Year: 1877




ruling spirit, being AN imbittered par


tisan, holding q Federal Office with


salary of about 81, 600 per annum, will


a claim against the Government Of


several hundred thousand dollars, anC


his son holding an office also with /,
salary of $2. 800? Does any sane man be
/ lieve that this whole wretched busines!
of counting Louisiana for Hayes was
the spontaneous action of Wells and
company, unprompted and uninspireC
by leading men in the Republican par
ty, who make pretentiOns to respecta-
! bility, but who, if justice we're meted
out to them, would to-day stand on a
level in public estimation with the
iisic1 SSct;;ssd -hcsc acts their crimes
are concealed? That celebrated board
was not altogether unknown to fame,
or rather to infaIhy, before they were
called upon to count the vote between
Hayes and Tilden. Distinguished
members of the Republican party, at
| a time when no glittering Presidential
prize warped their judgments or si-
fenced the voice of conscience, had
spoken of this board in terms not cal
culated to commend it to the favorable
consideration of the American people.


A crisis had come in the fortunes of
the Republican party, when every man
was expected to do his duty to save it
from dissolution and the patronage of
the Government from passing into
other hands. That victorious party
that had lorded it over this country as
no party had ever dared to do before;
that claimed that they had saved the
country, aud it, therefore belonged to
them by right of conques.; that had
ignored nearly every provision of the
Constitution, except the amendments
incorporated therein by themselves;
that had crushed States of the Ameri-
can Union as egg shells beneath the
iron heel of military power; this
great party at last felt the scepter slip
ping from its grasp and the control of
the Government insecure in its posses
sion. Before the great political tor
nado of 1874, their splendid two thirds
majority in Congress went down, and
in the popular branch of the National
Legislature an appalling Democratic
majority confronted them. The lead
ers of the party saw in the last Presi-
dental election that it would never do
to risk its fate to the calm and unim-
passiOned judgment Of the people upon
its merits The bloody shirt, at an
early day, was uniurled as the only
ensign under which they could hope to
conquer. The skeletons of the war
were all dug up, and placed on exhibit
ton toinfame and frighthen the north
ern masses. Itinerant defamers of the
South strobe the stage from East to
West. Every appeal that could arouse
the dying passions Of the great strug-
gle; every slander of the motives and
purposes OF the Southern paoPle that
could catch a vote every mlsrepre-
sentation that would pay, all were
brought into requsition to hide the
record Of the party and save it from
defeat. The changes were rung on
solid South from the Atlantic to the
Pacific Ocean. The rebel Democracy
were represented as about to get con-
troll of the Government and murder
all the negroes, and an army Of South
ern claimants was portrayed as prepar-
ing to march on the Capitol with claims
against the Government amounting to
so many millions that many an honest
Republican taxpayer of the North,
unaware Of the game which the press
and speakers of his party were playing,
lost long and weary hours In anxious
thought which ought to have been
given to refreshing sleep.


The distinguished gentleman from
Maine having, contrary to the opinion
of his physicians, recovered sufficient
ly from his severe sun-stroke in Wash
ington, to take field, mounted every
stump in his way. and made the welkln
ring with the slogan of a solid South
and Southern claims. He spoke of the
Southern members upon this floor as
set of fellows or racalS-I do not re-
member which term he used-who
walked into this Capitol and hung up
their hats with as mach impudence
as if they had right to be here. This
was regarded by his loyal listeners as
a good hit, and was received by them
with great laughter and applause. 1t
was certainly ii truthful illustration of
the broad patriot spirit which animated
the campaign on the Republican side.
One thought consoles me under the
gentlemens sarcasm. No Southern
member has ever hung a hat up IN this
Capitol that was purchased with the
proceeds of railroad bonds or money
made from a speculation in Henry
rifles while he was a member of Con-
gress. When that distinguished gen.
tleman shall demand Of the J Judiciary
Committee of this House that the in
vestigation, adjourned at the last ses-
sion of Congress, shall proceed, he will
then be at liberty to turn up his celes-
tial nose at other men, but not till
then.


Even the distinguished candidate of
the Republican party for Vice -Presi-
dent, Mr.. Wheeler, while addressing
an uninformed audience away up in
the mountains Of Vermont, in his zeal
to save himself and his party from de-
feat, so far forgot what was due to sim
pie Justice as to say that he had sat in
his seat in this Chamber and heard
Abraham Lincoln maligned by rebel
Congressmen. | state here to-day,
what no man can deny, when say that
Mr. Wheeler never heard the name of
Abraham Lincoln pronounced by
Southern member of this Congress
save in terms of the utmost respect.
[ aliude to these incidents of the Presi-
dental campaign as illustrative of the
determination of the Republican party
to leave no stone unturned, no appll-
ance untried, to win the election, and
of their undying repugnance to relax
ing their grasp upon the power and
patronage of the government. But,
Notwithstanding all, when the battle
was over they found themselves van
quished in the open field. Their can
didate was fairly defeated, and Samuel
j. Tilden was as truly elected Presi-
dent of the United States as any Of
the distinguished men who have ever
occupied the position. By popular
majority Of quarter of million the
American people had pronounced
against Hayes and Wheeler. There
was weeping and wailing and gDashiDg
of teeth in the ranks of the party Of
great moral ideas when this result was
known. To perpetuate their power
they had conferred the right Of suffrage
upon the colored man, with perfect in
difference to any ill effects it might
have upon the prosperity and welfare
of the South, or rather with grim
satisfaction that it vas punishment
to rebels while it sWelled the ranks of
their party. But in making the negro
voter they added about twenty mem
bers of Congress from the Southern
States. The election disclosed the
terrific fact that the colored men were