Report on the Condition of the South Part 9

The attention of district commanders is called to a proclamation of the provisional governor of the State of Mississippi, of the 19th instant, which provides for the organization of a military force in each county of the State.

While the general government deems it necessary to maintain its authority here by armed forces, it is important that the powers and duties of the officers commanding should be clearly defined.

The State of Mississippi was one of the first that engaged in the recent rebellion. For more than four years all her energies have been devoted to a war upon our government. At length, from exhaustion, she has been compelled to lay down her arms; but no orders have as yet been received by the military authorities on duty here, indicating that the State has been relieved from the hostile position which she voluntarily a.s.sumed towards the United States.

The general government, earnestly desiring to restore the State to its former position, has appointed a provisional governor, with power to call a convention for the accomplishment of that purpose. Upon the military forces devolve the duties of preserving order, and of executing the laws of Congress and the orders of the War Department. The orders defining the rights and privileges to be secured to freedmen meet with opposition in many parts of the State, and the duties devolving upon military officers, in the execution of these orders, are often of a delicate nature. It has certainly been the desire of the department commander, and, so far as he has observed, of all officers on duty in the State, to execute these orders in a spirit of conciliation and forbearance, and, while obeying implicitly all instructions of the President and the War Department, to make military rule as little odious as possible to the people. While the military authorities have acted in this spirit, and have been as successful as could have been antic.i.p.ated, the provisional governor has thought proper, without consultation with the department commander or with any other officer of the United States on duty here, to organize and arm a force in every county, urging the "young men of the State who have so distinguished themselves for gallantry" to respond promptly to his call, meaning, thereby, that cla.s.s of men who have as yet scarcely laid down the arms with which they have been opposing our government. Such force, if organized as proposed, is to be independent of the military authority now present, and superior in strength to the United States forces on duty in the State. To permit the young men, who have so distinguished themselves, to be armed and organized independently of United States military officers on duty here, and to allow them to operate in counties now garrisoned by colored troops, filled, as many of these men are, not only with prejudice against those troops and against the execution of the orders relative to freedmen, but even against our government itself, would bring about a collision at once, and increase in a ten-fold degree the difficulties that now beset the people. It is to be hoped that the day will soon come when the young men called upon by Governor Sharkey and the colored men now serving the United States will zealously co-operate for the preservation of order and the promotion of the interests of the State and nation. It will be gratifying to the friends of the colored race to have the a.s.surance in an official proclamation from the provisional governor, that the day has already arrived when the experiment can be safely attempted.

But as the questions on which these two cla.s.ses will be called to co-operate are those with regard to which there would undoubtedly be some difference of opinion, particularly as to the construction of certain laws relative to freedmen, the commanding general prefers to postpone the trial for the present. It is the earnest desire of all military officers, as it must be of every good citizen, to hasten the day when the troops can with safety be withdrawn from this State, and the people be left to execute their own laws, but this will not be hastened by arming at this time the young men of the State.

The proclamation of the provisional governor is based on the supposed necessity of increasing the military forces in the State to prevent the commission of crime by bad men. It is a remarkable fact that most of the outrages have been committed against northern men, government couriers, and colored people. Southern citizens have been halted by these outlaws, but at once released and informed that they had been stopped by mistake; and these citizens have refused to give information as to the parties by whom they were halted, although frankly acknowledging that they knew them.

Governor Sharkey, in a communication written after his call for the organization of militia forces was made, setting forth the necessity for such organization, states that the people are unwilling to give information to the United States military authorities which will lead to the detection of these outlaws, and suggests as a remedy for these evils the arming of the very people who refuse to give such information.

A better plan will be to disarm all such citizens, and make it for their interest to aid those who have been sent here to restore order and preserve peace.

_It is therefore ordered_, that district commanders give notice at once to all persons within their respective districts that no military organizations, except those under the control of the United States authorities, will be permitted within their respective commands, and that if any attempt is made to organize after such notice, those engaged in it will be arrested. Whenever any outrages are committed upon either citizens or soldiers, the commander of the post nearest the point at which the offence is committed will report the fact at once to the district commander, who will forthwith send as strong a force to the locality as can be spared. The officer in command of such force will at once disarm every citizen within ten miles of the place where the offence was committed. If any citizen, possessing information which would lead to the capture of the outlaws, refuses to impart the same, he will be arrested and held for trial. The troops will be quartered on his premises, and he be compelled to provide for the support of men and animals. These villains can be arrested, unless they receive encouragement from some portion of the community in which they operate; and such communities must be held responsible for their acts, and must be made to realize the inevitable consequences of countenancing such outrages.

By order of Major General SLOc.u.m:

J. WARREN MILLER, _a.s.sistant Adjutant General_.

No. 14.

[Reported for the Vicksburg Journal.]

_Speeches of Hon. Sylva.n.u.s Evans and Richard Cooper, candidates for Congress and attorney general, Vicksburg, September_ 19, 1865.

