The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1878-10-04
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VOL. IX.-NEw SERIES
HAMPTON'S SPEECH IN GREEYyILLE

HAMPTON'S SPEECH IN GREENyILLE
We are indebted to the columns of tb,
Ncps dnd Courier for al admirable repor
OF Gov. Hampton's wise, benevolent anc
well poised speech, which he delivered or
the 18TH instant, at Grcenville.
MIR. Chairman aud my Fellow Citizens q,
Greenvillc: A little more than two months
ago L left Columbia with view to attend
the meetings at Spartanburg, Grceuyille
Easley and Pendeton. I came with the
view OF attending those meetings, because
supposed l should not have another op-
portunlty to see the people of the noun.
tam region. wanted only to thank them
for what they had done in the last canvass,
g \ knsy that vas unnecessary to speak
Spartanburg-worn out by work and bro
ken down by confinement, responsibility
and anxiety-I was stricken down by i'll
ness, and from that day to this have been
unable to meet my constituents. 1 almost
fear that am not able to do SO now, aud
if | should not be able to discuss all the
questions l should to-day, or if 1 discuss
those [ do touch upon in an incoherent
and disconnected manner you must recollect
that strong as has been my constitution /
am not made of iron, and that the work
aud cares Of the last two years have left
their mark upon me.
1t was two years ago that 1 came into
this county to plead the cause of South
Carolina. When your Convention of Au.
gust, 1876, with unanimity never sur
passed, did me the honor to nominate me
as their standard bearer, l came to those
glorious mountains, under whose shadow we
now stand, to rest for few weeks and to
digest the plan of the campaign, and from
there came into this Piedmont revion to
speak to the men of the mountains, to dis.
play our flag first to them, and to call upon
them to rally under it and fight for their
hearths, their homes and their tatherland
1t was no accident that arranged that rort |
OF my programme. Communing alone with |
nature in those grand solitudes l had con. |
sidered what would be the plan of opera.
lions, and l determined to 90 first to the |
men OF the mountains. Liberty, they say,
has always loved to dwell upon the noun
tains, and | came first to her chosen sons.
With the right of our line of battle resting
ON the hills of Georgia. and our left exten.
ding to North Carolina, knew we would
:swccr c~e.1t 1tkiug .trfore, us;s K---hne--.le-l
fres of patriotism kndled Rere would be re-
fected throughout tho State, and l was
right. They were caught up and carried
on until every hilltop glowed with them,
and the slogan raised in the mountains was
re-echoed from the coast.
L have not come, however, to speak about
the last campaign. Every man and woman
in the State, and every child that remem
bers anything, remembers the glorious work
OF those days. [ have not como to speak
to you of that campaign, then, but of the
future-to tell You of the campaign of '7S.
You-your Convention which recently as
scmbled in South Carolna-have sent your
old standard bearers again into the field
You have placed them upon the same broad.
catholic and liberal platform which drew to
its support the honest and conservative men
of all parties and both races in the last
great struggle. Ycu have reiterated unan
imously the principles which gave life, and
strength, and victory to that struggle and
once again you call upon all citizens of the
You have declared that the policy of '76
should be the policy of '79. The Demo
cratic party of the United States countc-
nanccS no prescription OH ACCOUNT ol Dlrth, |
race or color, and you have solemnly given
your adhesion to the declaration Of princ-
pies announced by our National Conveu-
ton.
That convention declared its acceptance
in perfect good faith of the recent amend.
mcnts to the Constitution of the United
States, and your State Convention accepted
ratified and ehaorsed, in most emphatic
terms, the action Of the national party
We are thus doubly pledged to carry out in
good faith the policy to which the great
Democratic party of the country is unalter-
ably aud solemnly committed. We pledged
ourselves in '76 TO stand upon that plat
form, and in '78 your State Convention,
.roaIAing the good results that had been ac.
,complished, reiterated it, and when it placed
its Candidates in the field, told them to 60
forth and declare to the people that the
great party which had won success in tho
last canvass intended faithfully, honestly
and truly to keak all tho pledges OF the
past, and not forget in the future the prom
ises made when defeat was ovcrshadowinG
us. l dwell upon these things because