Newspaper Page Text
(Quitmau fanner.
F. R. FILDES, - - Editor.
„ qoitmai*, »so.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 4, l*<l7.
~ Capt lames It Moseley
1» onr «ntb<>ri*«l Gkmsnil Agent. to procure and
receipt for subscriptions and zatertulng for the
Quitman Ban at.
Reconstruction -Then mnl Now
A correspondent of the South Georgia'
Times, writing from Blackshear, In re
ferring to the past and present political
sentiments of the people in his section of
country, says that previous to the pas
sage, by Congress, of the second Supple
mental Bill, "many of ns were in favor of
the Convention,'’ "and wo had a hope
that through this Convention, tho poacc
and quiet so much needed in onr distrac
ted country, would be restored;” but the
recent tightening of the manacles has
caused a revolution of sentiment among
the people. Whereupon the Tlioinasviile
Enterprise concludes (and correctly)
that "reconstruction” has been "complete
ly knocked" out of "the Blackshear Con
vention men,” and ho is desirous to [know
•‘what the Qaitman Banner has to say in
defense of its editor’s eloquence Irefore
that august assembly of reconstruction
patriots and loyal men!”
Tbo required information will be furn
ished our eotemporarj with much pleas
ure: and although he may not appreciate
the origiual cause that prompted acqui
escence in the requirements of tho Mili
tary bill, doubtless ho will concede the
weight of\argnment that produced a
change of sentiment.
We were orio among thousands of good
men, who, believing had
tendered its policy for reconsu as
A finality, were willing to accept of, and
comply with its various .requirements
(although obnoxious,) in good faith. In
thus acquiesce g in thejdemands of an un.
just and unconstitutional law, it was dis
tinctly understood of all men, that the
sacrifice of principle was made for tho
parposo of restoring to our distracted
and unhappy country, the blessings of
peace and prosperity. The people had
become tired of turmoil, confusion, con
troversy, and the consequent decay and
run that had blighted every interest in
our political and social fabric. Congress
was omnipotent—its decrees irrevoca
ble; tbo Chief Exocutivo of the nation
was a man of words and not of acts —he
had permitted his hands to be manacled,
and was humbly following the destruc
tives’ Juggernaut car, obeying every
request and executing every dcoroe; tho
Supreme Court bad degenerated from its
once high and independent character and
become tho most subservient of tools’in
thejbauds of the dominant party; and tbo
poor, helpless, oppressed South was at
the mercy of political adventurers, sent
Aiming un Ua Miglit «*««! to ruin “Tho
situation” was gloomy In the extremo,
and naught but woe and Buffering was
foreshadowed for the future. Under these
circumstances, thousands were disposed
to follow the example previously set
before them by Georgia Legislators,
and unconstitutional as it was, and is,
eccept, as a dernier resort, the military
bill for the reorganization of the State
Government. Under the provisions of
said bill the people could hare assent I led
the best men of tho State in Convention,
and framed a Constitution (republican in
form) that would havo been agreeable
to tho masses, and probably, acceptable
to Congress.
With this result in view, good men
and truo deemed it politic to organize a
party, for the purpose of nuiting the pco.
pie, and defeating those whoso aim it is
to radicalize tho State The emissaries
of the Radical party were (and are) in
our midst, organizing “Union Leagues,”
and poisoning the minds of the ignorant.
Some action was demanded to counter
act these evils; and it was witli auoh
motives and designs, a few of our citi
zens (who had proclaimed thoir “ loyalty ”
to constitutional government by accept
ing amucsty at the hands of President
Johnson,) met at Blackshear; —and not
as insinuated by the EiUerprise, to
tender aid and comfort to the Radical
Republican party. Such imputation is
unjust and slanderous of good and dis
creet men, who are above reproach.
So far as our participation in said Con
vention is concerned, wo have no regrets
to express. We gave expression to the
honest sentiments of our heart; and that
we strove to be just to all, and serve
beet our shattered, suffering country, we
are free to let Heaven and men be the
judges.
But “times change, and men change
with them.” “Time destroys the specu
lations of man, but confirms the judg
ment of nature.” The motive that promp
ted us, iu the past, to advise the people
to accept of reconstruction in the mode
pointed out by Congressional statute,
has-been obviated by tiie adoption of
that most foul and unjust enactment of
the recent Congress, known as “Supple
mental Bill, No. 2.” Previous to the
passage of this hill, it was within the
power of the people iu every county iu
our State, to select good men to repre
sent them in a State Convention—men
who, although they had participated in,
and gave their services, their blood, their
property, and their sympathy to the “lost
cause”— could meet in legislative As
and by their wisdom and disere-1
tion enact aC-mu- itutiou. preservative of!
liberty, and just to every class and inter i
nst es society 'ftv, under this la t de
oree of a corrupt , agstrin t infamous ;
(SongresM*** ll mt u arc -' 1 ;i l wrl ‘-1
oipation in the rcorgptppatifir of tin? 1
government and the task is confided to
the base srii low bred Yankee ad-!
