Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1890-03-14
NOT AL0.CAL QUESTION
Plain Words to Southern Bal
lot SuppreSSing Democrats.
A NATIONAL Law DEMANDED.
Speech Of Congressman IIOuck, Of Ten
nessee, in a Contested Flee
tiOn Case.
A NATIONAL Law DEMANDED.

l lSfus 0dib W tdli ttAtuNlDu "
the fact that we are confronted with
no Southern question. This is not
a Southern question. II is national
in its import, national IN its effect,
to every intent and purpose, in car
rying poison throughout the body
polite Of this nation. This is not a
question for the South alone. II is a
national question. Nor is 1t race
question or problem. The troubles
that you find in the first district of
Arkansas do not present a race prob
lem. This is neither a Southern
question nor a race problem. It il
question reaching down to and
nesting around the ballOt-boxes of
the country and the individual
rights Of the citizen, affecting every
body everywhere in this broad land.
Nor, as / have said, is it a race prob.
lem. 1t is problem Of humanity,
1t isa problem Of honesty, it is u prob
lem Of law and order, it is a problem
between right AMI wrong.
The first thing to do in meeting It
is for the white people Of this coun-
try TO be as law-abiding, as faithful
observers of law and order as the
black people have proven themselves
to be during the war and since, and
are to-day. The first step i'm the
way of correcting what you call the
race problem Is for the white man to
behave himself and obey the law.
Let US give the colored man "A
chance. He has never had fair
chance. You know it, know II,
and everybody knows It. In the
first instance-let us bew to the line
of truth, let the chips fall where
they may--in the first instance, i'm
mediately after the war, the carpet
b bIgger, hummer, and adventurer
went into some Of these colored
communities and misled and de-
ceived the. colored people. Every
body knows it.
These white people, white demo
cruts, resorted to extraordinary
measures in order to get rid OF the
carpet-bagger and ndventurer, and
IL you had stopped there, gentle
men, while you could not have been
justified or excused, your conduct
might have been palliated; but, IN
order to get rid of the carpet-bagger
and adventurer who had first misled
the negro, you organized ku klux
and the rifle clubs and the red-shirls,
and by those organizations, compUs.
ed of white democrats, you succeeded
In driving out the carpet-bagger and
adventurer. Now, when you got
that done why did you not Stop and
behave yourselves? [Laughter.l
But here is Iny complaint against
you gentlemen: After you had rid
the country of the carpet-bagger and
adventurer, you deliberately went
to work and nursed and cherished
and kept alive all these white
organizations as part of the ma
chinery of the democratic party, aud
you know you have got that ma
chinery to- day In many places in the
south.
Now, / repeat, give the negro a
Give him an equal chance
aud fair start In the race OF life,
and let us see If the survival of the
tlttest" will not follow, [Applause. ]
Why, sir, since have been In this
hall there have been eight or ten
oolored members Of this body; and
| say 1t with Difference and with
some degree of diiildence aud mod
esty In the presence OF the house,
but II Is the truth, taking the colored
men who have held seats in this
house, they have been equal TO IL
not above the average member of !
His body durins the same period,
Now, why do you keep up your
methods to prevent such men rs
hese from receiving the sutlfuges of
he peoples That is the question.
Give the negro fair chance | say,
md | say Il deliberately, and to this
'xtent reproach the republican
'arty. | say TO my party, "Wheu
'ou had the power you did not eX-
rcise IL rs you should have done In
rider Ia guaranty TO the coiored
'eople of the south fair chance,
md you lost power by not doing L..
Sow, power is restored tn ynar
lahds, and uHless you rise 20 an
ppreclalion and TO a proper under
tandlng Of this subject and give the
olored people chance, you viii be
lslly voted out of power again.
senator Ingalls, IN his great speech
for Il was a great speech from IA
reat man presented barren fact,
A. 49, fha ltf.. kItfti ,t,. ll.n - Z