
again 'unpleasant incidents" occur which
require the Intervention of mutual
friends to smooth over.
The lime is past in this country when
such spirit OF into lsyeuce can rule. but
the attempt shows what is to be expect
ed. That the Democratic party OF the
North endorses this southern policy, we
do not .hve, but they are powerless to
;.vert it. The northern Democrats do
not control thar party and they are we'll
aware OF the fact. The southern Demo-
rratshave always controlled the party,an
the northern minority having always
submitted to the southern doctrine, know
nothing else but submission. Ii the
country is saved the humiliation of a
repetition of the disgracelul scenes in
Congress which were of frequent occur
renee, it will osly be through the Re-
publican party continuing the same
calm dignity and spirit shown by Mr..
Conkling in this controversy, as well as a
healthy public sentiment against south
ern arrogance.
n STEp ? a