The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1900-07-12

''In my speech l shall scarcely
mention the fact that | am candi-
date for Governor. | do not feel that
this is matter of supreme impor-
tance, either to you or to myself.
Il do feel, however, that there is
before the people of this State a ques-
tion that must be settled for our
peace and safety. If there are Re-
/ publicans or Populists in this audience
| hope they will hear me through, |
will say no word of abuse; am not
here to vilify and berate. am here
to discuss issues. | shall speak dis
passionately but with deep feeling
| am a Democrat. I was born that
way and can't help it, although l have
not tried very hard.
The Republicans will say that |
am not going to say anything but
'nigger' and that they are tired of it.
Well, my friend, you are not half as
tired of it as we are. But as long as
this question is left unsettled you
| men OF the West shall hear of it.
Our people are conservative folk,
we bear with prevailing conditions as
| long as possible. We do not change
often nor swiftly. We were slow to
leave the Union, but when we did 90,
we managed to sacrifice the first life
on the altar of the Southern Confed-
eracy. We sent more men to fight in
that long struggle than we had voters.
war, there was mourning in the land,
they came back with their hearts in
| 10000 graves. They came back to
| the chief business of meat and bread.
They asked nothing except to be left
| alone to work out their own destiny.
1t was time of poverty. Ia small
boy-saw men 20 to church bare
| footed and coatless, for the reason
that they had neither shoes nor coat.
In that day-the day Of our poverty
and distress-the Republican party
came into North Carolina. What did
they do? They disfranchised 10000
| white men and conferred the ballot
upon the negro. The Democratic
party has never disfranchised and
never will disfranchise a white man.
The Republican party had the Legis-
lature, the Supreme Court and all the
State offices. What was done? Our
Lord and Master said you shall know
a tree by it's fruits. Did Republican
rule bear economy in the day of our
poverty? They ran the debt up from
$1,000, 900 to $42, 900, 900. 1t bore the
fruit of pillage, plunder, ruin and
death.
.In those hours there came into
our life something that had never
been in it before. The negro formed
the union league, and the white man,
to protect himself, formed the white
mans ku klux klan. In August, 1876,
the white men came together and
took the State out of the hands of the
Republicans. In few days peace
settled down over our land, the law
was at every mans door, the women
were protected on the lonely roadside,
our little girls could 90 to school
without fear. We had the same laws
as the Republicans, not an Il had been
dotted nor a 't' crossed. Why was the
difference? Because under Demo-
cratic rule you had behind the law
the great white manhood of North
Carolina.
1--WE had peace for twenty years.
We had no fears in the East. Our
women feared not to 60 alone on the
public road. But the story of negro
rule grew old and the people refused
to hear it longer. In '92 new party
came in. Prices on farm products
were low, times were hard This new
party said that it would remedy the
evils of the farmer. The Democrats
sounded the note of warning and
plead with the white men not to
divide. The people would not hear
us. We tried to tell them of the
evils of negro rule. They treated us
as Populist treated me in '94. l was
making speech along this line, that
if the white men divided it meant ne
gro rule and negro rule meant death.
My Populist brother called out, oh,
hush! Tell us something new My
! friends, you cannot for your own
safety, forget political history. But
we did forget. Oh, that we had some
strong voice to say to US
Lord God of Hosts be with us yet
Again the Republican party came
into power, and again you shall know
tree by its fruits. Go with me to
the city of Wilmington. The govern
m ent here was SO weak and so vile,
that impudent negro men openly in
suited white ladies. Impudent negro
! women formed in fours and crowded
the ladies off the sidewalk and into
the gutter. A negro went into a
store in that town, knocked the white
proprietor down and carried away
some of his goods. 1t was done open
ly and boldly, known and read of by
all men in Wilmington. What was
done9 The negro was brought up for
trial. On the jury there were ten
| negroes and two white men. The ten
negroes stood for acquittal and the
two white men for conviction. and it
resulted in a mistrial. The next time
there were on the jury nine negroes,
who stood for acquittal. and three
white men who stood for conviction.
Again there was a mistrial. Several
times this was done and at last the
case was thrown out of court. A
guilty man went UNPUBLISHED, the
white man and the law were not
| vindicated, and the case cost the
county of New Hanover 5000.
! 80 vile and weak was this govern