The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1866-01-10
CONDITION OF THE SOUTH.


his recent tour through the s,ues of South
Carolina Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi
and Louisiana, laid before the President
IL few days ago, and sent 10 Congress, has
been published. 1t is m elaborate and
intcresling document, giving fua ac-
coun; OF the condition oi the states lately
in rebellion, and OF the feeling Of the
people, white and black. We can give
onl y sn abstract
IA beginning his report to the President,
General Schurz recitcs the instructions he
received M follows,
".Yuu informed me that your policy
Of reconstruction was merely experiment
tai, and that you would change it if the
experiment did not lead to satisfactory
results. To aid Won in forming your con
clusioQs upon this point / understood to
be the object of my mission, and this un-
standing was in perfect accordance with
the written instructions received through
the Secretary ut War"
He then proceeds to describe the meth
ods he adopted tor obtaiping trustworthy
iniorma,iou--mainly consisting OF inter-
views with representative men in different
parts Of the South, and subsequent COM
parisons Of their views with those of our
military and naval officers, besides per
sonul observations of the country, talks
with the negroes, and perusai Of othrial
papers.
The first division OF the report notes
Al. 4 ii Il.
after the war. Union men and those
who took part in the rebellion concur III
the statement that general CONSIDERATION
prevailed after the surrender vi Lee and
Jonstun, and that prominent rebels We're
completely panic-stricken; but tn" worst
appr.hension- were gradually relieved as
day after day went 10y without bringing
the disasters and inf .ctions which had
been vaguely Anticipated, until at last the
appearance Of the North Carolina proc
iama;ipn substituted new hopes for them.
POUR ClASSts or SOUTHERN LE0PLE.
Upon the ground Of these declarations
and other evidence gathered in tie course
ol my observations, / may group tue
southern people into four Glasses, each of
which exercises an influence upon the de-
velopmcnt OF things in that section.
]. Tho-c who although having yield
ed submission to The national government
only when obliged TO do 80. have II clear
perception of the iirevcr,ibc changes
produced by the war, and honestly TN.
deavor to accommodate themselves to the
new order of things. Many OF them are
not free from traditional prejudice, but
open TO conviction, and may be Exp ,ctcd
10 act in good faith whatever they d. -
This class is composed in it's majority of
persons OF mature age, planters, mcr-
chants and professional men; some OF
thcm ARE active in the reconstruction
movement, but boldness and energy are,
with few individual exceptions, not
among heir Distinguishing qualities.
= Those whose principal object is to
have the states without delay restored TO
theil portion anil infaeace in the Unon,
and the people ot the states to the abso-
lntc control Of their hume concerns -
They are ready, in order 10 attain that
object, TO make any ostensible concession
tina. will not prevent them from arrang-
ing things 10 suit their taste as soon as
that object is attained. This class COM
priscs IL considerable number, probably a
large majority, Of the proits>icnl poll
tirians who arv extremely active in the
rccon>truct;on movement. They are
loud in their praise of The Presidents re-
construction policy, and clamorous for
the withdrawal OF the federal troops and
the abolition Of the Freedmcns Bureau.
3. The incorrigibles who stil indulge
in the swaggcr which was so customary
before and during the war, and still hope
ipr time when the Southern Confcdera.
cy will achieve its independence. This
class consists mostly of young men, and
comprises the lotterers Of the towns and
the idlers of the cour;ry. They perse-
cuto Union men and negroes wherever
they can do so with impun:ty, insist
clamorously upon their "rights,' and are
extremely impatient Of the presence Of
the federal soldiers. A good many of
them have taken the oath Of allegiance
allu anIilcet(, anu usNJCiutcu tHeHirclVce
with the second class in their political
operations. This element is DO no means
unlmportant it is strong in numbers,
deals in brave talk, addresses itself di-
recily and necessarily to :he passions aad
pTcjudiccs of tho masses, and commands
the admiration of the women.
4. The multitude of people who
have no definite ideas about the circum-
stances under which they live and about
the course they have to follow whose
iniellects are weak but who:e prcjudices
and impulses are strong, and who are apt
to be carried along by those who know
how to appeal to tho latter.
Mu,h depends upon the relative
strength and influence of these classes
IN the course OF this report you will find
statements OF facts which may furnish IA
basis for an estimate But whatever their
differences may be-, on one point they are
agreed further resistance to the power
of the national government l. useless, and
submission TO It's authority matter of
necessity. II is true, the right of Access
sion in theory is still believed in by most
of those who formerly believed in it !;
zone are still entertaining vague hope
Of seeing it realized at some future time,
but all give 1t up as a practical impoSsi-
L