The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1867-08-16
General SiciSlcs nnd the Charleston Board o
Trade-U UNIVERSAL Ammcsty.

General Sic<lcs mud the Charleston Board Of
Trnde-Universni Amnesty.
General Sickles has addressed TO the Board
OF Trade in Charleston a communication in
answer to the protest of that Board against
| the enforcement of certain OF his orders. A
double interest attaches to this communication.
as IN able paper itself and as the subjects of
which it treats have just been considered in
Cabinet and decided as we are somewhat
vaguely told in a sense adverse to the Gene
rails views. The document recites distinctly
the course of events that resulted in making
military law paramount in South Carolina
information very necessary to the Board of
Trade-and then points out that the orders in
question were issued by the proper military
authority purely in the interests Of the people,
10 secure their comfort and prosperity. and to
stay legal proceedings that would be annoying
aud mischievous without securing any good
resultant would, in the name of justice,
inAict the greatest miseries upon the people.
The protest of the Board of Trade is, first,
against the Generals modification of the
whiskey trade; second, against his abolition
of distress for rent; third, against his order
staying the enforced collection of certain
classes of debts IL needs, indeed, only to
designate the character Of these several orders
to see that their purpose could only be that of
| tightening the present burdens Of the people,
] and the communication referred to abundantly
shows the wisdom of the two latter in pointing
out that, while relieving poor creditors, they
are no actual injury to debtors, since suits en-
| forced at the present time could not secure the
creditor satisfactory remedy and would only
render it impossible that the debtor could
ever pay. They have the effect OF modified
land limited bankruptcy acts This leaves the
Board of Trade to stand rs the especial repre-
sentatives and champions Of the whiskey inter-
est. which they doubtless are; and in the pc
cular prominence that the great frauds on the
revenue are giving to that interest it will
receive but little sympathy. II is to be hoped
| that the President has not modified the effect
| OF any one of these wise orders.
The progress OF events is giving also pecu-
| liar weight to another communication from
General Sickles-namely, his letter to Senator
| Trumbull, written some time during the sum-
mer and made public just before the close Of
the las. session Of Congress. In that letter the
Commander of the Second district exposed
forcibly certain notable inconsistencies in the
state of our laws regarding the South. Radical
reconstruction. for instance gives votes to all
the nggcrs, and 1t tells the country that this is
necessary in order that the votes of these loyal
negroes may act as fair political balance to
the votes Of the only half loyal Southern
whites. The country sees this argument clearly,
admits that ii is cogent, and the niggers get
the votes. Then the radical plan, having
thus provided for the niger, takesup the South
ern white man, whom we ought to consider no
longer dangerous, since his political power is
nulli6ed or balanced by the vote just given to
the freedman. Having thus balanced the white
man IS vote, however, the radical plan next takes
itaway. Southern white men are disfranchised,
and the country is told that this is necessary
in order to punish them for rebellion. AT
this stage the people get pazzleda little. Re-
bellion is wrong, is treason, and to punish II
il right, no doubt But, then, all the radical
political leaders up at the head OF the line
have managed 70 let Oh such head rebels