Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1881-01-27
The Negroes at Mentor.

Ihe Negroes at Mentor
CLEVELAND, Ono, January IA
colorcd delegation visited Mentor to day
anl waited upon General Garfield at his
house. The delegation was composed Of
II. B Elliott, SumueI Lee, d. A. Strokcr,
of Snuth Carolina; Henry Il. Curry, of
Texas; james B Devcrenux, George w
Price, Jr of Georgia; l.. Nlobson, Jas. w.
Hood John a. Lenny, j. w. Harris snd
Stewart Ellison, of North Caroliua. On
being received by Geueral Garfield Slr.
Elliott, the spokesman, addressed the
President-ccct, aud, after opngratulutiug
him on his election, said: "We have come
to present you brief statement of our
condition ut the South, not in spirit of
dictation, but in the belief thu, fair rep
resentatlon OF our cause cnD best he made
by those OF us who arc compelled to endure
grlevous wrongs for opinion sake. Vtboueh
clothed with the rights Of citizenship by
provisions of the Constitution Of United
Stntcs and recognized ~ such by legis la
tive enuct,nent and judicial decisions, vet
still, in all the Southern States, we ar.
citizens in name und not in fact Our
right to participate in elections for the
choice of public officers is not oo!y qucs-
toned, but in many looalities absolutely
denied US by means of armed violence,
fraud aud intimidation. In many of the
Southern S'ates, sir, the rights Of the
mujorilies are illegally and wnntou'y sut-
rcrtcd by the imperious will OF unscrupu-
lous nino,ilcs, for no other reason than
thls-that these majoritrs, crussting of
men who are free aud cnfrauchiScd by the
laws of the land, prefer to remain loyal to
country OF which they ere citizens and
stcadfast to the support of that pnlilical
party which saved tho life of the patton,
aud to the charge Of which can most safely
be entrusted the duty of preserving the
results accomplished by the .ulc war. The
methods rcsorled to 10y our political oppo-
nents in the South to deprive us Of rightful
participation in public affairs have been so
often stated to the public, and SO we'll
known to you, that it is unnecessary that
we should enter upon the detailed sta tc--
ment Cd this occasion. Suffice it to say
that by tho infamous use OF fraudulent
tissue ballots, by Deliberate Justification of
the registry books und election rctu.ns, by
tho forciblo cjectnlcnt FROM tho polls of
negro voters, by armed mobs, by murder
tie refusal in many Instances to hold eIcc
tioos at precincts where the ruojority Of the
voters are Republicans, elections have
Lcen rendered mere farce, State govern
mcnts have been made to derive their pow-
crs not from the consent of the governed,
but from the arbitrary will of domineoring
minorlties. We arc powerless, sir. to re .
dress the wrongs through tho machinery of
the State Courts, for to all iutents and pur-
poses they arc organized against US, the
Jurles often times being composed, not onl =
OF those who sympathizo with violators OF
the law, hut frequently consisting in part OF
actual participants.
The address then goes on to say that
Seven in Federal courts the colotcl pcoplc
cannot obtain redress Of wrongs done them
for the reason that those who arc RESPONSE
BILE for those wrongs sit 10 the jury box to
'pass judgment on them. This condition of
affairs has created feeling Of unrest
among the coIorcd people of tho South,
and has led many Of them to seek relief in
strange and uncongcnial parts of the couu.
try" The address then sets forth the innde-
'quooy of educational facilities 10 the South,
and urges the importance of national sgs
tem of education, under the control Of the
Federal government. The address con-
tinucs: "We deem it our duty in the
interest of those who have the honor to
represent, as we'll as iu tho interest of the
Republican party at urge, to call attention
to tho character Of Federal appointments
in the South in tho past aud respectfully
urge that the system of placing in public
positions men not only in want Of sympu
thy with the principles Of the Repub'icun
party, but who use those positions to OBJ
struct and hinder tho enforcement Of laws
passed for the protection of tho right Of
American citizcus, be abandoned, aud that
men who, though calling thomselves Repnb
loaus, ore: of no fixed Or we'll defined DO.
ltiool senliments-mou who nro oil things
to oil men and nothing to any, und who
arc totally without following and repro
tent nobody but thcmselvos-be no logger
set over ns as representatives of tho Fcdc-
ral Government. Such appointments, sir,