Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1884-10-03
CASSIUS M. CLAY.
A Remarkable Speech by q Re-
marlable Man.
Tho Kentucky Lion Declares That the
Democracy Is stili tho samo Old
Party of Bourbonism and
Violence.

lhe following speech was recently
delivered by Cassius M. Clay at Louis
vile, Ky. One can readily imagine
how the ears of the Kentucky Bour-
bons tingled as they listened to his fer
vent appeals and impassioned utter
ances;
kENrucKrANs; I am now making my FIRST
speech of n new campaign.
Hero In your city is now assembled what IS
called the southern Exposition ask any
man frankly to tell me hcrc tonight, or to
m9 y1% prfSS tS o Gs
pro-slavery system before you would have
had suon spectacle as you see now exhibit
hundred yearsY" 1.-Two hundred yearsl')
And yet when am asked to speak In this
city, which knew before IL was ms large us
many of our villages that arc considered but
little better than cross roads. your leading
Journals do not find place for my name. IL
was proposed to pay. Tor the advertisement
announcing this meeting, but neither by love
nor money can you obtain u hearing from the
representatives OF the dominant party in the
same. TO % me tins w" Is an 20 oldtIme % thing. But
to these young men who knew nothing about
the difficulties of the initiation of this move
mcnt against this old barbarsm of slavery 1t
may be a now thing. But 1t is not TO me.
And that brings me- men of Kentucky, to
say here in the beginning. of this campaign
that am Southern man, born on southern
soil; and insist that in speaking as do
speak for the highest interest OF tho South.
IT Wilt found that 1t Is not advantageous to
place me in a false position.
And this at once preclpitates mo into the
midst of my argument. That the old spirit of
barbarism still remains in the south-thee
same spirit fought when was young; and
that same spirit / am fighting now. Among
the animals the prevailing principle is that of
there is = survival % Of the the fitiest. it, @ Il is try true
that we see some glimpse of that aggregation
of interests and that appeal to the sentiments
which characterize tho man above all other
animal creation, but it is very partial. The
sheep in the mountains stand together in
circles when opposed by wolves, and the
wolves band together when seeking their
prey. That Is the nearest approach we see
among the animals to the brotherhood of man
among them there is an equality when they
are defending themselves against an enemy
or when they want to mako general attack.
But when you pass to man, created in the
'Es% %hat SSa ns IS tRs ea
association. Ii is the idea of a creation of
power so us to maintain the rights not only of
the highest but of the lowest citizens of the
Commonwealth or of tho Nation, whichever
IL may be.
Now let me tell these Northumberland l
nm going TO give them harder name than
that before get through, which shall stick to
them for .ccnturics-that as TO that letter of
mine in the New York Sun, in which / gave
my reasons for again taking the stump, they
misjudge me when they think that / am
afraid. They beg me not to be afraid. They
tell me they nrc not going to hurt me- Thank
you, gentlemen. My object was to place u
typical figure before the people of this coun-
ty, and Ii assume 10 he tho highest that
which was possible in my person was more
possible of course i'm the person of the hum
blest citizen OF the Commonwealth; and in
desiring to protect myself desired to protect
the humblcst citizen also. That is the first
principle of progress from barbarsm to civil
1zation: when, you learn TO respect the rights
Well, now. | asked the Now York SIN
whether should be allowed to vote for Blaine
and Logan without being assaulted, without
hninn q m
am not pleading for Cash" Clay; I am
pleading for the humblest citizens of the
,;an G3mmonWealih w am pleading for seven
nativo Americans. / am pleading for the
humblcst foreigner, who has fled from foreign
force and original barharlsm, that yet fingers
in the civilization of our timcs-for the hum
blest 1rshman, German or Fronchman, who
is united without distinction with ourselves;
and free action should be MS sacred in his
person as 1t may be in that of Cnssius NJ.
