The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-09-05
THE SOUTH'S BLOODY SHIRT
Senator Reagan Drops About Twenty
five Years Behind The Present Time,
And Defends Slavery, Secession and the Late
Observation-Disclosures TO the Great
Superiority of the American Fool.
A DEFENSE OF TREASON

Senator Reagan Speaks In Behalf of the
Confederacy and Secession.
special to the Indianapolis Journa,
WASHINGTON, Sept At was a spectacle
that all patriotic and loyal citizens will regret
which Senator Reagan, of Texas, presented 10
The Senate this afternoon. Mr.. Reagan is the
most prominent confederate living, with the OK.
ception of JEFF Davis. He was Secretary Of the
Treasury aud Postmaster general in the Con-
federate Cabinet, and for years was Jef Davis's
bosom friend and constant companion. 1t will
be remembered that he was with JEFF Davis at
the evacuation of Richmond. and about the
time of the latter's capture at the close of the
war. Mr.. Reagan to-day undertook . defense
OF them as God-given rights. He declared that
slavery was entailed upon tho South, and that
it was an inheritance of the Southern people;
that the South only fought to retain its
property and exercise privileges and rights given
1t under the Constitution Of the United States.
He said the South preferred to die battling
for its rights rather than live and permit the
North TO intermeddle with its rights and privi-
leesk He declared that il slavery was . sin and
unlawful that it was the fault Of George Wash
ington. Jefferson, and other patriots who crys-
tallized American institutions, fought for liber-
ty, framed the Constitution. and started the
country in the path it has since followed. He
named a half-dozen Presidents who had owned
slaves. and added that if 1t was sinful aud I'M
lawful to maintain slavery. the South was the
victim of slavery. He held that the way to
have abolished slavery was for the federal gov
eminent to have purchased the slaves and
freed them. Mr.. Reagan became very excited. very
earnest. and undoubtedly used the same argu-
ment that he employed when be appealed to the
South thirty years ago to take up arms and
strike down the federal Union.
Senator Blair, Of New HAMPSHIRE, in about
ten minutes. destroyed all OF the argument ad-
vanced by the Senator from Texas in over one
hours talk. Dir. Blair said that IL the South
had been n victim of slavery IL was q very WILL
ing and anxious victim: that he remembered
whsn the South was demanding as its ~copstitu-
tlonal right that it should take its own slaves
into every State and Territory In the Union;
that II should 90 into the North and West, and
institute slavery as well as in the South. The
gentleman from Texas was mistaken when he
said the South was fighting for the p~reserva-
ton and not the propagation of slavery. as the
propagation of slavery was the very thing the
South was demanding when it became neces
sary for the federal government to interfere,
and the memorable scenes OF bloodshed took
place 10 Kansas 10 1854 and 1855. He reminded
the Senator from Texas that on quite a
number OF occasions sectional lines had
been drawn in the Senate and the
House, and that in not q single instance bad Q
Republican instigated sectional debate; that the
Senator from Texas was himself guilty OF hav-
ing prscipitated sectional controversies by gross
| ly insulting the North. He added that it was
the Texans wont to deliver insulting harsngues
in the Senate against the North and precipitate
sectional controversies
Mr.. Reagan spraug TO his feet and denied that
he bad ever insulted the North. He said he had
probably insulted the Republican party, but
that the Republican party was not the North.
Mr.. Blair very firmly declared that the Repub-
lean party was the North, il indeed any section
of the country could be hkened unto q party or
a party could be called any section of the couu-
try. He said il was the North that had organ
ICED tia Republican party which had broken the
shackles from slavery and driven the South
!. gpm its iniquisous ways. Senator Blair was
fairly eloquent at times, and the galleries ap-
plauded heartily. The scene was a memorable
one and the impression was profound. Mr..
Reaean's is tho only really open and determined
defense Of slavery. the Confederaoy and Sc
cession that has been made in Congress for sew
eral years, and it demonstrates tho fact that the
Copfederacy is to-day as much alive, active and
determined as it ever was.