The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1909-09-14
Carolina as nothing else could have

QOuS.
The spirit of 1875, which made
Moultire, against the advice of Gen.
Lee man his palmetto log for and
destroy Sir Peter Pa1ker's fleet,
pulsated in the bosom of every brave
Carolinian, when they learned that
a body of seventy-hve poorly armed
| whites had dared to attack a legally
organized militia company, capture
| it's armory, and then put to death
some of it's members. If there had
been no Hamburg riot, it is extreme
ly doubtful whether there would
have been any straightout campaign
in 1876. 1t is equally doubtful
whether there would have been a
18th of August. If Gary had been
at Hamburg instead of leaving the
scene as soon as the armory was
captured, as did Gen. Butler, he
would probably have directed events
to the very close and safeguarded
from a legal point of view the lives
of those who had done the bloody
work. AS it was everything ran by
haphazard after the negroes evacuat-
ed the armory. Butler, when he was
fighting for his seat in the senate,
denied participation II the Hamburg
riot except in the preliminary stages
as a lawyer. He said there were
three separate Buffers and he had
nothing to do with the killing of
any of the negroes. This was en-
tirely accurate. but he had fired the
fuse and set the ball in motion, and
one of it's consequences was the re-
demption of the State from negro
rule.
Garys doctrine of "voting early
and often" changed the Republican
majority of 1900 in Edgefield to a
Democratic majority Of $500, thus
giving Hampton claim to the Of
| flee of governor.
Hampton has his monument and
the people of South Carolina love to
honor his memory, but Butler and
Gary are entitled to equal, if not
more credit for the victory Of 1875.
In my visits to the North as lee
turer, have come on some strange
and interesting things. Some years
ago lectured at Iowa City, Iowa.
the former territorial capital Of that
State. After I had finished speaking
and returned to the hotel an old
Union soldier, whose name I forget,
called on me. He was very much
impressed by what I said and asked
| if / would not allow him to show
me the town next morning. Find
ing l would have an hour or two
after breakfast before my train left,
I agreed. He carried me to the old
territorial capital which he said had
been designed by Jefferson Davis
when secretary of war and was a
reproduction of the Parthenon at
Athens. We entered the building
and he directed my steps to the
rooms occupied by the State histori-
cal society of Iowa. Iowa has made
very little history. so there was
nothing much worthy of notice.
But in a glass case carefully pre-
served and labeled with certificates
as to when, where and by whom it
had been captured he showed me
the large silk flag with the blue
ground and white Palmetto tree and
crescent which. was used on State
occasions to drape the front Of our
State house in Columbia. Gen. O.
o. Howard's certificate gave the
| name of the soldier, company and
regiment who had done the gallant
deed Of capturing" it or stealing
it from the secretary OF States Of
fee. It is in a splendid state of
preservation. the silk being of the
finest and the border being of heavy
gold fringe. 1t must be at least
| twelve feet in size South Carolina
has made so much history and writ
ten so little that Iowa may want to
keep this memento of her part in
the suppression of the rebellion and
the burning of Columbia. If they
can afford to keep 1t, we certainly
can afford to let them have it. But
if conditions were reversed should
certainly feel ashamed, as citizen
of Iowa to hold the stolen emblem
of a sister State as a trophy Of the
civil war.
A more recent event is equally
interesting About three weeks ago
| addressed the chautauqua at Ba-
tavia, Ohio.
Mr.. Miles Bicking, who said he
was a Democrat. approached me and
said: 81 have something here which
has been in my possession about
thirty years and I thought I would
bring it out today and show it to
you and ask about the story of tissue
ballots we have heard about in South
Carolina. Your lecture has given me
all the information I want and I
ask you to accept this as a curiosi-
tv." give the exact reproduction
of this curious relic Of by-gone days.
It is the Democratic ticket for Rich
land county in Hampton's second
election for governor in 1878.
RICHLAND COUNTY.