, 1866-08-21
FULLENTON AND STEADM!ANsS
HEPORT.

IS q more 4QlE HnQ On Tue WQCle, IA1T AHQ |
document than was looked for
when Generals Fullerton and steadman set
forth On their mission. Tint it Is SO fair,
speaks volumes in favor of the conduct OF the
officers they were sent out to critictse. That
many Of the grievances, II not abuses they
condemn are real, and worthy Of the public
attention, is undenlab1e; nnd it is with a
view to the reformation Of these frregulari-
tics ty the proper authorities that We now
call attention to them.
The worst falling Of the Frecdmen's Bureau
has been that no regulations have been is
sued by its head for the government Of all,
nnd each officer has consequently been Law
nnto himself, the action Of each differing
widely from the Others For instance, Gen
esal Swayne, Of Alabama, adopted the very |
singular course Of appointing rebel county |
officers MS his deputies throughout the State. |
Many or them, Mt first, more frank |
than cunning, and us yet sullen and |
malignant, positively refused to act. |
Conveying their rcfusals in the most prosanc |
and Insulting LETTERS But this has been
overcome, md the system is now general in
that State, of Justice, such as it is, being ad-
ministescd to tho complaining negro through
tue medium of rebel county officer, and
generally ut the muzzle Of n revolver, or the
end Of heavy whip. General Ti'lson, Of
| Gcorgia, has been equally complainant 10 his
rebel constituents. Many Of his acts have
been made most unpleaEautly conspicuous
through the newspapers the past year, in
| all Of which lie has been entirely too faSora-
blc to the masters and too severe to the ne
Erocs.
The great fault Of most Of these officials
has lcc1 that they have not known how and
when they ought to make their authority
felt For instance, when Mobile WAS tAkcn.
General Canby placed the freedmen in charge
Of the Rev. Mr.. Conway, of New Orleans,
who cent young civilian over to attend this
b1anch. This gentleman Immediately Issued
an order, requiring registration OF all ne
r froes-thc <ouching for their ability to sup
| mort themselves hy some we'll known citi-
zels-the prices of labor Of nll kinds, and the
contracting Of each party, through the me-
dium Of tho Bureau, with their late masters,
= e.. their labor in future. This was all no,
;. only utterly ahauyd, but equa1ly injurious
= II involved MI immense amount of clerical
= lnbor of the most unnecessary kind, ami
caused great deal Of distress, because thu
. people, sullcn and sour, refused to vouch fo
- their late chatttls, Us required. Why regis
:, ter blacks any more than whites? If netu
=, ally free, why discriminate ut nll bctwec
- the colors? The only real necessity of th
", Bureau ut n1l, Is to secure that justice to til
y hap1ess nrgro which the unfair laws Of III
.,E; State in which he lives denies to him.
80. ought to have no other function whateyc
-. after the pressing necessity Of relieving II
-. starving Of both colors, which the dcvast
~ tions Of the war had created, Ind passt
~ away. ..-.
Colonel Thomas, Of Mississippi, who
- Gcncrn1s Etcadmnu and Fullerton step o
Of their way to attack, was one of the me
- loyal and most efficient Of all the Supcri
teudcnts. If there was any i1l-{tcling VIII
- ho Was In the State, as tho Prcsidcn
,.r agents complain, and if nny yet exists tue
- 1t Is 10 be ascribcd altogcthcr to the NAL
- nant disloyalty of the people Of Niss1ssip
:. - Agents Of the Bureau have been murder
80 In Meridian, in Grenada and in other plac
Nv 49,. and the Offices burned over their heads.
- the agents insisted On The negroes all bel
~. employed by January first, as they coupln
~ they carefully forget to remember that
.,..t act Of the Legislature made vagrant
on every negro out Of employment at that da
1-.t and it was TO prevent difi1cnlty that Il
.,.a pressed the freedmen to hire for the year
o,,o the usual time, New Years dag. They q
49,, say nothing about another Mississippi u
.o,u placing every negro, Of a certain Or unt
49, tain agc but supposed be under twenty q
, ~ in the charge Of the Probate Court, as va,
a1a with power to bind them out TIL they re
NV, that acc. Acting under that law. able-boi
. ~ negroes have been dragged from their VT
.,,1e and hound out to their late masters.
,ced such laws, discriminating against &C
,ors ought to be forthwith set aside and mad