Pursuant to a call published in our yesterday's issue, a large number of citizens a.s.sembled at Apollo Hall last evening to listen to addresses from prominent candidates for office at the ensuing election.

Shortly after 8 o'clock Hon. A. Burwell introduced Hon. Richard Cooper to the meeting, who addressed them as follows:

SPEECH OF MR. COOPER.

Fellow-citizens: I present myself before you to-night as a candidate for the office of attorney general. I have not before spoken in public since announcing myself, relying wholly upon my friends and past record. I have resided in this State twenty-nine years, and have for twelve years been a prosecuting attorney.

Soon after announcing myself I found I had an opponent, and I concluded to accompany my friend, Judge Evans, to Vicksburg, merely to make myself known, not intending to make a speech.

I was born in Georgia. The first vote I ever cast was with the old-line Whig party. [Applause.] In 1850 I opposed an attempt to break up the United States government, and in, 1860 I did the same thing. I travelled in Alabama and Mississippi to oppose the measure. [Applause.] But after the State did secede I did all in my power to sustain it. [Heavy applause.] I never entered the army, having held a civil office, and was advised by my friends that I could do more good in that way than by entering the service. I believed in secession while it lasted, but am now as good a Union man as exists, and am in favor of breaking down old barriers, and making harmony and peace prevail.

I was a delegate to the State convention lately in session at Jackson, and hope the legislature will carry out the suggestions of the convention. I believe the negro is ent.i.tled to the claims of a freeman, now that he is made free, and I hope he will have them secured to him. I am thankful that Mississippi has the right of jurisdiction, and I hope she will always have it. The office I am a candidate for is not a political, but strictly a judicial office. If elected I shall use my utmost endeavors to promote the interests of the State and country.

Hon. Sylva.n.u.s Evans was then introduced to the audience by Mr. Cooper, who spoke substantially as follows:

SPEECH OF JUDGE EVANS.

FELLOW-CITIZENS OF WARREN COUNTY: I am grateful to meet you here this evening, although a stranger to most of you. Here you must judge of my standing, and I hope you will pardon me while I attempt to explain my position to you. I came to Mississippi in 1837, and moved to Lauderdale county in 1839; by profession, in early life, a blacksmith, latterly a lawyer, practicing in eastern Mississippi; to some extent a politician, always believing in the policy of the old-line Whigs, and always acting with them. In 1851 I was a delegate from Lauderdale county to the State convention, then, as in 1860, being opposed to the act of secession, and fought against it with all my powers. But after the State had seceded I went with it as a matter of duty, and I sustained it until the day of the surrender with all my body and heart and mind. [Great applause.] I believed that the majority of the people did not know what was to come, but, blending their interests with mine, I could not, with honor, keep from it.

We are now emerging; now daylight is dawning upon us. But whether peace and prosperity shall return in its fulness is now a question with the people. I am a candidate before you for the United States Congress. Let me say to you, as wise men, that unless the people and the legislature do their duty, it is useless to send me or any one else to Was.h.i.+ngton, as we cannot there obtain seats in Congress.

My opponent, Mr. West, was nominated at Jackson by a lot of unauthorized delegates, which nomination was, in my judgment, of no account. Were your delegates from this county authorized to nominate candidates for Congress?

Ours were not. I am before the people at the urgent request of many friends; not by any nomination made at Jackson.

I heartily approve of the action of the convention. But this action will be useless unless the legislature you elect meet and build the structure upon the foundation laid by the convention. The convention did not abolish slavery. The result of four and a half years of struggle determined whether it was abolished by the bayonet or by legislation. It remains for you to show by your action whether this was done to rid the State of bayonets, or to obtain your representation in Was.h.i.+ngton. It is not enough to say the negro is free. The convention requires the legislature to adopt such laws as will protect the negro in his rights of person and property.

We are not willing that the negro shall testify in our courts. We all revolt at it, and it is natural that we should do so; but we must allow it as one of the requisites of our admission to our original standing in the Union. To-day the negro is as competent a witness in our State as the white man, made so by the action of the convention. The credibility of the witness is to be determined by the jurors and justices. If you refuse his testimony, as is being done, the result will be the military courts and Freedmen's Bureau will take it up, and jurisdiction is lost, and those who best know the negro will be denied the privilege of pa.s.sing judgment upon it, and those who know him least are often more in favor of his testimony than yours. I am opposed to negro testimony, but by the const.i.tution it is admitted. (The speaker was here interrupted by an inquiry by one of the audience: "Has this const.i.tution been ratified by the people, and has the old const.i.tution been abolished?" To which Mr. Evans replied: The people did not have an opportunity to ratify it. The convention did not see fit to submit it to them, and its action in the matter is final.)

Slavery was destroyed eternally before the convention met, by the last four years of struggle. The convention only indorsed it, because it could do nothing else. I consider that convention the most important ever held on this continent--the determination of the war pending upon its action, and its great influence upon our southern sister States. The unanimity of the convention was unparalleled: the result of which has met with universal approval.