Clay, whose prowess, they say, no man cun
That rs the whole idea. didn't say was
afraid of anybody. Gentlemen, read that
letter over again: didn't say was afraid to
vote. ] am afraid to plunge into the Fails of
Niagara, whore man will be swept over the
rocks and be drowned; am afraid TO stand
on the highest mountain of Europe and
plunge myself down; / am afraid to cast my
self over the cataract; but am not afraid to
stand In defense OF my own life against one
or million for my principles: nor am /
afraid to champion the cause OF the humblest
citizen, North or South, and TO say that he
shall be allowed to exercise the same rights
Now as to the Democratic party; I have
been wandering from my family, from the
house of my friends, for the last eighteen
years. / have been imploring the Democrats
for these eighteen years TO become civilized
and to abandon their barbarous ideas-to lay
down the pistol and the bowie-knife and tc
appeal to reason.
Ihave In my pocket letter, which opened
as came here, from a man in Kansas who
have read your letter, and ! agree with you
J., like you, for the last fifteen OF
eighteen years, pleaded with my Southern
am going away from them.'
And, while am on that subject OF person
al explanation, let me say that was toe
was driven out of the Republican party rs
''soreiiead." When l left the Republican
party in 1865. il, you choose to place it so ia,
back as that, when taking up the great prin
ciplc OF the autonomy of the States in the
South-or In 1860. when | separated myself
formally from the Republican party and aet
cd with the Democrats, the Senate of the
United States passed almost unanimously, at
am told, n resolution that l should not be
removed, % 1 1notwithhsta4rding ih the personal I enc
And three or four years after lresigned my
position as United States Minister at Russia ]
was maintained by the Senate of the United
States, constituting, of course, the majority
OF the Republican party, against all of my
encmies And what morei Before i had
EOb DuSh w hchtuChy, Whllt WIS ytI Ill new
York. the Republicans OF my native county
all got together in convention and unanl
mously Invited me to run as their candidate
for the Kentucky Legslature-the only posi-
ton they had to give-and accepted it. Blu,
j took me not long to see that II went u
tho Republican party would have to go &c
Grant, and to this policy was opposed, no
that was opposed to the Republican party
but had found that they were with Grant IN
AL Of his movements And ] had the right
the Democrats say, to vote for whom chose
and did not choose to vote for Grant. l did
not go into convention; and ] said to my
going TO nominate Grant, and I Won't vote
for Grant" So came out voluntarily from
tho Republican party. My Democratic friends
driven out of the Republican party asa sore
head" sacrificed an the prospects which d
whole lifetime of labor had placed at my DIS
posal sacrificed eighteen of the hest years
OF my life to lift you lspeaklng to the colored
men present. out of the spirit of barbarisn
and to INT you to the equality of union.
What WIS the first demonstration saw in
the Dcmocratic party? After an absence OF
nine years rode through the gaze of my own
native home, aud looked once more on the
broad acres of grass and on the splendid
trees, green from time immemorial, among
which had played in infancy. Before had
entered once, more the domicile of my faith
fences without any owners. The Kuklux had
met at the house OF "Cash" Clay the night
we're in full force hero the night got back
One morning when went out found a note
written In very bad hand, saying that my
foreman IA colore9 mani was obnoxious ia
the neighbors, and tat must send him away
or they would kill him. That was tho VOID
by the way. that colorcd man was the best
workman ever had, white or black. The
man was not liberated by the Government,
but was born free. The door African had
head enough to know his business. and
he had heart enough to do it.
called him (Tom Clayton wns his name)
and ] said; Tom, I've received letter
saying that you must leave mo or must die
am but one man, and several weeks ago
saw forty or nifty rderless horses tied to my
and they meant mischief. and now they say
you must go or must die. VIII you defend
yourself Tom, or will you run for itf' SAID
he: "Mas'r Cash"-for he used that word as
a matter of courtesy. although he was the
slave, ot nobody-"I will heht IL you win
stand by me-" said: $50 10 your house
Tom; will stand by you; we will stand to-
gether and live, Or we will die together in dc
fensc Of each other" loud applauseJ Now
my colorcd friends. you have been abusing
me for the last eighteen years 1aughter), and
have been abused by you in season and out
OF season, and you ought to be ashamed oil
yourselves. (ltenewed laughtcrJ When
went down to Mississippi where this poison
was not Implanted in the souls of the colored
men, the carpet-baggers said: "He shall moi
ha 10 "a nafn hs.g a..