»nntnrfu,.-j Ijiitom, WLO
mother in the hour of trial, and the ig
norant, fanatical and degenerate negro.
Under such circumstances those who
favored acquiescence in the military plan
of reconstruction, are forced to change
their tactic*, or bpcome aiders and abet
tors to those who design to baiter the
liberties of the people lor a "mess of pot
age,” and elevate the negro above the
Caucasian race. It requires not the ken
of a prophet to foresee the character of
government that would bj framed by
men lost to honor and self-respect, or
those ignorant of the principles of law
and justice and influenced by passion and
averice.
In brief: the original reconstruction
acts were an outrage on constitutional
liberty, subversive of the rights of man,
and completely overthrew the sovereign
ty of the States; but, for the suke of
peace, tbo restoration of civil law and a
stable government, as well as a return
of social, agricultural, mechanical and
commercial prosperity, we were willing
to waive life-long prejudices and cherish
ed principles, and acquiesce. But under
the oppressive, outrageous and villain
ous interpretation placed upon said Acts,
by "Supplemental Bill, No. 2,” the
present and future social and political
interests of our country, force us to Spurn
it as we would a loathsome and venom
ous reptile. And to accomplish tho de
feat of so iniquitous measure, wo shall
ifso every effort to defeat tho holding of
the proposed State Convention.
The halier of the Couutrf •
There was a (day when the discussion
of political subjects waß both pleasing
and profitable. But that period is hur
ried in the memorable post, under the
debris of a shattered republic, and can
only bo exhumed by tbo patience, perse
verance, energy and labor of tbo South
ern mi . 1 Inral re
sources of the country must be further
developed, ero wc can make sensible the
intrinsic worth of this favored land, and
occupy a commanding position in the
administration of government. To do
this wo require more reliable labor than
that at prescut furnished by tho freed
men, who now till our lands. To-day,
from our sanctum window, wo see many
of these laborers dragging themselves
along with snail-like pace, or lounging
around the stores and street corners.
Day after day, and week after week, we
find them lounging around town, without
any visible means of support, and indif
ferent as to tho future. Now, there is
no evil without a remedy, nor wrong
without redress. Where is om remedy?
you ask. Across tho Atlantic there are
thousands of peasants, who would glad
ly, willingly and faithfully labor for us—
and by using propor enorgy, enterprise
and spirit, we can got them. Bring this
competing labor among us, and the pres
ent careless, indifforent and worthless
population would bo compelled to ac
cept one of wo alternatives: to change
their habits or lie down and perish
The system of free labor in tho South is
quite as now to us as to tho colored man.
The plain man and the colored man must,
alike, learn that they owe to each other
a mutual debt. Tlie plain man must
learn that to secure for himself faithful
service, he must require of the laborer a
certificate of good character from his
last employer. Tho colored man must
learn that to obtain a certificate of good
character, be must work dilligently and
constantly, obey with alacrity ond with
out murmuring tho reasonable wishes of
his employer, and to be honest in all the
transactions of life.
The most speedy and effectual means
of accomplishing this great desideratum,
is by the introduction of white labor. To
do this requires time. And therefore
nmo is the period to preparo for the com
ing year. Organize sooioties for the im
migration of labor, and send across the
Atlantic and offer inducements. Tlur
will insuro you good labor and result in
good crops. Os the labor now among us j
hire only those who can bring from their
last- employers certificates of good char
acter. Better, far better, permit your
lands to remain uncultivated, than sup
port the idle and dissolute negro, who
consumoa your substance, abuses your
stock, and fails, almost entirely, to give
you anything in return.
- - ■
Bloodshed in Tennessee.
We publish elsewhere full particulars
of a dreadful oonlliot, which recently
took place in East Tennessee. The Radi
cals, under the direction of the infamons
and traitorous Brownlow, appear de
termined to “rule or ruin.” They com
menced the work of death at Franklin,
have followed it up at Rogersvillo, and
if we mistake not, blood will How in eve
ry part of tire Slate on the day of elec
tion. The friends of constitutional liber
ty are determined not to be crushed fid
earth without a manly struggle,—and
the noble stand they bavo taken will be
applauded by good men everywhere.
A dispatch from Washington says
that Gen. Thomas had ordered all U. S.
troops in Kentucky to Tennessee, and
Gen. Graut lias sent reinforcements from
other points, aud expects to be present
himself ou the day of election, It is to
be hoped the presence of iho military
will prevent the iirownluw Radicals from
the commission of fraud and outrage;
but if not, wc trust and believe the true
men of that noble, but oppressed State, j
will put down the accursed spawns, even
though tliey are forced to wade through
blood.
