Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-03-14
NEGROES MUST VOTE.
Sherman Declares That There Shall
be a Change in the South.
SENATOR HOAR'S RETRACTlON.
Some of His Statements About Louisiana
Not Quite Accurate.
PRESIDENT JOHNSON AS A DEMOCRAT

ate to-day Mr.. Eustis referred to the two
statements made by Mr.. Hoar yesterday. in
reference to the Southern States, one OF them
being that in the State of Louisiana and in
some of the other States, there were laws
which made it penal offense, punishable
by Imprisonment In the penitentiary, for a
white man to associate on terms of equality
with negroes. There never had been a
necessity for the State of Louisiana to enact
such preposterous law.
The other statement by Mr.. Hoar was to
the effect that there was another law in
Louisiana which provided for the sale of
any colored man found for certain time
out OF work, and that the former master
should have the preference in the purchase.
He asked Mr.. Hoar whether he could find
any such law on the statute books of Louis
lana. He (Mr. Eustis) knew that the
criticism was directed against the Legisla-
ture of Louisiana of 1867; but he had
never heard Republican Senator criticise
the infamous laws enacted in Louisiana by
Republican Legislatures.
DID NOT HAVE EXISTENCE.
There was no such law, however. as that
which Mr. Hoar had referred to, and any
what recklessness with what destitu!ion OF
sense of responsibility, Republican Senators
spoke of Southern affairs. They seemed 10
be restrained by nothing, not even by facts,
for there were two statements made by the
Senator from Massachusetts, for which there
was not the slightest foundation.
At the close of the colloquy the educa-
tional bill was taken up as the unfinished
business and Mr.. Blair addressed the Sen
ate in reply to certain structures on the bill.
He also read extracts from the speech o.
President Harrison when Senator, in 1885,
favorable to the bill, and said that he knew
that the President held those sentiments
with the same earnestness to-day as when he
expressed them.
The Southern question came up again and
after a brief discussion Mr.. Hoar admitted
that his former statement about the laws of
Louisiana was incorrect.
HEATED POLITICAL DEBATE.
Mr.. Sherman then took part in the dis
cussion which became a heated political
controversy He traced the course of the
reconstruction movement and said that at
the close Of the war it had not been contem-
plated, at that time to arm the negro with
suffrage. But the laws passed by some of
the Southern States had been so unjust to
the colored people and to the white Repub-
licans in the South that the people of the
North became convinced that the object in
the South was to overthrow the results of
the war and to deprive the freedmen of all
the rights of citizenship. Up to that time
all the legislation had been guided by the
one generous feeling that all the results of
the war should be blotted out except the one
growing out of the abolition of slavery.
But when the time had come that it was
seen that there was no way to protect the
emancipated people except by arming them
with suffrage, Congress had, reluctantly,
slowly, but deliberately, adopted that rem
edy as the only one fitted for the case.
There had been no feeling of passion or
hate about it.
A FEELING OF REGRET.
He (Mr. Sherman) had sometimes thought
that it might possibly have been better not
TO have adopted the Fifteenth Amendment
conferring suffrage on the coIored man, be-
cause that right had been nullifed and up
rooted The right of suffrage Gid not now
exist with colored men wherever it might
be valuable to them. The result of the
fifteenth amendment was, practically, to
give to the Southern States increased repre-
sentation in the House of Representatives
and increased power In the electoral college.
Ii there was anything wrong in the situa-
tion of Southern affairs, the people of the
South had brought it on themselves. There
was no feeling of hate existing in the North
against the South-as intimated yesterday
by Mr. George. If the equal rights of all
people in the South were secured the people
of the North would be satisfied. That was
the universal feeling.
Mr.. Butler suggested that the reconstruc-
tion measures and the adoption of the Fif
teenth Amendment were not so much owing
10 Objectionable legislation in some OF the
Southern States as to the conflict between
Andrew johnson and the Republican Con-
gress.
ANDREW JOHNSON A DEMOCRAT.
Mr.. Sherman replied that the selection of
Andrew Johnson Southern man and |
Democrat-for the Vice Presidency was an
other proof of the generous treatment which |
the North had shown to the South. But |
Mr.. johnson had deserted the Republican |
party and turned his back upon it when he |
came into power; and Congress had tied his |
hands and prevented him carrying out his |
policy.
Mr.. ButIer-Then understand the Sena. |
tor from Ohio practically to admit that the |
Southern people were not alone responsible |
but that Andrew johnson, his President, |
was more responsible for the enactment of |
extreme measures against the South
Mr.. Sherman-I look upon Andrew |
johnson as Southern man and a Demo- |
crat.
Mr.. Butler-He was your Republican |
President; and the people of the South had |
no other authority to look to after they sur
rendered their armies except the executive |
Mr.. Sherman-The Southern people had |
the right to look to Congress as the govern |
ing power of the country.
After some further remarks Mr.. Sherman |
said:
A SERIOUS SPEECH.
Let me say to Senators on the other side. in
all seriousness, that there is a feeling in the
North that injustice has grown out of the
Fifthteenth Amendment, and that not only
have the negroes of the South been deprived OF
their votes, but that the people of the South
now enjoy larger political power than the same
number of the people of the North. You have
30 odd members of the House of Representa-
tives based upon negro representation. Now
let the South do as it ought to do, Let it obey
the constitutional amendments. Let it give
the negro his vote and permit him to vote as he
will. We are not there to control him We
are not there to drive him. And l would not
care if the whole of the negroes would vote the
Democratic ticket But this feeling of inius- |
tice does prevail in the North-the feeling that
while you are depriving the colored people of |
their votes you are exercising an undue power
in the Government. And until that is rem |
edIed--either through the negro voting or
through the negro being excluded from the
basis of representation-there never will be
feeling of content and equality among the peo- |
pie of the Northern States. And now you COM
plain of us. For what? For injustice wrong.
Violence or bloodshed? No. You complain OF
us that we hate you. We deny the hatred, but
we demand the justice. And until the South
ern States give these colored people their rights
under the Constitution there will be disquiet
and discomfort. and feeling of injustice.
JUSTICE FOR ALL.
trust that the time will come when even
this feeling will disappear and when every man