The news and herald. [volume] (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1876-1881, 1880-09-29

finances of. the State. The figures |
shall give aro from the official books,
and for their ACCURACY pledge my
personal AMI official rcsponsibility.
Let us take the last three years OF
Radical 1Gto17n--w when the party was
praising itself for the economy and
rctrenchmcnt it had effected. In the
lust three years of our rule, the Demo
cratic government has taken from the
people two and q half millions Of dol
lars less than the Radicals did, in the
same length Of time. Now, when we
talk about millions, VIC do not always
realize the full meaning Of the word
so tGw arc there who handle such sums
ordinarily. The words arc apt TO go
in ono ear and out Of the Other. In
this little State Of ours two. and ii hall
millions Of dollars means enough to
run our government, rs now ccndut =
ted, for four years without any tax
levy. That's what it means and that's
what Dcmocra,ie administration has
saved for YOU. [Chccrs.] But if the
taxes arc by one dollar beyond Il strict
economic necessity. then lrIc is still
room for reform. let lis SEQ how the
Democratic party has carried out this
principle, ,fhc rule OF the cXtrava-
gant briHNnds once in power is 10 cor
rect standard. Let us go back to the
time before the war--to the year 1853.
In. the yoar 1878, the Democrats spent
S29, 900 dollars less than was spent in
1853. Besides the regular expenses ct
tho government, there are other cX-
pcnscs Oh account Of which we could
not get down to TUG '41te-bcVUm stan
uard. There are now some unusual
| nv
tcntiary, and the State debt, YET the
whole increase in the cost Of running"
the government in 1873 over 1898 is
fonly s77 900, takingat2X oftWo-'hirds
of mill to raise it. Our taxes are
them to bc. But there arc HOW some
fore the war. Taxes arc now ncccS-
lcbt-wlich is but few thousand
dollars larger than il was before the
war; Then the institution known as
the Bank of the State paid the interest
on the public dcbt--now il has TO be
met by taxation. Another increased
eXpcnditrrc is the money spent for
free schools. Before tho war this
amounted to about $75, 900 year
how il is almost lrcblcd. Tie money
for the free schools-am0lmtinG TO
almost 100000 annuallv--is raised
| from tic two-mill tax, established by
tho Democratic administration, and
| from close collection OF the. poll-taX
For this support OF free schools, the
Democratic party has no excuse to
| offer. The money has been honestly
and faithfully expended, and has
brought to every mans door the means
| Of giving his children at least good
commOn-school education. The Dcnc-
fits OF this education are plani1cst TO
every thinking man. All forms Ct
government proceed on the supposilion
hat power is in the hands OF those
best qualified to WELD il. Suffrage is
| that power in democratic govern
mcnts. We know from experience in
.Our own State W.liAt fellows irom an
| abuse Of the, ballot. For this reason
the Democratic party. in 1876, willie
they accepted the established doctrine
# manhood suffrage, tried to establish
government that should improve the
manhood of its ciiZens. with this
view, they adopted the two;mill
amcndm2nt tc the Constitution and
took measures Cor rigid collection Of
The poll-laX. by simply making those
pay the poll-taX who had before re-
fused to pay, the money from that
source has been almcst doubled This
is the rc1oyd OF the Democratic party
of South Carolina in the matter OF
popular education. 1t is submitted TO
you as another evidence that the party
10 which you belong has been true to
I'LL its pledges. The Democratic party
made other pledges, which involve no
figures, which cannot be measured by
dollars and cents, but which affect the
honor and wei fare Gfthe State in the
highest degree. We promised security
TO al her citizens, regardless of race
color or politics. There is still toe
much violence around us-morc thar
human iniirmity is sufficient TO excuse
Whiskcy and pistols are still too com.
mon. This state of things is due Is
the dcmoraliZation end feeling of in.
security naturally resulting from tho
war. TO cure this evil, it will require
the exercise Of all the craftsmanship
and all the power Of Christianity that
we may co onmand. There is another
cause for sOMc Of the violence we ali
SO much doplorc. Experience and
education teach us that there arc Ger.
tain wrongs which every man ma,
resent those committed against wo.
man and honor. Colorcd men, too
more or less share this feeling. re
these causes is dli,e mNch Of the violence
which comes before our courts Of jus.
ticc. But the violence which, Chiefly
the Democratic party pledged itself tt
prevent was the violence of race
against race. GO back few years
and yccall the trcGEGnGy Of yiolcnct
growing out OF politics-~that species
of violence now SO rare. 1t has intlcc(
almost entirely disappeared. But. 50,
some, grant all this-grunt that God':
blessed peace has made its kQlEG III
South Carolinq--7-that the people, bear
ing and lorbGaring, are engaged in the
peaceful task of building up thcil
fallen fortunes and educating thci,
children--gram all this, and yet you
have not given to the colorcd man the
political rights TO which he is entitled
What arc political rights? Not natural
rights, but thosc given by tho LAW OF
the land. The Constitution OF the
United States gives each State the
right to regulate suffrage, provided
only that no distinction is made OH
account Of race, color on previous con.
ditiOu Of scrvitudc. This is thc