The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-02-09
EIGHT GOVERNORS OF ALABAMA
1874-t901
No. THE Campaign of 1874
1874--t901
Cont inued)

/ cally was so subdued that he could only
| utter tame reply. Colonel ID. s. Troy
hearing Bustred became interested in so
fluent and lucid a political declaimer, and
waiving the encroachment upon the rules
| of propriety In the premises, the lieuten-
| ant colonel of the sixteenth Alabama in
| fantry Army of Northern Virginia. bear
| ing deep scars of battle, challenged him
| to joint debate on the political situa-
| ton The Judge declined. offering the
| excuse of an order from DIR. Michel that
| he should make no more speeches. The
note of declination failed not to touch
upon his deadly foe, Spencer's latest
demonstration of authority in Alabama,
the convention. Quoth the judge: Pro
| family and backguardism went nncon-
| trolled by the chair. For the most part
the convention was a gathering of tyros
/, in politics, paupers in intellect and al
| fiuents in profligacy
| Let us go back, yet not too far. it is
/ hoped, to consider three events in the his
| tory of the collision of the northern and
| southern sections. how much alike the
three appear at this distance from all,
| though they transpired with many years
| separating them from each other. %
| The New England Anti-Slavery society
organized after fashion the universal
slave insurrection of July 4, 1895, aided
and abetted by Exter Hall. In his annual
1 message OF december lOliOWiIlB IteSiuciit
| Jackson, said of this conspiracy:
"I must invite your attention to the
principal excitement produced in the
| south by attempts to circulate through
| the mails infiammatory appeals addressed
! to the passions Of the slaves in print
and in various sorts of publications, cal
culated to stimulate them to insurrec-
| ton and to produce all the horrors oil
| civil war" This was q political move
hot xyp after the
overthrow of the American System oi
protective tariff, intended to promote the
| interest of the north. (2) The John
J Brown invasion of Virginia with intent
| to excite universal slave insurrection,
massacre and pilIage in 1859. This was
| a political movement supported actively
| by various leaders of the New England
Anti-Slavery society, then become the re-
publican party and followed two years
after the publication of the Dred Scott
! decree favorable to the south. 90 The
destruction OF civil government in the
| southern states in 1865 and the exclusion
| of those states from representation in the
| federal government.
! These three events historically defined,
are three of a kind. They We're all con-
ceived and set on foot from the same
political source. All were projected upon
the hypothesis of employment of the
same instrumentality-the negro in insur-
rection against the whites. =
When we recognize these facts as they
stand forth from their protracted conceal
ment. we shall be prepared to appreciate
the campaign of the democratic and con-
servative parties in 1874. We shall be pre-
pared to scorn the epithets. rebellion
'insurrection," war of secession" ap-
piled to the act of multitudinous and
enlightened people who founded the Con-
federacy TO escape In their own way the
fate otherwise inevitable.
Another word preparatory The white
men of Alabama made a profound study
of the relation of the emancipated negro
to civil government and to general So
ciety long before they organized the cam
paign of 1874 to recover white supremacy.
They gave perfectly candid, free rein
to speculative politics in the new situa-
tion of 1865. They came home from the
great war with their faith in the funda-
mental principle of states rights undim-
inished. They acknowledged the accident
of defeat In the late conflict of arms.
To perpetuate the American theories of
government. they resolved to live and la