The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1878-12-19

8, 1878. s.
he to vote those negroes on one side
himself, and say the men who bear
Credentials of election do not repre-.
sent their constituents Why, Mr..
President, it is bare assumption on
his part that he has no right whatever
to make. .f.,,,t- -. sI..'.t.
But again, the Senator ought to have
thought OF this when he was framing
his Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amend
ments, or when he was assisting in
framing them. There were men then,
mem of his own party, too, who told
him with long foresight that in the
end property and intelligence will
rule the land, and Ignorance can not.
Mr.. President, there were men, of his
party who foresaw that those people
who have the Intelligence, and the ed
ucation, and property, will not be rul-
ed by those who have neither, and in
that it is not necessary to separate the
community into white people and col
ored people. Not at all is it necessa-
~ to do that. No, Mr.. President, the
result of these constitutional amend.
ments was easily to be foreseen. l
am not here to-day to justify the vio-
lation of the rights of any man, how
ever humble he may be, whatever may
be the poverty of his situation. I am
here for no such purpose as that. I'll
knew my own heart am here as much
in favor of respecting the rights of
every man under the Constitution as
the Senator from Maine, or any other
Senator on this floor; but do know
that property, intelligence and educa-
tion will assert their supremacy every
where on the face of the globe.
Now, Mr.. President, let mo say one
word more on this subject. Who was
it that drew the color line between the
whites and negroes in the South Let
me tell you sir, that millions of money
of the people of the United States
were expended by your agents, the
Freedmen's Bureau agents, in getting
every colored man in the South into
Loyal Leagues and swearing him new
er to vote for q Democrat. That is
where the color line began to be drawn
That institution which took charge Of
him in the cotton-ields, everywhere
supervised evsry contract he made, al
lowed no contract to be made unless it
met the approval of the agents of the
Freedmen's Bureau. 1t spent money
and property called captured or aban-
doned property that was surrendered
to it, aud many millions of money di-
rectly appropriated out of the Treasu-
ry of the United States. 1t was that
Bureau and its agents who fret drew
the color line, and yet when the white
people OF the South, when men own
ing property and having intelligence
and education, at the South saw their
very social system menaced with des-
truction, saw their very households
threatened with ruin under All inunda-
tion of barbarism directed by the most
inscriptions of men-and when they
naturally united, as a people menaced
with danger ever will unite, then a cry
is raised against a Solid South Oh,
Mr.. President, it will not do.
This system of legislation towards
the South that began ten years ago is
reaping it's fruit, and it is not by addi,
tional penal laws that you can better
the condition of this country. What
does the Senator want more penal
laws for? Let him look into tho stat.
ute book on this very subject. Lot
him read the statutes in regard to the
enforcement of the rights of citizens
to vote, and defy him to find in the
statute books of any civilized country
on this globe body of laws so mi
mute, SO searching and bristling al
over with penalties and fines and for
FIXTURES as do these laws. But that il
not all. In addition to that you have
the vast machinery of Superintendent
of Elections, Federal Supervisors
Marshuls, Deputy Marshals, paid cleo
tioneers out of the Treasury of tn.
United States, under the guise of be
ing men to preserve the freedom o
suffrage and peace at elections. Yor
have a whole army of them provided
for by your statutes. What more doe
the Senator want? think l see, MI
President, what is wanted. This is
note which is sounded to the people o
the North that they must retrace thei
steps; and this very party which re
quired amendments to the Constitu
ton to be made in the interest, it wa
said, of the colored population of th'
South, is now preparing to face about
retrace it's steps, and undo what it die
only few years ago, either directl,
or by indirection. Indeed, though
while the Senator from Name wa
making his speech how much reason
this country, and especially the South
ern part of the country, had to con
gratulate itself that the next House o
Representatives will not have ma
jority of gentlemen thinking like the
gentleman from Maine. For if he i:
right in what he said, if his threats are
not mere idle wind (and certainly dc
not attribute any such thing to him
if they are the deep-seated and per
manent thoughts of those with whom
he acts, then should be prepared te
see a House of Representatives il
which there was Republican MAORI.