Year: 1866

Senator COwan, Of Pennsylvania


1n reply to Charles Summers
Attack Oh tho President.


We last week published the speech Of
Thaddeus Stevens on reconstruction To


day We publish the remarks Of Senator
Cowan, a member Of the same party in


Congress, OH the condition Of the southern


States Mr. Cowan in his reply said,- =
Mr.. President / am not disposed to al
low the speech of the honorable Senator
from Massachusetts (Mr. Sumner) to go to


the country without a very brief reply
If the speech be true. and if it be cor
rect picture OF the south, then God help


Us; then this republic, this Union. is at an


end; then the great war which We waged


for the Union was folly; then all the


blood and treasure which we have expen-


ded in that war, in order to restore our


selves to companionship with the people


Of the south. have been equally follies.


But Mr.. President, is it true? Or is not


this series Of eT porfe statemepts, made


up by anonymous writer's; people


who arc down there more than likely


stealing cotton; people who are down there


in the enjoyment Of place and power; peo-


pie who are interested that the disturbed


condition Of things which exist there now


shall always continue, because they make


profit by it? Is there any man who has


had any experience in the trial Of causes
any man who knows any thing about


the nature OF eyiicncc-who docs not


know the hon orabie senator could have
sent his emmissar;cs into any on, county
in the lately rebell;ous States. AMI gather
the expressions OF knayes and fools and
discontented single idead people, far more
than he has given us in this speech


We are told here Of the exceptional in
stances Of bad conduct on he part Of the
people of the south Why. what large
volume it would take to hold all shat. If
4 man were to go about anywhere il the
loyal States and hunt up what he suppos>
ed to be reasonable expressions. how many
could he find And yet We are treated to
all this here as # it was The whole OF the
evidence in the case One man cut Of ten
thousand is brutal to negro. and that is
paradcd here as a type OF the whole people
of the south, whereas nothing is said OF
the other nine thousand nine hundred and
men who treat the negro well.
One man expresses & great deal OF di.sat>
isiaction Al the present state OF affairs. and
that is paraded here, while nothing is said
cf the other ten thousand men who are
eontcnted 70 accept it and make the most
Of it.


What tLen. ere we to DO We are to
suppose that the people Of the southern
States lately in rebellion, have conn on
sense; aud when their utterances are in
accordance with what is COMMON sense
and the dictate Of their own interest, we
have right to presume it to be true. Bnt
according 10 what we have just heard, ev>
cry thing that has come from the people Of
these States, and from their public bodies,
from representatives OF these people, is to
be taken as false; and why? Because
some cotton agent, some correspondent of
n radical newspaper in the north, some of
fcc-holIer who has been making profit of
the state of things there chooscs to say it
is false. The hcresy of state rights is not
destroyed there, the honorable senator says.
Have we not heard from almost all the
public men of the south that that question
was put to the arbitrament OF the sword;
hat they have lost and that they submit
Have they not acquiesced in the abolition
Of slavory-tlat thing Of all others which
was the last, III the opinion Of every body,
hat they would submit to! But still fur


1, ton i al
what they are. What are they? What
IS wanted! Every body admits that the
negro ought to have his natural rights se-
cured to him believe all the moderate,
men Of this chamber are fully
agreed that every man should have his
natural rights securcd-the right to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness; the
protc, ton of property, limbs and reputa-
ton, that he should have the right to sue
and be sued, and to testify in courts of
Justice. The negro has not hitherto been
allowed in the southern States to testify
il courts Of justice, and why? Because
he was q slave, and if had been citizen
Of the southern States when slavery pre-
vailed there | would have resisted his right |
W tcSllly Ill COuCtS. ~ NitUcSSs, Ikc
voter, ought TO be free man; he should
not belong to another man. What chance |
would a litigant have against the master
Of slaves if the slaves could testify? III
seems to me that the slave ought not to
testify for the same reason that the wife
ought not to testify cither for or against
the husband Wouid you ask a negro to
testify against his master, to 90 back to that
master and be subjected to his ill-will be,
cause Of his testimony? Would you al
low him to testify for the master as against
a party on the other side? Certainly not.
But now this state Of things has passed
away. Now the people Of the Southern
States themselves, so far rs ! understand.
arc in favor of opening the Courts to all
these classes of people. And air, they
must open them for their security. | am
willing to leave that to themselves; their
own interest will compel them to allow all |
people to testify unless they are excluded
by those disabilities that have heretofore
excluded witnesses from testifying. Ifthe
honorable member from Massachusetts and
those who think with him desire that these
people should have the right Of su ffraco