Year: 1865

4 - AOS RiOPOcS Lhdb AO


credit equal to the white man, but leaves
his credit where the credit of all witness
| es is left with the court and jury trying
| the cause. This is not equality politically


o: sociallo. Tuers is in fact no such thing


as equality in testimony. Every witness
called has the rue of law applied to his


credloIiltA and is controlled by the circun


sfarces surrounding each particular tran,


Then L think | have shown that allowing


the negroes competency does not give


him political equality


No" come 10 enquire it 1t gives him


social equality. To associate together on


terms OF equality, is perhaps the hrst


step IN that direction. This Is provided
for in the vagrant bill, now before the
| House, and is positively prohibited, under


stringent penalties. This strikes at the


root of the whole question of social equal
ity. Another step in that direction Is the
privilege OF lnternarrying together: Inns
! is provided for by section TO this bill


introduced hy myself Then sir, II We


guard the franchise and the social rela-


tions of the two aces, by stringent penal


ties, how is it thatgentlemen are SO alarm


ed on account of equality?


But there is sill another view to be


taken of this question Our people are


looking to US win breathe suspense to


relieve them from the pressure which Is
upon them, and avert the evils that are


threatened. What is our condition.


The war has swept off all our available


resources, AMI destitution hangs


like an ineubusupon our people. With


An army in our midst and the writ OF


haeeas corpus suspended. the last vestige


of civil liberty is gone. No people can


be free, prosperous or happy, with an


armed force in their midst, holding the


civil in su ordination to the military au-


thoriry. What have been its effect on our
people. has not all their energies been


paraliz1d by it; are not our people depress


ed, as no other people has ever been de


pressed; can they be free, happy, or pros


porous. while it continues? There is a


conti CT of civil and military jurisdiction


1t is impossible, it should be otherwise,


as long as the military remains Why


are they here? Is any one so igno


rant as not to know that it is for the pro


tectlon of the negro. This then is the


tact of the case. and it is to our legislature


that our people are looking as their
| "gents, to relieve them from these alarm.


ing encumbrances. But it is said that


the military courts have not the constitu
1


and what relief does it give you? The


citizen is arrested by military authority,


and he appears before the tribunal, pro


vided for his trial, with the constitution


in his hand and demands his rights. The


officer would laugh in his face, the writ


Of habeas corpus. the great safety valve


for the people, in times of excitement,


g suspended and where is his redress
| Sir, We must look at this question as it is,


in an impartial point of vIew-look at the


facts that are staring US in the face, and
| try to make ourselves equal to the emer-
gency. Mrs. Surrat held up the constitu-
| ion and laws in her case-her right un
| der the law was clear but yet she was
executed, having the right, but not be-
| ing able to enforce it. And to day, sir
the military may take any case, or any
party out of the hands of the civil courts,
| md where is the citizens redress? Do
YOU answer, they are protected by the
Constitution and Laws of the Land? They
air, can set them at defiance, and you loose
your life, liberty and property, and have
no redress


| sir urge this committee to pursue an
enlightened policy, come up 10 the crisis
md look it in the face. Relief is the
right of our people-we are the agents to
whom they look and we must sacrifice
prejudice and passion, and we all have
prejudice, the prejudice of education,
not that NPeoieo Of PTej judice which wishes
this unfortunate race Ill. | sir, have for
my negroes an attachment. | feel that |
owe them much-they were the or ly pro
lection ofmy family during my absence
in the army. Ny prejudice is against
negro character. | am OF opinion that
they will now retrogade rapidly Their
normal condition is slavery, for this they
were created and to this condition the
Almighty will ultimately bring them
But sir, in a crisis like this, we must rise
above prejudice and come up TO the reli
of the people. We must strike off this
incubus. we must give our constituents
time to breathe.


But sir, the question of negro testimony
is practically established. We have it
upon US and we must control it. Now.
sir, we all know that the Freedmens
Bureau has been exercising civil iurisdic,
ton and admitting the negro to testify.
grant that this Is gross usurpation of
power. But what does it signify when |
am powerless t. resist it ? What was the
reason assigned for assuming this iuris
diction? Was 1t not because in our
conrts the negro was not a competent
witness? This jurisdiction has been sur
rendered to our courts, but why was it
done Was it not because by the proc
lamation of the Provisional Governor the
couris We're directed to receive this testi
mony2 Now sir, if this bill fails in that
respect, does not the same reason exist |
to reassume it thst existed for it's intro |
duction?


The war has swept over our State. and |
IN its train all our resources are gone
our energies paralyzed, and what we have
Is lying dormant, and how is it to be de.
veloped Our people have the shackles
on their limbs and are not in a condition
to do anything. Strike off their fetters
let them have the use of the limbs that
God gave them and they will dig out OF
the earth her hidden treasures and
again be prosperous. The civil iurisdic>
lion of this Bureau has been surren>
1ered for cause. and if we remove the
cause this jurisdiction will be resumed
What then will be the effect Will we
not have negro testimony still Bnt we
Will not have the control of it. The
rial of the rights of our eeople will be
,laced in the hands of an ignorant. un
1rincipled Yankee lieutenant. who ia on
he same platform with the negro vet
ievoid even of the negroes principle.
4 gain let me urge mem bers of this com
nittee to look well to this ouestion-di-
'est themselves of prejudice and legislate
With an eye to the good of the people