The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1891-1893, 1892-09-17

it, from the crowd) applause. You
may we'll believe it, because a republican |
House. controlled by speaker Reid in
the fifty first Congress, passed what is |
known as the force bill, every republican
member of that House but three voting
FOR the bill, and every democratic mem
Der. north, south, east and west, voting
against it. And you know, as part of
our history, that but for the fact that
when that bill was passed from the
House to the Senate it was there con
fronted by solid phalanx of democratic
Senators. Your distinguished senator
here, and his colleague. (applause) were
in the very van of the battle for your
constitutional rights. But for the fact
that three republican senators stood
shoulder to shoulder with the democratic
phalanx there, that bill would have
passed the Senate. received the approval
of the president, and to day would have
been upon our statute books. Do you
remember that when it was pending,
republican senator, one of the three who
voted against it, declared that the force
bill was the most Infamous piece of leg
islation that had ever passed the thre sh-
hold of the Senate
Perhaps you are getting little tired.
(No. no) Well, you are not half as
tired as you would have been if you had
this force bill upon you Laughter.
| CThat is so, from the crowd
| 1t may be we'll to recall to the people
of North Carolina some things of the
| glorious era that come with the carpet
bag domination l told you in the begin
ming that | knew something about the
history of this old State. | will show
you before get through that do know
something about the history of North
Carolina, and that remember something
of the terror, something of the humilia-
ton, something of the wrongs, some
thing of the outrages, that were perpe
trated upon this people during the
era of the reconstruction period
not only in the State of North Carolina,
brt all Of the entire Southern States
after the close of the war You will re-
member that in the year 1868 your State
governments were set aside and you
were placed under the domination and
rule of men who had no sympathy with
you, who were not here to rule and gov
ern you under your own laws, but simply
to subserve their own private interests.
When your State governments were set
aside, republican Legislators were elected
in this State, in the State of Alabama,
and in other Southern States. 1t may be
we'll to call to the mind of the young
men who vote for the first time, some
thing of the era of humiliation through
which their fathers have passed. Take
the State of Alabama. The republicans
had complete control there from 1863 to
+ 1874; the best citizens of the State were
disfranchsed; they had no voice in pub
lie affairs; they were utterly powerless to
help themselves against those who under
the form of law sought to rob them All
the departments of the State government
q were in the hands of those who prosti-
? tuted the legislature and the courts OF
law to their own selfish purposes. During
6 this saturnalia of misgovernment the
plunderers of the people were men who
t i'll many instances held high places among
them. During the period extending
! from 1868 to 1874 the State debt of Ala
bama was increased by republican legis
! Iation from eight million of dollars tC
o more than twenty-five millions. A
q large part of this indebtedness:
was created by issuing bonds tC
build railroads, not mile of which was
ever built In addition to that, the mu
ncipal and county Indebtedness wer,
y enormous How did relief come to tn,
:. people? Through the democratic party
II (Applause.) The democratic party cam'
n into power and the era of misgOvernment
:, of misrule, of robbery, came to an end
, What was the result of this! Twelve
o years from that time, the State of Alaba
% ma, under democratic rule, which simply
s means under the rule of our own people
- (applau5e) the State debt had been on
half paid off aud the taxable prOpert
- had been increased more than one hun
dred millions of dollars.
e Take the State of North Carolina un
4, der the reconstruction of the republica
IF party. Carpet bag rule was in s,jS sub
er stituted for the government of the Stat
d by its own people. From the mountain
re To the sea, the Old North State was i
he the clutches Of the pluuderers. Durin
le the first session of your legislature, bot
lie branches of which had large repubica
le majority, bonds of the State TO tn
is amount of S25, $50. 900 were authorize
re to be issued OF this enormous amour
b $l4 900, 600 for the avowed purpose {
IN building railroads were actually issue
le and put in circulation, and not mile {
of the railroads were built
to Have the people of North Carolina TO
lis gotten what become of the school fun
id $420 000l This was sacred fund f.
at the purpose of educating the poor chi
et dren of the State Have you forgOtte
of how that legislature for the purpose
he paying its own expenses, divided up III
he money amongst the members, sold the
It bonds of S42O, 900 by an act of that le
on islature for $l5S, 900, by which forev
er- all of that fund, which should have bee
IS. kept sacred for the education of Il
lss children of the State, went into the pO
cts of the men who had piundered you
ler | need give no other illustration of IT :;
to is not necessary. These were part
gy the schemes devised by which at 4
es close of the lie -islature under the
I'VE publicans the State debt of North Car
rec lima had reached 242, 900, 900, a lit
)n- more than one-third of the taxable pro
)li- erty of your State in its then impov'
ng ished condition. 1t is well that t
the young men or north Carolina may kn'
eve who have been their friends and W