beating on the Senate floor

Did you know that a U.S. Senator was beaten unconscious and almost died on the Senate floor?
And that his attacker was a fellow Congressman, a US Representative from the state of South Carolina? Such was the level of debate over slavery in the first half of our country's existence.
Harsh were the arguments for and against. Rare were the compromises. And there were powerful speakers on both sides who often went beyond logic and reasoning to throw in personal attacks and accuse their opponents of the vilest motives and actions. In the state of Kansas people on both sides became violent in their "support" or "opposition" that brawls and battles broke out over the issue - it was not called "Bloody Kansas" for no reason.


And on May 20th, 1856 Charles Sumner, a senator from Massachusetts gave a speech criticizing in blazing vulgar terms a recent piece of legislation, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and its sponsors, one of whom had a cousin serving in the US House of Representatives. That cousin, Representative Preston Brooks, from South Carolina, was so incensed that he first considered challenging Sumner to a duel.
But he considered dueling to be among equals, and he did not consider Sumner to be an equal. So on May 22nd he went to the Senate and using a walking cane beat Sumner senseless - almost killing him.

Ironically Preston Brooks died just a year later and did not see the Civil War break out of the contentious debate. Sumner survived and was a leader of the Radical Republicans who after the North won, supported a harsh occupation of the South and an aggressive push for former slaves to not only vote but also to hold office. Their motives were partially good - pushing for former slaves to have an active part in the governing of their lands. But the use of force became odious to everyone else.
As a result when the occupation was lifted the South switched back to such discrimination that the legacy of Sumner turned into Jim Crow and the after-effects were felt for almost another century.

Fiery words can burn, though our country has grown out of it. let us be glad that we are not in the place of the 1800's rhetoric and violence, but it is wise to watch our words.