CssST Gov. Pierpont, of Virginia, was !
assaulted in the Kxecutive mansion, on !
the 29th, by a lady. The telegi aph says 1
the jjoor man was not materially injured,
as tlie police oame to his rescue ami
took the lady' off. The Governor had
recently paid vert « «-an who had killed 4
Incendiary Document.
We learn that a Yankee emissary
(from whence he came or whither he
went we know not,) one night last week
repaired tojtlie colored cborelf in Quitman,
whilst a meeting was in progress, and
distributed among the freedmen a radi
cal electioneering document, purporting
to lie "the positions of the Republican
and Democratic parties” illustrated "by a
dialogue between a white republican and
a colored citizen,” and "published by the
Union Republican Congressional Com
mittee, Washington, D. C.” This docu
ment, which we have carefully read,
proves to be a tissue of lies, from begin
ning to end, but is couched in such lan
guage as will deceive the ignorant and
suspicious colored people, and prejudice
them against their late masters and
present friends.
Asa samplejof the hellish means re
sorted to by the base and corrupt men,
who are circulating these incendiary docu
ments wc present the following extract:
Q. What has the Democratic, Conser
vative or Copperhead party ever done
for tire Colored people ?
A. It has tried to keep them in slavery
and opposed giving them the benefit of
the Freedman’s Bureau, and Civil Rights
bills and the right to vote.
Q. Why cannot colored men support
the Democratic party.
A. Because that party would disfran
chise them, and if possible/return them
to slavery—-and certainly keep them in
an inferior position before the law.
Q. Would the Democrats make slaves
of the colored people again if they could?
A. It is fair to presume they would,
for they have opposed their freedom by
every means in their power and have al
ways labored to extend slavery.
Os course such clap trap will have
tho desired effect upon thousands of the
colored race, who are elated with the re
cently conlerred boon of “freedom,” and
being ignorant, are suspicious of their
late masters. Those who are blessed
with intelligence, iioncw, «. ho
influenced by such disreputable practice:
they are well aware that emancipation
was conceded in good faith, and that no
person on earth can revert them to slave
ry again. Possibly, a few of tho whites
would be pleased to have a return of the
ffeedmen to slavery, but the groat mass
of the people are utterly opposed to any
such measure.
We hope the intelligent colored men
in our midst, who are disposed to take a
correct view of "the situation,” will in
terest themselves in instilling correct
ideas in the minds of their brethren, and
thereby aid the whites] In neutral
izing the pernicious effects created by
such incendiary documents as tho one in
question.
Grant and Pope on Confederate
Paroles.
A paragraph is going the rounds of
the papers, as yet uncontradicted, to the
effect that Gen. Grant had written a let
ter to Gen. Pope, declaring his concur
rence in th* views of the latter, that a
Confederate officer who opposes tho Sher
mau-Sheilabai-ger Acts, violates his pa
role.
We have no idoa, says the Augusta
Chronicle & Sentinel, that either Gens.
Grant or Pope entertain any snch opin
ions. The absurdity of such a position
is so plain that no one who has the
slightest intellectual capacity, can fail (o
acknowledge it. A reference to the pa
role, whieb was given by the Confedor
ate soldiers, will demonstrate to any one
not willfully blind and ignorant, that our
officers and soldiers are not committed
to tho acceptance of these laws in any de
gree greater than all other citizens ot the
United States—that is, to support them
if they believe them to bo constitutional
and right—to reject them if they believe
otherwise. That wo aro right in this
view is shown by reference to tbo follow
ing parole, issued by Gen. Grant, and
which is the paper signed by tho Confed
erate army:
Headquarters U. S. Forces, )
“I, the undersigned, , a
■ of the , do solemnly
swear that I will not bear arms against
the United States of America, or give
any information, or do any military duty
whatsoever until regularly exchanged ns
a prisoner of war. -. Descrip
tion : heighth , hair , eyes
I certify that the abovo parolo was
given by me on the date above written,
on the following conditions : The above
named person is allowed to return to his
home, not to Undisturbed by the military
authorities of the United States so long
os he observes this parole and obeys the
laws which were in force previous to
January- 1, 1861, where he resided.
By order of Brig. Gen. . * '
Copt, and Provost Marshal.
The Result of Freedom
Infanticide is becoming a common
crime among the treed negroes. The fact
is, they are unable to support their off
spring and are forced to “get rid of
them.” Recently, in Columbia, Miss.,
nine babies were found in one well. Yan
kee philanthropist, who entertained such
horror of slavery, are indirectly respon
sible for these infanticides.
