Rensselaer Republican, Volume 18, Number 7, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 October 1885 — “THE BLOODY SHIRT.” [ARTICLE]

“THE BLOODY SHIRT.”

Senator Sherman Not Afraid or Ashamed of It—Remedy for Wrongs in the South. [Report of speech in Cincinnati.] I say now that no Democrat in Hamilton County dare take issue on this question. These people have been deprived of their rights. And that is not all. They have not only been deprived of their rights, but these men. Democrats of the South, are now exercising political power based upon the six millions of colored people scattered over the South. There are thirty-eight members of Congress and thirty-eight electoral votes assigned under the Constitution to these six millions of colored people in the South; but they manage matters there so that these colored p'eople have no right to vote. They’re deprived of their votes, and then these Southern Democrats vote all this vast political power themselves; and by that means alone Grover Cleveland is now President of the United States; and but for this enormous crime James G. Blaine would now be our President, and John A. Logan would be our Vice President. What answer do they make to this indictment ? “The bloody shirt 1” And I don’t know but the time is coming, my friends, in this country, when the patriotic people of the Northern States must “wave the bloody shirt.” I say to you, although my years are pass- • ing away, and I look upon the faces of thousands of bright young men, I say to you that the Republican party of the United States will never submit to the ostracism that is now practiced upon these six millions of people. And when they ask me, “What will you do about it?” as Boss Tweed asked of the local authorities of New York, I say we will find a remedy; and the time is not far distant when that will be found. When we see Jefferson Davis, the arch-rebel of the country, extolled in the Senate of the United States as a patriot—and I was frowned upon with great severity when I denounced him as a conspirator and traitor—when we see the flag of our country, under which the boys in blue marched to many victories, lowered in sorrow at the death of Jake Thompson; when we see Fitzhugh Lee riding at the head of his Democratic cavalcade with the old flag of Gen. Pickett at Gettysburg, and with the saddle and bridle of Gen. Lee, marching with the rebel cavalcade through Virginia in order to arouse the rebel passions of that population; when we see men almost without number who have been rebels representing this great government of ours in various lands, in Cabinet positions, and holding high carnival in important offices, and Union soldiers and widows turned out to allow these Democratic partisans to come in, I tell you, my countrymen, the measure of my forgiveness has almost ceased to be a virtue. But they say, “What are you going to do about it?” And the only answer that Gov. Hoadly could give was that of “ What are you going to do about it? You have had power in this government: you did not find a remedy, and thereto e no such wrong exists.” Well, we did have the power, after the war was over, in a kind of a way. When the war was over, did we show any feeling of hostility or want of charity? No! No nation was more liberal to extend emancipation and to make easy their coming back to their relations to the General Government We do not want to oppress them now., No blood was shed. No property was confiscated. In all human history there is not another such example of kindness and forbearance to the party that had been overcome in war. But no sooner had General Lee taken the parole and surrendered to Grant at Appomattox than they went home, and at once tried to reduce their colored people to quasi-slavery. When that was resisted to some extent, and the measures of reconstruction were passed that secured civil and political rights to all people, then they resorted to other outrages, such as the Ku-klux. They met in secret places and armed and disguised themselves—some of them rebel soldiers—to frighten the Republicans, and in some cases committed murder. This was kept up for some time. General Grapfitred to suppress it Congress sent committees of investigation. We shw no 'remedy. None seemed to be at hand except to

again call out the boys in blue. That was the only remedy, and we did not propose to do that. We awaited for the coming of the time when the clearly acknowledged rights of these people would be yielded without further bickering. But we waited in vain, until finally the Democrats got possession of the .House, and these'Democrats associated with and combined with the Southern rebels to keep up this ostracism. Governor Hoadly asks, “What Vill you do about it?” I will tell you what we will do about it « There is in every one of these Southern States a Republican party now springing up, composed of rebel soldiers, white men and black men, and they are naw fighting the battles that ought to have been fought long ago. Governor Wise—Governor as I hope he Will be, unless they kill him before that time—is how fighting the battles of the Republican party in Virginia, with our principles engraved on his banner—liberty and equal rights to all, protection to American industries, the development of our industries, the diversity of our employments. This is our creed and motto. He is fighting that battle. Shall we desert him? Shall we Republicans of Ohio, by the election this fall, say, “We don’t care a cuss for you?.” Shall we join with the Democrats ? There is one remedy. The time is not far distant when in every one of these Southern States there will be a party that will redress this wrong. In Tennessee, at the last election, Judge Reid was almost elected. North Carolina will soon be carried by the Republicans, if they be given anything like fair play. In Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina, and every Southern State, there is a Republican majority under a fair election. The Republican party is a brave party—always brave. It has never undertaken to do anything yet that it has not accomplished, and it will accomplish this in due time if you will only stand by it.