Saint Mary's beacon., 1888-03-22


Be a consnirator; ! doubt whether in
some hidden and secluded receptacle,
at least IN the sanctuary Of my soul, I
had not kept the Stars and Stripes
eusbrined, and hoped that the day
might again dawn when it should be
the symbol of the glory and the en-
blem Of the power of united coun-
try. doubt whether I ever should
have believed that slavery was better
than liberty.
But, Mr.. President, I should have
regarded it as the climax Of etfronte-
ry, as the very apex and summit Of
hardihood and audacity, will not
say pusilanimity and dishonor, when
l had accepted pardon, had my dis
abilities removed, and taken the oath
OF allegiance TO the successful South
ern Confederacy, if l had appeared
day after day upon every occasion
when opportunity offered to denounce
the efforts made BY my conquerors to
reward their own soldiers, and to hag-
gle about the price that the victors
should see fit to bestow upon the men
by whom l was vanquished.
Therefore, Mr.. President, say
again. without personal imputation or
inference, to those who are under one
pretext and another attempting to
convince the North that they can
safely and patriotically vote the DEM
ocratic ticket and elect Democratic
Presidents, although l53 votes in the
electoral college are in those States
saturated with these sentiments, l do
not think that the North is at all de-
luded by such pretensions.
1t little singular, Mr.. President,
that in all the years which have
elapsed since the war there never
has come from one of the States that
were in rebellion single Unionist,
SO far as I know, elected by Demo-
cratic votes to either House Of Con.
gress, not even by an accident. They
never have blundered into sending
here man who was not in the Con-
federate service in some capacity or
other; nor so far as know, has any
governor of any one Of the Confeder-
ate States since the war ever been a
Unionist. The supreme test that is
applied is the test Of service TO the
Confederacy. When | look over the
roll of this body and over the roll OF
the other House Of Congress and re-
fleet how few Of those who served in
the Union armies are found in the
councils of the nation, / am not sur
prised that we have witnessed the
demonstrations that we have heard
and seen upon this bill and every SIM
liar bill that is presented for action
either in the Senate or House Of Rep
resentatives.
The Senator from Missouri, in the
course of the debate last Wednesday
as an illustration of the magnanimity
of the South, assured us that Of the
SSS3,000,000 of pensions that had
been paid S240,OOO,O00 had been con-
tributed by the South and the Sena-
tor from South Carolina Mr.. Hamp-
ton who evidently is more accurate
arithmetician, arose and said, not
$240,OO0,O0O but $29O,OO0,O00. l
wish that Senator, as he is now pres
ent, would tell us by what method OF
computation he has reached the con-
clusion that out of 1888, 100000 paid
for pensions the South has paid $780,
100000.
Mr.. President that is glittering
generality. l doubt if they have ac-
tually paid S29O,OOO, instead of $780,
100000. | should like if some emf
nent arithmetician would get out his
table of logarithms, which is the usual
practice on these occasions, and tell
Us how it appears that the South has
paid S2q0O0C 900 since the war closed
out of the SSS3,O00,OOO that have
been paid as the sum-total evi1encing
the nations gratitude to its surviving
soldiers.
Even if they have paid S290,000,-
600, | have one single remark to make
about that. They are very fortunate
that they did not have to pay the
whole OF it, and instead of grumb,
ling and complaining that they
have paid S29O,O00,OOO, they ought
TO be thankful they did not have to
foot the entire bill, as Germany made
France foot the expenses Of the Fran
co-Prussian war, and as every c'her
vanquished and rebeliious province
has been compelled to submit to exac
tion and ransom. Yet after the war
has long since closed We have the
jailors and murderers OF Anderson
VILE, Belle Isle, and Libby Prison sit
ting here beneath the flag they en-