Interestin'!? Occupation. —As evidence
of what a stirring thing it was, in years
gone by-, to edit a southern paper, the
Vicksburg reviews its own
muster roll as follows : “Out of nine
editors five were shot or stabbed to
death, one drowned himself, one wrs se
verely wounded, ouc died of yellow fever
aud one had a prison experience.
teT* It is reported that General Siek
; les has arrested, several military- officers
An hie department for. meddling with
politics.
t&~ It is-.vported that 6,000 coolies
are shortly expected to arrive at New
Orleans, in accordance with an arrange
ment made by a Commissioner of the
<Vo*tia! (Worumen' with certain plant
ers in .Manama, t.untsjnnn ami icxhs.
New York Correspondence.
Stevens House, New York City, )
July 23d, 1867. )
F. R. Fiuies: Sir.—On Thursday,lthc
18thinst,,I left Savannah, on board the
safe, fust and elegant steamship, Gen.
Barries, belonging to the "Atlantic Coast
Mail Steam ship Company,” for which the
well known and reliable, Messrs. Wilder
& Fullerton are agents at Savannah,
and reached this city on Sunday night,
the 21st inst.
It is proper to state that this steamer
was heavily laden—having on board,
about 1000 bales of cotton, 5,000 bushels
of new Georgia wheat, a quantity of
vegetables, and last, but not least, about
50 line (at turtles, caught at Cedar Keys,
Fla., and sent to this market; moreover,
a North-east wind was blowing when
we left Savannah, and continued during
Jie whole trip, causing a current of at
at leaßt two miles an hour against us:
thereby retarding our speed consider
able.
It is also right tc speak of merit and
worth when richly deserved. The Cap
tain of this vessel, Thomas H. Morton, is
a gentleman in every sense of the word,
and he reflects great credit upon the re
sponsible position; and all who know
him, and have been out to sea with him,
speak of him in the highest terms, and
regard the Company as fortunate in se
curing tho services of such a courteous,
intelligent and accomplished man, wcil
adapted in every particular to the honor
able and responsible position he occupies.
A. T. Alexander, the Purser, is a true,
genuine, pleasant and accomplished gen
tleman, moving about among the “sea
sick” passengers, ministering to their
wants, and attending to the duties of his
office strictly: so much so, that the high
est encomiums fall from the lips of all
tho passengers, and all agreed that he
was the “right man in the right place.”
********
We were glad to have as a fellow trav
eler, the jovial, noblo hearted, jolly King,
recently in command of the Lizzie BaJcer 4 ,
also ono of tbo gentlemanly *nd popular
Aldermen of Savannah, F. L. Guy, and
our old Florida friend, Gen. E. Hopkins,
of Jacksonville. There were many othor
gentlemen and several ladies, all of whom
seemed to enjoy themselves, and feel
perfectly satisfied that this large, cleanly,
commodmiiß and elegantly fitted up
steamer would arrive safely in port, un
der the management and control of Capt.
Thos. 11. Morton.
I intend to go out among the business
men to-day, and will try to keep you
posted. I will return to Quitman in about
tbreq weeks.
In haste—more anon.
James L. Moseley.
New York, July 25th, 1867.
Mr. Fii.df.s: —As the merchants of
Southern Georgia and Middle Florida
will visit this city in a few weeks, to pur
chase their F.alt stock of goods, and as
they like to stop at a place convenient
to business, and where, at the same time,
they can be comfortably located at night,
when fatigued after the bustle and con
fusion of the day is passed, I deem it
right and proper to inform them, through
the Banner, where they can find that
place, adapted in every particular for the
accommodation and convenience of the
Southern merchant.
The "Stevens House” is emphatically
a home and a suitable resting place for
the Southern merchant. It is located on
Broadway, No. 23 to 27, and only a short
distanoefrom the principal houses where
onr men buy tbeir goods. I am truly
glad to see that the Prnpriotnsa, sit.™™
Chaoo & Cos., have recently made consid
erable improvements, and even now the
painters are at work from basement to
garret, making every room and passage
way look more neat and cleanly.
The front entrance is new large and
convenient, the Barbershop having been
removed to the basement, where a num
ber of barbers, expert and skilled in
their business, are ever ready to shave,
dress Lair or supply yon with a splendid
bath; the closets for the accommodation
of gontlomen are adjoining, and also a
fine billiard room, etc.
The reading-room, bar and dining
room are situated just as they were last
year; the sleeping rooms aro kept per
fectly clean and nice, for the Chamber
maids aro very attentive; and in fact, all
the servants are polite, courteous and
prompt in attendance upon tho call-bell,
a wink, nod, or request made by auy of
the guests.
The house is kept on the European
plan: you pay for a room, and eat when,
where and what you please—though tho
dining room is always open here, sup
plied with good servauts, all manuer of
conveniences, and you can get anything
sorvod up in fine style, which the market
affords.
