The gold leaf., 1900-06-21
Greensboro Telegram }

tbIctnSuoIO leltpTam
Col. A. NJ. Waddell, Of Wilmington.
who is probably more cordially hated
and feared by Republican politicians
than any other man in North Carolina,
made one Of his telling and forceful
speeches in the court house this after
noon. The court room was filled bv
a crowd of eager listeners, several
ladies being in the audience. Col.
WaIdcll spoke for one hour and was
often interrupted by enthusiastic APP
plause.
The speaker was introduced in "A
few appropriate remarks by Col. john
4. Barrinyer, who referred to the CON
dition of affairs in 1868, when he new
constitution Of North Carolina was
voted ON, and when thousands Of the
best men in the State were Lrprived
Of the right of suffrage, at the same
time he recently enfranchisrd ne
grorS-slavcs Of those who were dis
franchi~cd being allowed The privi
lcgc "f voting !lecnnclu'icd by saying,
-! have the honor of Introducing to
you Il gentleman, fresh from the field
who will tell you what white >upre
macy and what nrgr" domination in
North Carolina means.
Col. '. ahdrI! was greeted with ,u
muftEnu> applause, and said. Il have
come to state, as our Mrthndi>t
friends say, my experience my ex-
perirnce from observation Of facts
y hich came Immediately under my
eve" He alluded 10 the race confer
cncc recently held in Montgomery,
Ala, where he spoke on "Suffrage in
the Suuth.' Continuing he said, is
negro suffrage race problem? Ii so,
who produced it. and what is the
remedy? Before he Civil War in the
States OF Connecticut, Ohio, Kansas,
Minnesota and New York the question
of-negro suffrage was voted down by
overwhelming majorities. In 1888
the chief Justice Of Connecticut de
clared that Indians and negroes were
not citizens and the Supreme Court
| of the United States so held. In Hi
noiS and Indiana negroes were not
only not allowed 10 vote, but they
were not allowed to come into the
States, nor were their Southern own
ers allowed to bring them in and
set them free. In recent years we
have had practical illustration Of
this hatred of the negro, when the
Governor Of Illinois ordered Gatling
guns turned on defenceless Southern
negroes who had gone to Pana to seek
employment.
"Lincoln and other great leaders OF
the Republican party were opposed to
comforting the right of suffrage on the
negroes after they had been given
their liberty. and said it was danger
Gus to allow this question to enter
reconstruction. Thad. Stevens and
those of his school, who finally pre-
| vailed, openly declared their purpose
in enfranchising the negroes to be
to permanently establish the Rcpub
i;can party in power. But there was
a meaner motive behind it all. 1t was
done 10 humiliate the Southern people,
and not because the negro was fitted
for citizenship"
The speaker referred to an editorial
in last Saturdays Washington Post,
whose editor is Republican and a
former member of Congress from
Ohio. The editorial in question stated
that no State in the North would have
submitted to the wrong perPetrated
upon the Southern States by the
| fourteenth and fifteenth amendments
| to the Federal constitution, and added
that there is now scarcely an intelli-
admit it was stupendous blunder.
| Dr. LYMAN Abbotts recent utterance
in regard to manhood suffrage was
also alluded to.
Col Waddell said the time had at
last come in North Carolina when all
white men, and the more intelligent
negroes, have presented to them in a
political campaign a question of pa
triotism, pure and simple. He added
that there is but one issue in this cam
paign, parties and individuals being
utterly ignored, the issue being the
| question. Are YOU white man or Il
negro"
AT the Montgomery conference
advocated the repeal of the fifteenth
amendment. But whether the fifteenth
amendment is repealed or not. or
| whether we pass the amendment in
| North Carolina does not so much con
Germ my people. We have freed our
selves from negro domination. and
there is not power enough in the
United States army or under the
planets to cause US to again submit
| tO If " IOud applause)
In passing Col. Waddell took oc
casion to pay his respects to Spence,
Adams. who went out of his way in 8
speech ut Asheboro day or two age
to make mean and unjustiiiable at
tack upon him in saying that the
Wilmington revolution was "deliber-
atelv concocted and carried out for
the sole purpose of giving old man
Waddell bread and meat" Col. Wad
dell said he did not wish to discuss
the taste of man who would make
such an assault, but added that he
considered it the greatest'complimen'
that had ever been paid him-the as
sertion that the white people of s
city of 25 900 inhabitants would plar
and execute a revolution for the pur
pose of furnishing him bread and
meat. BY way of parenthesis, he re
ferred to Adams appetite for politica
bread and meat. He said that Adam:
had the appetite of goat, and MOI
content with the nomination for Gov
ernor, had had the nomination of {
Republican candidate for Congress
deferred until after the August elec