Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-10-21


suffrage. II you reject that shall we let
you in, as you demand to be let in
without condition, without qualification,
to come in as our mastersS No. Under
the lead of that great cOmmoner OF Penn
sylvauia, Thaddeus Stevens, cheers -
honor to his memory and peace to mis-
ashes--we said: If you will not recon-
struct those States we will sm power col
ored men to join with few loyal white
men, and We will have reconstruction by
use of colored votes IL white men do not
enforce it, Applause. Then we passed
the 10th amendment, which gave suffrage
to every man in the United States who
was duly nRturalized or was born on our
soil.
QUALIFICATION.
81 want now to make this qualification.
| do not stand here to justify the form of
reconstruction merely by the fourteenth
amendment, leaving to the South the
right to determine when the negro should
come to suffrage. | think that In the
providence of God, through the stiff
necked and rebellious conduct of South
ern men who would not accept re-
construction on those conditions, we
We're brought to better Judgment, and
that partly through their obstinate and
unreasonable spirit and through the in
splration Of Gods justice by which the
Republican party we're influenced, we
were driven TO enfranohise the colored
man and do justice for him, Cheers.
But l want you clearly TO keep your
minds on the fact that we did not force
negro suffrage on the South until they
themselves had made il an indispensable
measure of reconstruction.
NEGRO SUFFRAGE DESTROYED.
"We have lived to see the negro suffrage
in the South absolutely destroyed. Where
he Is in a majority OF live 10 one the negro
cannot elect representative. The South
takes thiFty-hve to thirty-eight representa-
tives in Congress and the same number of
Presidential electors Of the United States.
Takes them by force, by fraud, by vlo-
lence and counts them in the Democratic
column. That Is what they do ex-
actly. 1t reminds me OF a story
very pertinent to the case.
heard 1t not long since in
New York. A SOutherner said to a North
ern man; Let US play game of billiards
foF the next Presidential election, two
years hence, 401 points. Just the number
% electors tA,re is.' So they went down
to Tue Filsn Avenue Hotel to settle the
election two years in advance. The
SOutheTner look up the cue and said :
Well, l will count of 1853 points in this
game. Those are mine without playing
for them.' He added: "You will see then
that have only to get 40, while you have
TO get 20l.'
A SOLID NORTH.
81 confess, gentlemen, that | am utterly
at loss to denounce the fraud and the
wrong which is illustrated by that story.
The Southern elections are worse in point
OF political morals than Is the gambler
who invites a youth into his den and
plays against him with loaded dice.
[Cheers. 1t is not Republicanism
it is not Democracy, it is not
Heavens justice, it is not mans fair play.
What we demand in this country Is that
we shall not play a stake for the Presi-
dency against men who are shaking loaded
dice at us. You say we cannot do any
thing. We ought 10 be able to do some
thing. We ought to be able to make as
solid a North as they have made a solid
South"