Mr. G. K. Chase, ono of the proprietors,
is a gentleman in every seuso of the
word, aud tho guests are delighted to sec
him moving around occasionally, with
his bland and pleasant manners, looking
after tbeir comfort and supervising the
general affairs of tho house
The Cashier, Book-keeper, Clerk and
Bar attendants, are clever aud agreeable
gontlemen, ever ready to attend to your
wants, and impart information most
cheerfully to strangers.
This house advertises in tho Manner,
and I do hope that our friends and pa
trons will give it a trial when they visit
fliis city.
! Nothing new has occurred of interest
since I wrote, and therefore, good byo for
the present.
James L. Moseley.
The President and Congress.— The New
York Express has the following sensible
and very just views on the President’s
late veto message;
“It is ably written and unanswerable.
The President evidently feels his embar
rassment in being forced to violate the
Constitution in the execution of an act of
Congress, which he knows to be uncon
stitutional, and which he feels sure the
Supreme Court of the United States will
decide to be whenever they- can get it
through the form of the Court or of law.
If the President docs not violate the Con
stitution in the execution of the act, he
will be impeached next winter, and it is
for him to decide whether the honors of
the Presidi ncy are worth a violation of
the Constitution, or in other phrase,
whether posterity will acquit him of the
responsibility ol lurning a large portion
of his country over to military-despotism
through the apprehension of losing his
place.”'
Yf.rv True. —ln a speech published in
the Congressional Globe, Mr. Van Trump
speaks of West Virginia, as “a mean po.
litical foundling, without a. drop of con
stitutional blood in her veins '; an ille
gitimf.te star in our political constitution
conceived in s : n and born in the iniquity
rtf modern, republicanism,’-' &c
The Bloodiest Riot in the Annals j
of Tennessee.
Terrible Keene ton the Square at
Kodgervillc.
five Hundred men in dEadi y con
. fuel.
4 While Jlan and a Negro Klllrd, Seven Mor
tally wounded, and from Twenty-Are to
Thirty .More or Less Injured.
(From tbe Nashville Dispatch, 26th.)
Again the Boil of Tennessee has drunk
deeply of the blood of its persecuted citi
zens. The corpse of tbe martyred Cody
scarce grows cold, ere the tidings of a
still more sanguinary conflict than that
which placed Franklin in mourning,
comes to us from East Tennessee.
On a branch of the East Tennessee and
Virginia Railroad, leading from Rodcrs
ville, Junction, is tbe little village of
Rodgersville. It is the capital of Haw
kins eonnty, and about seven hundred
inhabitants and is distant sixty four miles
from Knoxville, tbe home of Brownlow.
Like many other places in Tennessee it
has its clique of Radical time servers,
who are as bitter and relentless in their
hatred of everything Conservative, as
Satan is in hatred of everything good.
It has been announced through the
newspapers that on Tuesday of this
week Emerson Etheridge, the conserva
tive candidate for Governor of Tennessee
would address the people at that place,
and when the announcement reached the
village the Radicals swore that he should
never mount the stand to speak to a
crowd there as long as trusty guns and
menlwho",would use them conld be found.
These threats of repeated outrage how
ever, failed to move the great Conserva
tive chief one jot, and he determined up
on filling bis appointment, come what
may. Everybody anticipated trouble,
and when the day arrived the people
poured forth from all quarters, armed
with muskets, shot-guns, revolvers and
other weapons, the Radicals bent on riot
and blood, and the Conservatives deter
mined Vo defend themselves to the last
should they be assailed.
With one o’clock came Etheridge, and
a mass of not less than five hundred, half
of then, colored, gathered about tbe
court house on the square to listen to
his speech. As he proceeded, his teirtble
denunciation and thorough exposition of
Brownlow corruption fired the Radical
heart to such a degree that he had spo
ken but an hour when one of his senten
ces was picked np by Tom King, a no
torious partisan, who shouted back,
‘‘That’s a d—d lie 1” Not knowing who
had flung the cowardly insult into his
teeth, Mr. Etheridge hurled back a with
ering epithet, which he scarce had utter
tered ere a whistling bullet cut the air
in dangerous proximity to the place
where lie was standing and this shot was
quickly followed by others in all parts of
the assemblage. The crowd at, once
broke the Radicals, moving rapidly to
ward ono side of the square, shouting
and yelling like demons of the lower pit,
and the Conservatives going in an op
posite direction, both parties firing as
they went. They soon drew up in posi
tion and the work of death began in earn
est, volley after volley of minie balls
large and small shot, and the contents of
numberless revolvers being poured in in
rapid successh u, every round carrying
wounds and death into tho ranks of the
combatants until they began to waver,
break into squads and movo from the
square, keeping up a scattering fire as
they slowly retreated.
Mr. Etheridge, holding in his hands a
revolver. stood firm throughout, never
moving an inch from the positiou he bad
first taken.
