Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-08-31
CHATWITHCHALMERS
The Noted Southerner Speaks Of His
Congressional Contest
AND POLITICS In MISSISSIPPI.
The Chain Gang Prison System is Relic Of
Barbarism.
SOME "REMINISCENCES OF Fl. PILLOW
tcoRnrsroxDENcE OF THE DIsrArcH.l


tive from the Second Congressional district
of his State will come before Congress this
winter, has been spending the summer at
Congress Hall, Cape May, and, while the
Republicans of Mississippi are calculating
his chances of being elected as Governor,
should he accept the nomination, the Gen.
eral manages to enjoy his summer outing in
a most tranquil m amer, undisturbed by the
clamor of his enemies or the tributes of his
friends. He is an inveterate reader Of
novels, between daily skimmings of the
press, takes daily dip in the surf, and fills
up the odd minutes in chatting with friends
upon the various topics of the day.
To look at the General as he sits summing
himself upon the piazzas, with his wide
brimmed straw hat tipped far over his eyes,
absorbed in the latest novel, you would
never think that he was man who had
been swept into a maelstrom of political
difficulties, and, still less. that he is. or
was, the implacable "iend" of the Confed-
eracy which he has been represented.
The other morning had little chat with
the General upon the piazza, mingling of
politics, historical matters connected with
the Civil War, famous battles, the condi-
tion of the negro id the South, of the poor
whites, the rich Bburbons, social distinc-
tions in the South Southern methods in
prisons, and other matters, which may be of
interest to your readers, and which have
jotted down in informal fashion.
HIS CHANGE OF HEART.
"How came you. General, being South
-eEners to shift vsur politics from Demo-
cratic to Republican point of view?"
"Well, became disguised with the way
things were managed, and with the men
who managed them. l did not leave the
Democratic party all at once, but became an
Independent. Had 1 gone over at once to
the Republican party l could not have car
ried my followers with me. But 1 am a
tariff man, and so in the last election 1 ran
for Congress on the Republican ticket, and
although 1 was counted out, thousands of
my votes having been stolen and otherwise
made away with, / shall contest my seat in
Congress, and have no fears as to the result.
The figures will prove that the election was
mine. 1t is natural that in our State the
people should care nothing about tariff, as
we have no manufactures. no mines, no in
dustries demanding protection. By and by,
when the propensity OF the State increases,
this will be changed"
81 suppose that changing your politics
was almost equivalent to social ostracism in
your part of the country, General?"
well, they can't very well ostracise me
down there. My father was United States
Senator, my brother Chief Justice, and nv
own position is sufficiently assured to stand
opposition"
'Is the chain gang prison system in force
in Mississippi"
eyes, am sorry to say that our prison
affairs are in terrible state and need much
reform. Our term for Governor is four
years. Lowry has been in for two terms
and he has done nothing toward reforms in
prisons Formerly, by an act of legislation,
all lands sold for taxes were given to the
State fer school lands, but under Demo-
cratic rule that act has been repealed, and
the lands have been given to railroad mo-
nopolies. And, while the Democrats are
crying out against foreign monopolists to
hold American lands, the second largest
land owner in Mississippi is an English
syndicate.
NOT MUCH SHOW.
''It is all nonsense to talk of disfranchis-
ing the negro. The negro is a voter accord
ing to the Constitution of the United States.
and nothing but violence and fraud can
deprive him of his vote until the Constitu-
tion is changed, which is not likely ever to
happen. But one thing they can do. The
Southern States can pass laws preventing
negroes from holding Office. The feeling
against the negro in the South is so strong
that if he have the eloquence of an angel,
or surpass in any other intellectual gifts, il
avails him little, so long as he has one drop
of negro blood in his veins. The negro has
a natural gift for oratory. He has imagina-
tion, love for music, force of language,
earnestness, all that goes to make an orator.
/ was once present where a negro was being
tried for his life.
"The evidence was all against him. The
Judge, before passing sentence, asked him if
he had anything to say, the man replied
that he had, and thereupon arose and spoke
for an hour and a half in a most eloquent
and earnest way. He was entirely unlet-
tered, and made plenty of grammatical mis-
takes; but his speech was a masterlv effort
in his own defense. When he had finished
the Judge said: I had thought you guilty,
but what you have said has raised doubt
in my mind, and you shall have the benefit
of that doubt, 1 will grant you another
trial.
"I afterward defended the man, taking the
very line of argument he had used, and he
was saved. But the negro gets along better
with our people than he would with the peo-
pie of the North. No one loves the negro
better than the Southefner, provided he does
not attempt to cross the line of caste If
white man and a negro want work the negro
trious, and can do more work in our climate.
Then he does not raise strikes and other dis.
turbances; he is more docile and obedient
than the white laborer; he has no trouble SO
long as he keeps what is considered his
place in the community. But the feeling of
caste will always be strong"
"They saw, General, that a great many
negroes in your State are opposed to you and
some of the the Southern journals sup-
gest that if you are nominated for Governor.
the Republican rally should be at Fort Pill
low"
AT FORT PILLOW.
SIT is not true that the negroes are op-
posed to me. suppose 1 have been the j
most abused man in the country. You know
they have blamed me even more than Gen.
eral Forrest for that affair at Fort Pillow. /
was second in command under Forrest The
true history OF the war will never be writ
ten, for prejudice will always give it col
oring. There is no truth in the alleged
atrocities at Fort Pillow. They were SIM
ply impossible, from the bare facts of the
an investigation of the Fort Pillow matter.
but it was not made. Fort Pillow stood
at the summit OF steep precipice, which
sloped toward the river, where were
stationed the Federal gunboats. When we
entered the fort from the rear, we found a
great many drunken men, pals of whisky,
some of them overturned, and everything in
the greatest confusion. As for the burning
of buildings in which were wounded men,
that was not our work. Those buildings
stood between our army and the fort, and
the Union troops burned them because they
afforded ms urotPction Thera Uere sick |