E. Billingfelt to Thaddeus Stevens, Lancaster: October 2, 1866, (Wilmington: Scholarly Resources, 1993).
Transcriber: Blake Hunter and Proofreader: Thomas Cullen
This letter was interesting because it showed that even after the Civil War, blacks were still being questioned and discriminated against by whites. In the original letter sent by Billingfelt, he wrote about rumors he had heard that said that the blacks were getting an additional 300 dollar bounty for fighting in the war while the white soldiers were only getting 100 dollars. The rumors were being written by the Copperheads in their pamphlets. Also, Billingfelt was worried about a Civil Rights bill that punished whites who did not allow their children to marry black men or women with a 1000 dollar fine and imprisonment. Billingfelt showed the nervous feelings that most whites displayed after the Civil War, because they thought that blacks might get many new rights and use these rights to take over the government.
Stevens told Billingfelt in the letter below that these rumors were false and that this supposed Civil Rights bill was a forgery too. The interesting thing to note is that Stevens did not like nor trust the President and did not believe in his capacity to lead. Political leaders really did not like each other during this time and each had a different plan for Reconstruction and the way the South could be readmitted to the Union.
Sir—In answer to your letter of this date, asking how much truth there was in the assertions you refer to, I have to say there is not one word of truth in any of them. The law referred to makes no discrimination between soldiers on account of color. The word "white" or "black" is not mentioned in the law. Indeed white soldiers are likely to get the $100 bounty under the law of 1861-1863 as no colored troops were then in service.
The extract from the Civil Rights Bill is a mere forgery. I was not much surprised at the falsehood with regard to the Soldiers’ bounty, as it was originated by Andrew Johnson, who, if there were such an unjust law, must have signed it himself. He probably knew no better.
But, I was amazed to see the other false hood, contained in a large pamphlet of similar forgeries, circulated under the frank of a distinguished Senator from Maryland Hon. R. Johnson. Such things are too low for comment. Is there one citizen foolish enough to believe this?
Yours
Thaddeus Stevens
(benson/HST41/gold/stevens1.htm)