The battle lasted about twenty min
utes by which time the square was clear
ed and only random shots were boing
fired in other portions of the village.—
The first man to fall was a white Con
servative, a bullet crashing through his
brain and killing him instantly. A Rad
ical negro was tho next, a ball entering
his side and passing nearly through him
He died in a few minutes after he fell.
Seven other persons were mortally woun
wounded, while twenty-five or thir
ty received wounds more or less serious.
Tho wounded we re conveyed to a hotel,
where they remained until other means
could be provided lor their care. It is
said the Radicals suffered most but we
have learned nothing reliable in regard
to their loss.
As soon as the firing ceased, Mr. Eth
eridge left the courthouse and proceeded
to his hotel. He left town by the night
train for Sneedsville, to fill on appoint
ment there.
Trouble is anticipated in other portions
of East Tennessee, as in many places
the Brewnlowites have sworn that Mr.
Etheridge shall not speak, but he will
not for a moment shrink from the duty
before him. He will neither be intimid
ated by their threats* nor driven away
by their ballets. No such measures of
tho Brownlow despotism can put down
free speech in Tennessee, though backed
by all the ragged militia in his despica
ble service.
There were mmors yesterday of more
trouble at Rogersville, but we could gath
er no reliable information to that effect.
Early in the Field.
W o are informed by a colored freeman
(not freedman) that Aaron Sweat, vs
Marlboro’ District, (another colored free
man,) who has always enjoyed all the
privileges of a white man, is a candidate
for Congress in this Congressional Dis
trict. That he has made several ap
pointments, at which he has been met by
crowds of freedmeD, to whom he has
made electioneering speeches. In these
speeches he tolls the freedmen that he
gets his papers from the West, informing
him that the Radicals are butchering all
the old sesessionists, mee, women, and
children, and argues that the same must
be done here, and that now is the time
to do it. There are other native born,
uatural orators, of African descent, who
also address these meetings, using equal
ly violent and incendiary language. Oue
of these, by- the name of Prince, a brick
layer by trade, is also in the field as a
candidate tor the convention. There
can be no doubt that if the facts, as rela
ted to us, were officially communicated
to General Sickles, that he would atouce
teach them a lesson they would not soon
forget —Cheraic Advertiser.
The proprietors of a hotel at Richmond i
Indiana, advertise under the head oft
“Personal” the dates names and residence j
of parties who have lelt their cstab-:
lishment, leaving small amounts due. |
It is a novel way of 001 l etiug “unset-1
tied hotel bills,” believe iu advertising !
all the time;— £xvkange.
Perhaps publishers might profit by the |
foregoing suggestion. Some of ns could }
make a long list of delinquents. Don’t
compel us to resort to this “novel way j
of collecting” subscription and adver-tis-!
inc bills
Staud by tbe Coustitutiou,
Frotn the Richmond Enquirer.]
The question which the country is
now deciding, and the decision of which
the South is called ou to take a part,
is of an importance byoud calculation or
comparison. Constitutional Government
is fu Issue. Constitutional Government
is now suspended ; and the question is,
Sha(lthe sleep bo death? 'lhe will of
tbe majority in Congress this day, is
reared above all other authorities and all
oppos ng prescriptions; aud it is attempt
ed to establish it permanently as the
supreme and only law of the land.
This usurpation is tolerated because
its immediate aim and object are in har
mony with the passions of a majority of
the Northern people. But against noth
ing does histoiy sound a more emphatic
warning than pursuing a temporary pur
pose through a fundamental change.-
The expedient contrived for the oppresion
of the South to-day will hereafter be
turned in lull force against other quar
ters. In alt popular governments ma
jorities are fluctuating. The triumphant
party or faction of yesterday is tbe van
quished party of toMay ; and the expedi
ents of persecution which it had employ
ed when in power, pass from the oppres
sor to tiie oppressed, for a reverse appli
cation. The only safety for him who sits
on the summit of power is to improve bis
opportunity to hedge authority within
strict limits and guards so that he may
be able to resign it without uneasiness
or peril.
The people of this country are not
acting on this rule now. They aro in
venting engines against their opponents
which will in turn, be thoir own destroy
ers. They are breaking down all barri
ers and restraints on the power of a Con
gressional majority, and all other author
ities State and Federal, to its absolute
sway. They are reducing the Govern
ment from a constitutional Republic to a
despotic oligarchy, all the worse ior 1e-
Ing elective, because therefore, ever
changing and ever hungry. They are
doing for the United States what Nero
could only wish for as to Rome. They
are making one nock of all tbe people,
and putting the sword in the hands of
Congress
While the majority in Congress are
thou employed, they have numerons rev
olutionary co workorslamong those other
wise opposed to them. "We havo no
Constitution now,” is the cry ou every
hand. “It is vain to oppose Congress any
longer* Better pay no honor to the Pres
idential office or its incumbent ; for Con
gress will persecute those who treat the
executive authority with the least res
pect. Make no appeal to tho courts for
the protection they were ordained to af
ford—for it will irritate Congress, and
draw from it fresh violences.” Thus
from lawless ambition on the one hand
and timorous compliance on the other,
the multitude of all parties are uniting
to recognize and enthrone a revolution in
our system of government more fatal
than the despotism of Sultan or Czar, and
more disastrous than the combined hor
rors of war, pestilence and famine.
