een thrown upon it a helpless population, which
must starve and die but for its care, the Government has never failed
to provide for them. At this very session, within the last thirty
days, both houses of Congress have voted half a million dollars to
feed and clothe people during the present winter. Who were they? Many
of them were Indians who had joined the rebellion, and had slain loyal
people of the country. Yes, sir, we appropriated money to feed Indians
who had been fighting against us. We did not hear the Senator's voice
in opposition to that appropriation. What were the facts? It was
stated by our Indian agents that the Indian tribes west of Arkansas, a
part of whom had joined the rebel armies and some the Union armies,
had been driven from their country; that their property had been
destroyed; and now, the conflict of arms having ceased, they had
nothing to live upon during the winter; that they would encroach upon
the white settlements; that unless provision was made for them, they
would rob, plunder, and murder the inhabitants nearest them; and
Congress was called upon to appropriate money to buy them food and
clothing, and we did it. We did it for rebels and traitors. Were we
not bound to do it?

"Now, sir, we have thrown upon us four million people who have toiled
all their lives for others; who, unlike the Indians, had no property
at the beginning of the rebellion; who were never permitted to own any
thing, never permitted to eat the bread their own hands had earned;
many of whom are without support, in the midst of a prejudiced and
hostile population who have been struggling to overthrow the
Government. These four million people, made free by the acts of war
and the constitutional amendment, have been, wherever they could,
loyal and true to the Union; and the Senator seriously asks, What
authority have we to appropriate money to take care of them? What
would he do with them? Would he allow them to starve and die? Would he
turn them over to the mercy of the men who, through their whole lives,
have had their earnings, to be enslaved again? It is not the first
time that money has been appropriated to take care of the destitute
and suffering African. For years it has been the law that whenever
persons of African descent were brought to our shores with the
intention of reducing them to slavery, the Government should, if
possible, rescue and restore them to their native land; and we have
appropriated hundreds o