Year: 1867

amendment. We cannot change it !;
but if | had been in the body which
drafted it, | would have fought it to
the very utmost. l shall vote for it,
because we must vote for or against
them all. It proposes to leave the
four millions Of colored people in the
South at the disposal of the white
rebels. 1t says to them, you may de-
termine whether these men shall vote
or not. | dislike that feature of the
thing. | never would leave color
ed patriot under the heel of a white
traitor. Government, to be peaceful
and progressive, must be based upon
the truth, and we must mete out ev-
enhanded justice to all classes, high
and low, rich and poor, black and
white. In regard to the colored man,
the government has revolved for the
last fifty years around his head but
up to the war it was made to revolve
in such manner as always to grind
the negro. Fugitive slave laws had
no respect for him, and were always
made so as to bind him. The old
ship was launched, sir, with color
ed face at the masthead, which has
made all our trouble. The fathers
put one worm-eaten stave into the
| national cask and the wine has leak
ed out. 1t was the negro without
guilt on his part who brought war
upon the country. Here was justice
and crime, right and wrong, liberty
and slavery, progression and retro
gression, all jumbled together, and it
was the decree of fate that there
must be collision. They would not
give up oppression-we would not
become slaves-and hence the war
storm.


| Now, sir, are we willing to obey
the principles which underlie Gods
universe If not, we treasure up
wrath against another day of vista
ton. l charge Senators-I charge
all men who have the high honor of
representing a brave people who
saved the country-to respect the
great principles that must necessari-
| ~ underlie national stability and
progress and good feeling. Base
your government upon the right, up
on truth, and mercy, and love, and
good will then, sir, you may rea-
sonably hope that your Government,
in coming years, will arise higher in
the heavens of history, and like the
sun of Joshua, hang aloft, ever shin
ing, but never setting.


We owe it to ourselves to be Just to
the colored man we owe it to our
reputation we owe it to our dignity
and our national character, to do JUS,
tice to the four millions of colored
people, around whom all our govern.
mental machinery has revolved. We
owe them a debt of gratitude. For
half century we have been wiring.
ing from him unpaid toll and forced
labor. Our morning cup of coffee
has been made palatable by the fruit
of his unpaid toll upon the planta-
ton. We have reared national
wealth upon crushed natures and
prostrated rights, and when we fell
into this conflict. and appealed to
Heaven for help, the colored man was
ever ready to assist us, ever loyal,
and, unlike the Senator ON my left,
he was not ashamed to be so consid-
cred. When the prisoner escaped
| from Southern dungeon, the colored
man had a lantern to light him. He
did not divide his bacon with the
hungry soldier, but gave the whole
to him /; and when you allowed them
to fight, they marched in bravely and
heroically.


| We profess to be very enlighten-
ed nation, a Christian nation we
profess to believe the Bible we are
a church-going people. Well, sir,
here is very beautiful chance DOW
to illustrate our real Christianity, or
our real national hypocrisy. And
the whole point, sir, will turn upon
the treatment of these four millions
of colored men who are asking for
Justice. The simple question tonight
is whether the colored man shall be
a man or a serf; whether the Sou tn
ern rebel, with our consent, shall put
his heel upon him and crush him to
to the earth ? You owe it to your
selves to do justice, complete justice,
to the colored race. Do you sup
pose this country can be prosperous
with four millions Of serfs ground
| down?


No, sir you violate the laws of
Gods universe, and they will fly back
in your faces, as they did in 1861. l
demand, sir, for the loyal colored
man as good treatment as you award
to the white rebel demand it of
Republicans, of Democrats, of all
men, in the name of humanity, in the
name of my country, that bled at
every pore. | demand for the color
ed man as much consideration in ev-
cry particular as you award to the
red handed rebel. My God, how
long, oh, how long, will the nation
be blind ? The way is clear. Do
justice give all men the rights of
manhood. | demand that you shall
give Robert Small the rights of a
man at least treat him as well as
the rebel Robert Lee. Come square
ly up to it | entreat you, boldly
meet the issue.


Radicalism is the hackneyed taunt
from the other side of the House. |
am called a radical" My ideas are
so characterized. Yoa ask me -
What do you want for the colored
man? reply, do you let the white
rebel go to school? claim that the
colored man shall go to school do