The only objectors to its action is the radicalism of the north, which thinks it should have conferred universal suffrage on the freedmen.

It is useless to send any one to Was.h.i.+ngton to gain admission to the Congress of the United States unless the legislature carries out the dictations of the convention for the protection of the freedmen's rights and property, and let them have access to the courts of justice.

Do you not desire to get rid of the Freedmen's Bureau and the bayonets and meet the President half way in his policy of reconstruction? If you do, be careful and send men to the legislature who will carry out this point, and thereby enable your congressmen to obtain their seats, and not have to return.

The speaker was here again interrupted by Mr. John Vallandigham, who wished to inform the gentleman and all present that there were no secessionists now.

(The speaker requested not to be interrupted again.) [Great applause.] I am no demagogue. Supposing you fail to meet the President in his policy, what will be the result? The convention has done its duty. It remains for you to elect men to the next legislature who will secure to the freedman his right. There are large republican majorities in the United States Congress. The northern press, denouncing the President's policy, are a.s.suming that Congress has the right to dictate to you who shall be your rulers. The result of the large majorities will be to give the right of suffrage to every man in the State, and the negroes will elect officers to govern you.

The President and the conservative element of the north are determined that the negro shall be placed where nature places him, in spite of the fanatics.

We can only make free labor profitable by giving the negro justice and a right at the courts.

It is hard to accept the fact that our slaves stand as freedmen, and that we have no more right to direct them. It is hard to realize, but let us look at it as it is, and act accordingly.

Your country is laid desolate, your farms have been ravished and impoverished by the war. Vicksburg, the city of hills, everywhere bears marks of war. The Mississippi valley is desolate. You have been deprived of your property in the negro, your houses burned and destroyed.

We can meet the President and the conservative element of the north by a simple act of legislation, and it becomes us as a country-loving people to look well to the candidates for the legislature. If they fail to take the necessary step, the result will be that the Freedmen's Bureau and bayonets will remain with us until they do.

Although somewhat ignorant of the proceeding of the federal Congress, if elected I shall try to promote the especial interests of this State. I shall urge that the United States government owe it as a duty to the State of Mississippi to repair her levees; her people are so impoverished by the war that they cannot stand the taxation necessary to rebuild them. I believe it to be the duty of the general government to appropriate money to a.s.sist the people to improve their railroads, rivers, and a.s.sist in like new enterprises.

Another important question, that of labor, I believe can only be settled by legislation. I believe it to be for the interests of the people of the south to have the vagrant freedmen removed, as they are the cause of continued strife and tumult.

I am sure we do not want the scenes of St. Domingo and Hayti repeated in our midst. I believe such will be the case if they are not removed. If elected, I shall urge upon the general government the duty of colonizing the negroes; it being the duty of the government to do this, as we are deprived of that amount of property, and the negroes should be removed where they can be distinct and by themselves. It is impossible for the two cla.s.ses to exist equal together, for we would always be liable to outbreaks and bloodshed. We must either educate them or abolish them, for they know but little more now than to lie all day in the sun and think some one will look out for them. Though free, they cannot yet understand what freedom is, and in many cases it is an injury rather than a benefit.

It would be better to have white labor than to try and retain the black.

Another important point--a great debt has been contracted by the federal government. The south cannot pay a proportion of that debt. I am opposed to repudiation, but am in favor of relieving the south of the internal revenue tax.

My opponent, Mr. West, contends that Mississippi must pay her taxes up to 1865. I do not think so; and this is the only issue between us. I deny that the government has a right to levy such a tax, and contend that the government cannot impose a tax upon a State unless that State partic.i.p.ates in the acc.u.mulation of that debt. At the time this debt was contracted we were recognized as belligerents, and not liable to a share of the debt then contracted for. That back tax can only be collected by a special act of Congress, and, if elected, I shall oppose any such act.

Mr. West proposed an amendment in favor of secession into the State senate, while I was opposed to it. I always contended that slavery would die with secession, while Mr. West said it was the only remedy. But I do not consider this any time to talk of secession, but rather bury all such in oblivion, and talk of the best way to restore peace.

In many instances those who opposed secession the most were the first to enter the army and fight most valiantly. (Applause.) I believe it to be our duty to forget all this and attend to present issues.

It is time the war was over, and it is time that the results of the war were settled, and those are to be settled by the actions of the people themselves.

Determine for yourselves whether or not the President does not offer terms that should suit any of us; is he not trying to stay the tide of fanaticism at the north that would overwhelm us? Has he not shown it in our own State in the appointment of our military governor? No man in the State could have been appointed to give more general satisfaction than W.L. Sharkey, an able, straightforward, just man.

The President, in his speech to the southern delegation, a.s.sures them that he is determined to stay the tremendous tide of the fanatics of the north, and that suffrage to the negro shall not be forced upon the people of the south.