The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1888-10-26
THURMAN TO THE NEGRO.
The Old Roman Addresses a
Delegation of COlOred
Voters.

A few days ago Judge Thurman re"
ceived a delegation of colored Demo.
Gratis who, through w. II. Farbush, of
Arkansas, presented an address ex-
pressing their thankfulness for faVOrs
from the Democratic party, expressing
a belief in the division of the eolored
vote as for their best interest, and
stating a firm belief in the election of
Cleveland and Thurman, Judge Thur
man greeted them warmly and spoke
as follows:
GENTLEMEN; greatly obliged to you for
this call, and still more for the kind and
Just sentiments that have just been read
here. l know well that have been de-
scribed, and am described as an enemy of
the colored people, There never was any
thing more unjust In the world, l don't
come from family that Is unjust, When
my family came TO this State my grandfather
brought with him all his property, which
consisted chiefly of slaves, and he set them
all free. My father never owned slaVei
my mother never owned o saV6i | never
owned a slave, and. would not II l could.
Now, might also say | was raised among
COlOTed people. One of the most intimate
companions Of my childhood, and one whom
| took care of till he died, was boy of
about my own age, who had been given to
me by grandfather, not as a slave, but as a
playmate and companion to take care of me,
being older. II ever one child loved another,
that boy loved me, and | loved him, and
never were more sincere tears shed than
shed over him. But we cannot expect jus
tice In a political campaign, and have been
denounced as an enemy of the COlOTed race.
l deny nothing that is true, but this charge
| is untrue. No man can point to law that
| had anything to do with the making Of,
or to a decision of mine while on the bench,
that was more unjust to the cOlOred people
than to the white, or unjust In any descrip-
tiOn, aHd / defy any one to show any thing
| to the contrary
It is true that in 1857, before the suffrage
| for your people had been adopted, when the
question was In Ohio, and In Ohio alone,
whether the word "White' should be struck
from the constitution, l. together with a
large majority, voted against striking 1t out.
] The reasons were plainly stated and honestly
maintained, 1t was not right for Ohio TO
| take such action when nearly ali the other
States were acting otherwise, This reason |
| urged against such action, but from the mo
mgnt the amendment to the Federal GOnstl-
| tuition was adopted which gave suffrage to
the coiored people, from that moment they
became citizens and no man can say ever
| treated them otherwise than as citizens.
| [ApplauseI No man can say with truth
that have denied the equality before the
law Of the cOlOred people. | stand, and
| Grover CleYeland stands, on the platform OF
the Democratic party, which pronounees for
| equal rights for all, without regard to race
or color, That platform means that every
man-whether by birth, by naturalization, OF
| by the amendments to the constitution Is a
citizen-is equal to any one before the law.
| IApplausel. White and black stand on the
same foundation, and are all equal before
| the law.
Now, you have studied the platform OF
the Democratic party You have seen the
pledges made No president has ever done
more ample justice to the COlOred people
than Grover Cleveland, and, II reelected, he
will continue to do justice to them. know
him we'll. In his intellect, in his heart, in
his soul, he is just and upright man. When
| he says anything he means It, and when he
has said 1t he stands to II.
am greatly pleased to see that the COlored
| vote is no longer q unit have said repeat.
edly, In public and In private, | have said
everywhere, that since suffrage was con.
{ ferred on the Col0red people, the Republican
managers seek to make political bondsmen
of thescolOred race. When they ceased to.bc
| labor bondsmen the Republican leaders in,
| tended they should become political bonds.
men, and they knew that was impossible In
human nature without bitterness among the
whites; 1t was an impossibllity in human
nature without meFacle.
| Although slavery in the South wa s TO be
found in Wing as well as In Democratic
States, and II has been called Democratic
Institution, yet the truth In the principle Of
| Jefferson was the undermining 1t, and 1t was
brought to the grave. Now, say whatever
you may think, write whateVer you may
think, there is liberty to all. If any people
more than another have reason to be thank
ful for this declaration Il is those who have
lately been set free. ] don't underrate the
men who helped. know well the unjusl
claims that have been made. ! know well
that it was said 1t was not TO be fight Oi
abolition know that II was said that Il
the Union could be preserved without free
| ing a slave, they would preserve II on thai
condition. know that Mr.. Lincoln, q greai
and good man, said so; but also know thai
when the idea entered the brain of the Tadi
cal leaders, Rat by emapcipating the slave
and giving him the suffrage, the South NIGH
be made a solid radical South, then there
was a sudden and wonderful growth Of phi
lanthTopy, and the men who but lately had
been willing TO sec slavery indefinitely pro
lODged became the earnest advocates ol
| abolition. In word, party interests governed
political action, and If 1t had not been sup
1 posed by the radical leaders that the poliH
| cal bondage Of the negro could be made tC
take the place Of the ancient bondage, yor
would have heard nothing OF the Republican
party having freed the slave.