Suppose the overthrow of the Consti
tutiou and the despotic sway- of Congress
be recognized and established—what
then ? Alas and alas for the country
thenceforth! The issue on which the parly
at present in power has maddened and
misled tho country cannot be made avail
able forever or much longer. Some new
question will divide the people, and the
present outs will be the ins. And they
will come to the rule smarting under tho
wrongs and indignities they have sufor
i»d, and burning with the spirit of retali
ation. These, in their turn, will finally
give place to their rivals, with tbeir
wrongs to redress and fresh cruelties to
indulge.
In short the country will be torn byjcom
pleting factions, alternately triumphant
and developing fresh feuds and grow
ing bitterness byl their retaliations and
revenges. The country under snch a rule
would be like a boatrockiug under the
rush of the crew from side to side alter
nately, soon to dip and finally to floun
der !
Suppose the opponents of the Radicals
were to come into power to-morrow. It
would be a marvel of public virtue and
disinterestedness were they to proceed
at once to repair the bulwarks and de
fences of the Constitution and restore the
rule of the law. Mr. Stanton has tinkled
his little bell into many ears that have
not forgotten it, and longs to treat him
to similar music. Stanton has sent many
men to prison who aro burning to re
vi nge it. The leadens in Congress have
expelled too many men for ,tli6ir opinion
and have abused the forms of the Consti
tution to personal ambitions and perse
cutions, too often and too long, not to
provoke retaliations. The representative
or Radical States nave made too free with
States whoso political complexions did
not suit them, not to have tanght their
adversaries a similar mode of pursuing
party advantage. “New England will
suffer for all this some day !” is the cry
already. The plea of popular govern
ment will be sufficient to justify the
running ofthe six Now England States
into one when the Constitution shall
ceaso to guard them ; for if the States
are but as counties, they should be rep
resented in the Senate as in the Honse,
according to numbers.
Con any one calmly contemplate the
result of this revolution, which the am
bitions and persecuting on the ©no hand
and the cowardly and compliant on the
other, are assisting to consumate? Shall
wc be continually torn by the periodic
al contest of parties when the success of
either brings in afresh and anew the
horrors of a restoration ? Shall such
factious as for long years bathed
Rome in the blood of her chief citizens, j
tear and distract and desolate this coun
try by their struggles aud revenges ?
For ourselves, we tremble at the
thought, and the prospect! And
we conjure all who agree with ns in
dreading an evil so enormous, a de
struction so dreadful, to unite in the
only means of preventing it—the main
tenance of the Constitution. It will not
do to abandon it in despair of its vin
dication or iu pursuit of unmanly re
pose. Cass uttered an exhortation do
less applicable now than formerly, and
none the less so because he himself ceas
ed to honor it when he said, "Let us
cling to the Constitution as the shipwreck
ed mariner clings to his plank, when
night and the tempest close around.”
No good citizen, no true man, can con
sent to give up the Constitution or join in
treating it as a nullity. It is a crime to
do so—a crime against law, against
liberty and against heaven. It is our
duty to re pcct and support it; to concede
to others the rights it secures to them,
and to demand those it secures to our
selves. We have no right to abnegate
our obligations i r abdicate our rights. It
may be that our efforts to sustain the
Constitution may be nuvailing. It may
be that the torrent of revolution now
aud sacred, may not
Let the Constitution be
nrt concurrencii of ours. la-1
forth efforts such as
allow, and save if We can for owTelvez
and for our children, the princeuKs tuber
itance of constitutional government, the
noble fabric of liberty regulated at<l pro
tected by law, which onr fatliers found;
Let us at least lend no hand in tearing
it down. Let this, ifit must be done,hi*
the work of others. Then ours will be
at worst the c insolation. “If Rome fallj \
I am innocent 1” -
Confederate Numbers in tlie War/
An abstract of the returns of tbe Con
federate armies, shows that the greatest
number of soldiers of all arms and ranks *
on the rolls at one time was 550,000;
tbe greatest number present for duty at
any one time was 300,000, and then only
for a brief period besides a few thousand
rangers and bushwhackers. At only
three periods did Ixie’s army number 100)-'
000 present for duty. When McClellan,
with 147,000 men feared to advance to-'
wards Manassas, supposing the enemy
had 150,01)6 men, their actual force wad
less than 40,000. .
