The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1865-09-27
Col MBIA.
wednesday Morning, Sept. ", 1865,


respect to this property, which may
relieve the country from some Of its
fears. and embarrassment, and lessen
greatly the wanton, and perhaps dis
honest, exercise of power on the part
of those bureaus to which the subject
has been already Quite too much con-
fded. There is to be no general
sweep Of property according to the
desires and mere viii of officers of
bureaus. It is only in cases where
there has been no. pardon granted,
and where the property is confscable
in the cases of persons who have been
specially obnoxious to the Govern
. i ent because of their peculiar and
offensive activity in the Confederate
cause, that the possession of their
lands will be withheld from them.
And each of these cases must be sub
ject to trial and adjudication, deter
minable upon its own merits. In
cases where the negroes have crops
upon the ground, the crop must be
purchased from them and their claims
satisfied, or the lands will be retained
for their use, untiF the present crop
has been fully harvested. The land
viii then be restored. This impor-
tant order of President Johnson Will
be published just as soon as we can
secure a proper copy of it. Justly
speaking, there is no voluntary aban-
donment of any property in this or
any other Southern State. Along
our seaboard the owners were either
driven off by the actual conflict of
contending armies, or they we're Or
dered off by the Confederate authori-
ties, who needed the land for military
purposes, or desired to deprive the
invading forces of those resources
which otherwise might have yielded
them aid and comfort. The owners,
in either case, had no choice but de-
parture. To appropriate their lands,
unless under some general act of for
feiture, such as Mr.. Thaddeus Stevens
humanely proposes, would be mon
strous act of cruelty and despotisn1-
would be simple robbery of peo-
pie who had no sort of alternative,
and their spoiation, as victims, for
the enrichment of greedy bands of
reckless adventures. 1t will become
the necessity of President Johnson
especially to interpose for the protec-
ton of these unfortunates, and to !
save equally the people and the Co.
vernment from the schemes of gangs
Of plunderers, who find their law only
in the possession of their power, and
make of their official stations so many
agencies for the accumulation of indi-
vidual spoils. Already We hear of
companies in formation for the pur-
chase of these supposed abandoned
lands, which, sold at prices purely
nominal at this moment few
owners are able to contend for them
in the markeJ-win be- subsequently
colonized by foreign emigrants, 'realiz-
ing immense profits for that inter
mediate class WHICH, combining to-
gether their resources, will have the
entire control of the subject. We
are in hopes shortly to obtain such
evidence as will prove to President
Johnson the necessity of taking
prompt and decided steps towards the
full adjustment Of the subject, and
restoring to innocent owners those
possessions, which, so far from vol
unfairly abandoning, they have been
most reluctant to leave. The distress
of the country is already too great for