Year: 1867

w "
franklin county:


To thesC Colored People OF
( Franklin County.
j Having promised Mr.. Colyal


that | would attend a meeting of
/ the colored people at Winchester


but finding it impossible, from


the fact of an appointment having


been made for me by my friends
in my old county, (Maury,)


have concluded to write you a


letter, giving you briefly my views


about the public matters in which


we are now interested.


/ am a Conservative, and for


many weeks have been hard at


work to, convince my colored fel-


low-citizens of their true interests,


and to show them, as far as /


could, how important it was for


them to act with the Conserva-


tive party in the coming election.
! am doing this through no de-
signing motive, but for the good
Of my people. | am an old man,


and have not long to live. l have
spent good deal OF my time at


Washington City, and know many
of the public men of both sec
tions Of the country. and I be-
lieve the true interest of the COL
ored man is to live in friendship
with the people among whom God
in His providence has cast our
lot. Our people are scattered
over eleven States, and all mum:
Der about 100000.


Our final home is obliged to be
among the white people-who
number ten or twelve millions, of
these eleven States. The climate
North does not suit our race, and
if it did, the people there are not
favorably inclined toward our
emigrating there. If we were in
the Northern States in large num-
bers a violent opposition would
spring up by the laboring classes
of that country because we would
be competitors for employment.
We will never be content to be
sent away into an unsettled coun-
try and colonized, though this is
what Governor Brownlow pro-
posed to do with us since he has
been Governor, and before he con-
cluded to make voters of us in
order to keep himself and his
friends in power.


This country is our home
Here we hope to be buried; and
in this country, and among these
ten or twelve millions of white
people, we expect to leave behind
us, when we are dead and gone,
our children.


Now, the great question is, and
the one which has given me lately
so much trouble, has teen my
thoughts by day, and
my dreams by night-Shall the
two races living here upon the
same soil, be friends or enemies?
If / turn against the white peo-
pie and help to keep them down,
and deprive them Of their rights,
just so that a few Radicals can
hold Office, / know that when |
they get free they will curse me
in their hearts, aud that not with |
put cause. The Government of
the United .States has pardoned |
almost everybody who had any |
thipe to do with the rebellion; |
and in the States South of us only |
. fewsof the people are cut off |
from voting. But here, in Ten
aesses.the Radical party seems
to be a thousand times more bit
.er than anywhere else in the
United States, and they are al
ready defying the United States,
md are imposing terms on the
people much more severe than
he United States is doing. They
nave, for the time, deprived most
If the white people from voting,
md yet they make all pay heavy
axes and support the government.


After making law which is
severe one, they undertook to
,onfer upon the Governor the
light to set aside all the voters
n any or all the counties; and
he whole thing of voting they
undertook to PUT in the hands of
he Governor. This is an abso- |