American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1851-1863, 1866-01-27
THE RESTORATION POLICY OF
THE PRESIDENT.
Much extrayagant eulogy has been e1pend-

ed by Southern journals on what is termeu
The Presidents plan of reconstruction"
As compared with the policy of the radi-
calls II i, the better plan, but it is only the
better plan rs compared with the exceedingly
foolish one Of the radicals, and on its own
merits it can never be regarded as the Wlsest
shat could have been pursued, PRESIDENT
Johnson has shown some power to pull dorn,
INT not much to build up,-some capacity 10
dsstroa, but little to recOnstructi-ln "oru'
his talents are iconoclastic, so to speak. lie
is ONLY successful image-breaker'
So soon AS the Confederate forces were
comreIled to surrender, every sensible man
in the North, in the South, in Europe OF
America. must have known that the rebellion
WIS thoroughly crushed Characterize the
r,,itical movement iuaugurated by the Con-
federate States in the early part OF TIE year
1876, by whatever name you please, secession
or rebellion, still it was the action OF poiiu-
cal communities-of States-and If a rebel
lion. it was an organized rebellion, acting
upder regular law and by fixed rules. 1t was
mt the lawless outbreak of banditti, but the
systematic, Organized effort of States to effect
their permauent separation from former
political associations, and to establish thelr
orvn independence. This could only be done
nv armies in the field, and with the surrender
of the armies every sensible man knew the
capse was gone, and his influence was direct
cd ia the restoration OF law and order In
the State of things existing at the surrender
of the Confederate forces, the State govern
,rents a,d all the civil authorities were in
aisnensable to the maintenance Of law ana
order, Regular law is at all times necessary,
n,t never more necessary than in May 1860
Tho Governors of the late insurgent States
.yopld have needed the largest powers and
,.nc highest administrative talent to protect
-be people from the lawiessness naturally 10
DOE expected from the sudden disarmament oil
large armies deeply chagrined with the loss
of Il cause dear to them, however 1t may now
BE- viewed by the loyal.
The civil arm of the State governments,
instead Of being stricken down, should nave
bcer strengthened
But the first official act Of cira character
bv the Executive was to dispense State legis'
lr'ures assembled for the very purpose Of
..r.arirr their late Confederate relations, ano
making changes in their organic law deemed
noccssary to becoming again part OF th'
I.o;on. and this was quickly followed by Thu
announcement that not single state once
twisted in any part of the Confo9eracy An
orchv aud confusion prevailed-the stat
governments subvcrteG, and tue whole SoutI
were absolutely for some time without law
Murder and every crime known to the calen
iar could be committed with impunity; Their
was not single magistrate in the land
This delectable state of things was part
the Presidents plan" The military alon
had SWAY at this era. The whole countr
was under what they called martial law,
which is just no law at all.-The gloriou
dav of Provost Marshals, petty Post Com
mondauts and cotton thieves cotton agents
we meant to say
Next came GTONlSlOuhl uuNVlh SH'N
anomalous in its character aud unknown
the laws, with powers vague and underlined
the military still holding all real power, an
the Governor subordinate to the nilitar
commander even in civil matters. Convei
tons are called and regular State oticel
again elected but down to the very meetin
of Congress it could not be fairly determine
whether these State officers were rseognis
ITO use the phrase of the times by the poV
.rs at Washington, and when the radica
met in Congress they could with some plau
iblity say that whether State government
are to obtain in the South has been left
the Executive to our braach of the Cover
ment.
This is the much lauded "plau of t
President
If,be President desired the speedy resto
alton of law and order ia the South, and
immediate resumption by that section
their former constitutional relations IN I
Union, his "plan was not wise one
At the close of the rebellion, the ST
Governments should have been left preeis
as they we're. Not single Federal sold
was needed any where in the South. Sim
taneous with the disbandment Of the Conn
crate forces should have taken place the
bandmeut of the larger part of the Fede
forces. A small number Of that force mi
have been retained at important points, q
corps of observation, if any future Outbr'
should be threatened. No military stat
should have been established in the intel
TO disturb the harmony of the new la
system.
L. is true, some Of the Government cot
might have been appropriated BY late G
federate soldiers and BY private citizens
had not the excuse Of soldiership to pslli
the misconduct; but everybody knows
most Of the Government cotton was sto
BY the Federal cotton agents, and the 50