The Democrat. (Scotland Neck, Halifax Co., N.C.) 1884-1896, 1895-02-28
ARP AND MRS. GRANT.
he is Glad to see the Widow
Welcomed by the South.

Goldsboro Headlight
We are pleased TO read about the
cordial, friendly greeting that our
people are giving to Mrs. General
Grant. ! sympathlze with her, spe-
cialIy, because she came into this sin
struck world the same year and month
that 1 did, and was born and raised in
number of slaves that my wife did, and
lived off their hire up to the day OF
LincoIn's proclamation of freedom in
1868, and then lost them and got no pay
for them, just as my wife lost hers.
But there Is one little difference Mrs.
Grant is drawing a pension of $4,000 a
year and my poor wife isn't drawing
ANYTHING. Mrs. Grant is a Southern
woman, and her sympati1ies were with
our people until the fortunes OF war
drlfted her lord and master the other
way.
A professional soldier Will generally
fight for the best pay and the highest
promotion when other influences are
equally balanced for instance, when
he lives along the dividing line and has
interests on both sides Of It, / am glad
our people honored Mrs. Grant, for her
husband was at last kind to the South
and dared to shield us from the tyranny
of our conuuerors He had no reven-
ges, no malice, but acted the soldier
pure and simple. From the day that
Lincoln called him from his brothers
lanyard at Galena he never showed
brutality or hatred to our people. In
fact he was naturally kind-hearted
man, and his comrades loved him.
| Our own General Longstreet was his
intimate friend in the old army, and
helped him to win his wife and has
| always defended him. The Northern
Republicans never admired him, for he
was Democrat and a slave-owner, and
after the war was over he would not let
them confiscate our property and grind
us into the dust. Up to this day they
the money to build a monument to his
memory.
1t is curious that Grant and Lincoln,
the two greatest factors In the war,
were men with Southern sympathies
and had Southern wives, and who re-
peatedly declared that so far as they
were concerned the negro was not in it.
Lincoln said that If he could save the
Union without freeing save he would
do it. Nobody believes this except
those who know It, The negroes do
not believe it. England does not
believe it, but contributed freely to
LincOln's monument that represents
him striking the shackles from the
slaves. 1t is astonishing how long it
takes to get the truth OF history, but
sooner or later it comes out. We are
not lamentlng the results of the war,
especially not lamenting the freedom
of the slaves, but we have all these
wears suffered from slander and false
accusation, and we rejoice that the
truth is gradually taking hold OF the
Northern mind. Slander runs race
and truth moves slow, but it catches
up This reminds me that an educa-
ted Engllshman told my son that for
all these years he thought our civil war
was between North America and South
America.
A brighter day is dawning. When
we see new England mills breaking up
and coming South it is a sign that their
people no longer believe us to be bar
barians, but are willing to cast their
fortunes in the South. Without crlng-
inc to their superior wealth, we give
cordial welcome to all who dare to
come l met Cape Cod Yankee here
who is as friendly as brother, and is
delighted with the South AID her peo-
ple. and regrets that he has invested
money in the Northwest. He has
purchased property here, and is build
ing a Winter home on the bay, ;:nd the
f,u of it is the first thing he did was
to dig a cellar. "What is that !o'?''