The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1890-07-02
HURRAHFOR HE,MPHILL

HU RRAH FOR HEMPHlLL
HE STANDS UP IN CONGRESS AND
DOES STRAIGHT TALKING.
Lodge Makes Labored Effort In Behalf
of His Infamous ScheIne-Hemphill's
Splendid dArgument-OtherS Speeches.
The debate in the Lodge election
bill commenced in the House onThusr-
day.
Lodge made the opening speech,
urging the measure as necessary,
just, wise and constitutional.
Hemphill, of South Carolina, fcl-
lowed, beginning with an argument
to demonstrate tla unconstitutional
nature Of tie biu, that Congress
should not interfere with the returns.
He read oi the Legislative declara
tons in the past by the States OF New
York, Ohio and New Jersey against
congressional us,upation of the right
to conduct elections. He declared
that this wasnot anational bill. It was
sectional. Under the provisions of
the first section some portions of the
United States would be under the
supervision OF from two to five super
visors according to the respective
size of the congressional and judicial
districts. He could conceive OF no
honest purpose for such provision.
It could have no effect but to place the
people OF some districts between
the upper and neither mill
stones. As to the terms under which
the law was to go into effect (petition
of a limited number Of persons,)
why was it so limited if it was a
good thing? The law should be uni
versally applied. Why was it that
this very complicated and unsatisfac-
tory provision was put in unless there
was an intention to put the yoke on
some portions of the people of this
country and allow others to do rs they
saw fit? He called for an explanation
of that provision. Now suppose the
United States Courts were corrupted
and from the amount of corruption
reported by the gentleman from Mas
sachusetts it might safely be inferred
that one-haE Of the people were un-
worthy of trust, that they were to be
watched as criminals or ticket OF
leave men. Suppose that the super
visor were to turn to a Democrat. He
had life tenure and could not be
removed. That hadn't occurred to
the gentleman from Massachusetts,:
This was a measure to rob them OF
their dearest rights. He had march
ed before the glittering bayonets OF
United States soldiers to cast his
ballot. Troops of soldiers had been
sent to his town, and every soldier
had cast ballot for Greeley. The
result was that the party had a big
ger majority than it had ever had In
any Presidential election.
Under this system, which it was
proposed to revive, the people OF the
South had been robbed by picked
villains Of the North, baked up by
the bayonets of the Unlted\ States
army. The South didn't want to
be caught in that position again.
sWe," Hemphil continued, "know
that we must either rule that cc-ntry
or leave it. Now for myself, before
the people of the United States and
before God, in all reverence, l swear
we will not leave it. (Applause;l 1t
is the home of our fathers. There
their bones Lie buried. They bought
it with their blood when Concord
and Lexington were the battle fields
of this country. They have handed
it down to us rlnimpaired and, gen
tlemen, are we not our fathers sons!
Shall the blood first turn back IN our
veins? Shall we transmit to the COM
ing generations q great and noble
State which has been oyerruled and
down trodden by those who God
never intended should rule over us!
I don't hesitate to say the colored
man has as many rights as / have,
but he can't have his lsghts and mine
too, and this law is intended to put
him again in control OF the Southern
States-intended to waken their pre-
judices which are fast dying out-in-
tended to bring about again that
constant irritation and clash between
the two colors in the South which
will retard it's growth and which will
be the destruction of the Joys Of hu-
man life"
Hemphill then read from q recent
address by Ex-Governor Chamberlain
of South Carolina, Republican, in
Boston to show what former Gov
ernor and Republican thought OF the
negro situation in the South. He
knew it was useless toreason with GER
tain men in the North. They did not
want to and would not believe any
thing the South might say. But there
were many people in the country who
believe in honesty and he had not
doubted that when we pass back OF
politics and get TO the great body OF
the American people and have stated
TO them honestly and fairly the truth
as to the Southern country and the
black man in it.; when they have un-
derstood the whole facts and have
come to conclusion, lha7e no doubt
they will render an honest and right
eous verdict, and whatever that ver
dict may be, as common citizen Of
common country I pledge the people
of the South to accept it as the final
arbitrament of this great problem,