When McClellan reached the peninsula,
says the Cincinnati Gazette (Radical),
and was held in check at Yorktown by
Magruder, with what he supposed to be
the \ylole rebel army, Magruder had
barely 15,000. When he reached the
Cbickahomiuy with over 100,000 men,
and feared to advance because he estima
ted the enemy’s force at over 200,000
they had but*47,ooo, which was increas
ed in May to 67,000. When Meade
reached the Rappahannock, after Gettys
burg, with 80,000 men, Lee had but 45,-
000 men. This was when llalleck wasr
directing operations, and he forbade tho
offensive. In OctobeT, when Meade had*
70,000 and Lee 15,000 Meade was driven
back within sight of Washington.
There are many other figures in these
returns which will be found more inter-'
estiug, historically, than gratifying, to'*
military pride. In spite of our prepon
derance of numbers the rebels generally
managed to be strongest at the point of
attack. Our triumph was not achieved
by military genius in the commauders,
but by the patient endurance aud most
lavish sacrifice of the men, andjby an ex
penditnre of means as if the national
resources had no limit.— N. Y. Tribune.
Hold Talk.
Col. Frank Wolford who was one of the
bravest and most active among tlie Fed
eral Cavalry leaders in Kentucky during
i the late war, has come out very decided
! Iv for the Democrats, aud in a late speech
! at Jamestown, in that Mate, is reporter!
I to have used the following language :
“I ever was and am a Union man and
j desire to see every State in our Govern
ment represented by a star upon the
American flag. Those who arc opposed
to this are disnnionists and rebels in the
true sense of those terms. If the Radical
candidate, Barnes, should be elected fair
ly, I say, let him take his seat ; and if
Helm should be elected.any power that at
tempts to resist his inauguration, as soon
as tlie electric fires flash the news through
the country a million of American citi
zens will rise and assert their power,
and rights, and I will buckle on my
sword, march to tho conflict without
counting tho cost, and proclaim to the
world that "Americans will be freemen
and not slaves.”
This is bold talk on the part of one
who fought for the ■‘Union” during the
war Tho address was received with
great cheering by the large audience in
attendance upon its delivery, and, says
the correspondent of the Louisville Cou
rier, from which wc make the loregoing
extract, “told too plainly to the few Rad
icals present, that their cause is almost
demolished hero and that Kentuckians
were getting in high earnest” —adding
that ‘if the election was put offa few days
longer, Radicalism even in the mountain
eouuties would sink into perfect insigni
ficance.”
One hundred thousand majority is
claimed against the Radical candidate
for Governor in Kentucky.
Southern ts- Northern Prisons-
We never have, permitted the old song
of “Andersouvnic” to go forth uurebuked.
It is unnecessary to repeat the reasons
given for the calamities of the Confeder
ate prisons; they were such as the North
forced upon us. It is equally unneces
sary fio reiterate that while the- South
had a thousand excuses for the misery
prevailing in tier military goal, the North
had not one single palliation for the bar
barities practiced at Elmira, Point Look
out, Johnson’s Island, and Fort Delaware.
The final proof of greater cruelty at the
North is from Mi. Stanton himself. In
hlo ropert to Coi.gicns, July 19th, 1866,
he testifies that of Southern prisoners
who died in Northern prisons the tiumlter
was 26,436; of Northern prisoners who
died in Southern prisons, the number
was 22,6*16 This lccord, from the Fed
eral Secretary, speaks for itself. Excen--
tional cases of flagrant wrong (■'‘OJ.w
nothing; but the vast aggregate
all. When the North has matched ita
prison dead with ours—and surely the 1
life or an-Aranriran soldier of the South
is quite as valuable as the life of a for
eign mercenary of the North—we still
have nearly four thousand graves with
out offsets and without avengers. — Jour,
and Afesstn.
TnE Constitutional Amendment. —The-
Washington correspondent of the Char
leston Courier, writes ;
The President’s reference to the fact
that the constitutional amendment re
specting negro suffrage has not been
adopted, opens an interesting question.
It can never be adopted except by milita
ry force under the Military Governments
already established in the ten States now
excluded, and also by applying the same
force to Kentucky, Maryland, Delaware
aud Connecticut. If thus adopted,
through fraud and force, it will be set
aside as illegal at no distant day. A
great revolution in political parties will
occur in from two to six years, iu which
the suffrage question will be tho main
issue. The struggle will probably eud
in the restoration to each State of the
control of suffrage within its limits.
The public debt is going up at the'
rate of over twenty-four millions a month
That is only two hundred and forty mil
lions a year ! Cheap enough, certainly,
for a grand experiment of tufufog white
men into negroes, and changing the
American into an African system ol gov-1
ernmeut. l
New Cotton. —The Savannah News &
Herald, of Saturday, says that the first 4
bale of new cotton was received in that!
city the day previous, from the
tion of Mr. R. M. Henry, of Jefferson!
county, Florida It was an inferior
■U a- «*