Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1880-12-23

born in slavery; Cardoza was mad
free by his father:master; Rainey pur
cha4 lis own freedom before til
war, and Smalls and Nash were mad
free by emancipation, These men
endowed thnncommon. intelligenc'
and knowing the bondsman's crue
life, should have been each q Mose'
to lead his people into the promised
land Of self-rule; but. Cardoza arc
smalls are convicts to-day, and Nast
escaped the criminal dock By comics
sion and resignation Of his seat in the
Senate. Rainey alone escaped ca
reer of crime, and he ceased to be Pc
tential with his race. OF the. othe,
distinguished negro leaders recall
the untutored. but eloquent Whipper,
who care from Michigan 1.-THE shrewd
and unscrupulous Purvia, who dis.
honored an honored name in Phila-
delphia the brilliant Elliott, who
fitted himself in the free schools OF
Massachusetts to answer the Confed-
crate ex.V ice-P President Stephens in
triumph on the floor of Congress; the
lawyer, Wright, who was the first ne
gro admitted to the bar in Pennsyl-
vania, and who rose to the Supreme
Bench Of the State: the cultured De.
lany, who won college honors-in Ohio
and once made d bold stand for negro
reform by running as the reform can
didate for Lieutenant Governor, and
the sagacious Boseman, who served
his race by nesting down as the
Charleston postmaster. There were
others Of mora or less ability, but the
half score | have named should have
made South Carolina Almost prosper
Gus Commonwealth, and her numeri-
cal majority OF freedmen a happy and
wisely aelf-ruled people.
How the Negro Leaders Fell.
The man who should have been the
foremost of his race in honor and use-
fitness is Cardoza. He had every
thing to make him faithful and emf
nent. BE possesses superior natural
abilities, was thoroughly educated in
Scotland when nominally a slave, n
tered the ministry. and was the re.
spected pastor Of a New England
congregation when emancipation and
reconstruction brought him back to
aid his people in the escape from
darkness. He came here with the
burest and l%oftiest aims, and was the
Secretary of State under the
.earpet-bag-reign. aIe was purposely
assigned to that position by the ruling
white and black adventures because
lie was honest, aa his official duties
gave him no power Of restraint upon
his thieving associates; but the luxu-
nv Of crime was around him on every
side; he learned to tolerate it and
soon his good purposes were lost in
the ileod-tide Of corruption thatsurg-
ed against him. He was deemed suf-
fciently demoralized tobe made State
Treasurer under the later and more
violent reign of debauchery, and he
ended a convict. he was saved from
sentence by the general treaty OF
peace between the contending forces
of the State that saved Patterson,
Smallssand Nash, with Cardoza, from
the p%enitentiary gave Butler his seat
in the United States Senate and end
ed various Federal prosecutions for
violation cf the National election
laws. Cardoza ia now a clerk under
the Hayes administration. Whipper
was one of the earliest Of the legis-
lative jobbers, and succeeded in foistt.
ing himself into a judicial election,
but both sides revolted against such a
nockery Of justice and he was com.
PEELED to surrender his claim to the
Office. He is now a local leader and
pettifogger among the semi barbarous
negro hol des of Beaufort. Purvis
was a prominent leader in the House
as chairman Of a most important com
mittee, and he did as much as any
n to hasten the overthrow Of the
negro rule. HI now resides in Charles
ton and is a beneficiary Of the Ma
tional Government. Elliott is one o.
the ablest aud boldest Of the race ]
have known. He gathered q fair ed.
ucation in the Massachusetts, fres
schools, and developed into n Of thu
most brilliant and sagacicas leaders
of the State. he was Adiutant-G Gen
eral, Speaker of the House and mem
Der of Congress, and his famous de
bate with Alexander Fl. Stephens il
the National House of Rep esenta
t yes stamped him as capable Of higt
leadership among men. But he de
voted his great abilities to the worl
Of plumber instead of elevating ant
b%eneGtting his race, and when tn
State was robbed until both white
and blacks were impoverished, tn
deluded negroes deserted him, ant
he now basks, in the sunshine Of Pres
ident Hayes as a department aubordi
nate in Washington. Wright had