Year: 1868

KNOW the war has ruined svery clanfation
and fence and house in the country. If the
white people are broke down, we are broke
down too, and we are worse broke than thew
are, Tor they can get away, and we can't.
We (rlost of us) havn't got a half dollar TO
80 with. And where are yen going? To the
West? To the North: You needn't 90
there: they don't want you-6on't want mig
gers. l know have been there. They
tax good deal. some Of them; but they
don want you around.


No. my friends. there's only one wav. We
can't do without the whites, and the whites
can't do without Us. We depend on one
another. Some say the whites can get along
without US; that they car get plenty of free
labor from Germany and ireland if the color.
ed man didn't work. So much the worse for
us ifit is so. But now is the time. IF the
white Southern people do we'll, we will do
we'll. 1t they makes money we will get some
OF 1t, and we ought not to support the enemies
of the people for when they are ruined we
are ruined too, and We are not far from it
now. All we want, nv friends, is for the
whites and colored people to live together as
friends and not as foes, for ourselves TO get
an honest living. and our wives and children
to live we'll, and everybody have peace and
quiet. That tell you will never be, if we
let ourselves by any longer pulled around by
these scalawags who fill their carpet-bags,
and will make trouble against the Southern
people and will be the first to leave US if any
trouble comes.


Now, colored friends, is our chance-the
last chance we will ever get. Let us 60
with our people, our own people, who brought
US up, and who We have brought up too. Let
US show them that we are with them in their
trial ard trouble ; that we aint their enemies,
and, my word for it, they will help us tc
raise. You amt agoing to raise yourself by
helping his enemies to put the Southern man
down. When you put him down, you put
yourself down every time. know they tell
US good deal about what they have done for
the colored man how they made us free, and
so on. Well we know something about that
too. They did that not for our good, but
they wanted US to help them whip the South


They did 1t; not because they love us, the
Southern colored man, but because they
hated the Southern white man more. And
so mad have they bin against him, that they
have ruined him by taxes, and stealing what
he had, and putting taxes on cotton that he
couldn't make no crops, and We had no work
to do. Why, if it wasn't for these men, all
the plantations where the weeds is now grow
ing over them would be all fenced in, and
houses built up, and cotton and sugar-cane
growing, and every colcred man had plenty
of work, and big wages for it too, and no: be
like good many of US has been for long
time, just getting enough to keep us from
starving. You won't get any better off by
giving your votes or your money to the car
no 10 fob all bo
won't give you anything back. It's like the
the elephant was in town and went to see
him. Saw him sure enough. "Well, what
can he do ?' says he to the keeper. 80, he
can do almost anything. You Just hand him
half dollar and he'll put it way up in that
box there" So the man gives him half
dollar, and sure enutf he puts it in the box
way up there. "Well, that is wonderful.
Well, let's see him hand it down here again."
no." says the keeper, she ain't on il-he
amt doing that now" That's the way with
the arpet-bagger-neverg gives anything back
he gets in that carpet-bag. A cat in hell
without claws has better chance. And an
other thing they tell you, il we elect Seymour
and Blair they will put US back in slavery
A man is mighty big fool that believes that;
but the colored man that allows scalawags
to turn him by the nose, every way he wants,
is slave already by his own will, and ain
got spark of freedom in him. No, my
friends, the whites can't enslave US If they
would, and they wouldn't if they could
They've got enough of it. In the name of
God what do they want with slaves when
they can get plenty OF men for their board
and bitters men who haven't got a square
meal for q month, and when they can get
white men from all over the world without
advancing dollar beforehand. Who would
buy slave when the interest of the money
is good deal more than the wages he has to
pay now. If there is one of you has ever
heard any man who once owned slaves say
be wanted them back again, he has done
more than ever have. A nigger's skull may
be pretty thick, but it's not thick enough to
believe that yarn. But we've had six years
of freedom, and so far we have lived worse
than before. Now let us try our old friends
again, and see if We can't do eachother some
good. The Southern people have never re-
fused US anything that was right, and they
meyer will, TO them that 60 with them. But
the colored man who tries to degrade the
Southern man will suffer. don't blame the
white man for refusing to assist him. lie
amt going to give him stick to break his
own head, and say he is right. ! wouldn't,
and you wouldn't do it fyou were white men,
and had to hire men to work for you.


And now, my white friends, you must not
expect US to get along all right in our bnsi-
ness in these meetings-we've all got to
learn, for it's a new thing to US, Why, such
q thing as Niger President was never heard
of any where before.


Now I'm done. Colored men ave free,
they can vote as they choose. You can do as
YOU want. but for one, I'm going with my
people l believe they are our true friends
if they are not, God help the black man, for
he has them no where on the face Of the
earth. We belong to the oppressed, down.
trodden race, not here in the South alone,
but everywhere. But here is where we will
rise if we rise at all. Help the Southern
man, and he Will help us up. He knows we
stood by him, by his wife and children at
home when he was away in the war, and
though it made him mad to see MS elect the
he knows it was on account
of opr ionorance and If we all soin toratho,