Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1867-10-25
Internal States" that plotted the ruin Of
he human zee

against the laws OF nature Det"eeu III
west and the highest types Of man
dnd-between the negro and the eau
easian rsces-between 3 people who havI
never shown themselves capable Of gov
-rnment or even Of emerging from bar
5arism unaided by a civilized people
aud the most civilized race. WhR
monstrous folly What an absurd eX
pertinent! What a dangerous policy!
And with perfect truth and reason /
adds:
Il st. Domingo. with all its horrors; ia
maica, with all its desOlation the 50ntI
American Republics with their eyerIast
ing revolutions-all the result OF eleva
ing an inferior race TO hold the balance
/, Of political power afford no i~nstructlo
10 our Radical revOlutiOnlsts. Ihey VII
destroy the country rather than give VI
Al ~impracticabie theory, or the power
they hold. This Is the prospect before
Us. and unless the people OF the NorII
Ioudly demand the suppression o. thest
modem Jscobins we shall certainly be
involved 10 terrible enc OF bloodshedt
a vast military establishment, enormous
expenses, s deficient Treasury, and the
risk Of a military dictatorship.
The exclusion from jury-lists, by edict
Of the Military Despots who lend them,
-elves to the n~etarious purposes Of these
m~alefactors, Of all white men who dc
not ask to be or csnnot be registered as
voters. and the forcing upon juries OF
ignorant negroes who are registered, is 8
part Of the plan for compelling a truck
ling compliance with the desPotic and
unconstitutional behests Of Congress.
Neither BELIAL nor BEELzEBUB could
have pleaded more devilish counsel
nor is there a precedent for this measure
ST infamy on the blacklist pages OF hui
man history.
Reason and argument are Of course
unavaiIing against such measures be-
cause they are dictated by 3 cold and
cr1el policy that defes both, and which
would willingly crush the life out OF
averv human heart in the South, If it
couId not otherwise attain its ends. We
have the power" the Tribune says, "un-
til March, 1869, st any rate, and the work
Of Reconstruction shall go on" 1t is
true. We do not see how Democratic
victories are to avail Us. We fear that
they come too late.
The New York Herald says:
Not only every principle Of free, but
every maxim Of fair and just govern
ment. is wsutonly violated in the I'd
ministration Of the Reconstruction laws.
/ They are administered, to be sure, in the
same spirit in which they were enacted
so that every vice Of administration may
be taken as the natural fruit Of THIS d
eous system Of oppression.
II the Republican party had totally
/ abolished trial ~ Jury in the Southern
States. il would have committed indeed
q faVrsut violation Of the Constitution ,
[ but the practical mischief inflicted would
have been 8 bagatelle in comparison with
/ the organization Of black Juries who are
/ 81 ign0rant Of the matters which come
/ before them, who sit ia such outer dark
ness in respect to the whole field Of legal
| controversy, that they can hardly
discern between their right hand
and their left. If jury trials had been
/ simply abolished, the wrong inflicted
would have been more tOlerable. Decl-
siOus rendered by a judge without a jury
v0ult at least be intelligent, though
thew might not in all cases be impartial.
The Judge would at leass understand the
causes he undertook to decide, and he
would be under the restraints imposed
upon him by the intelligence ID
OF equity of an enlightened bar and the
wholesome influence OF public opinion.
The negroes are too ignorant TO decide q
case on its merits, and too degraded 10
the social scale to feel any OF those re-
straiuing influences. A man might as
% - L. ---T~ an Tho Hr=Efmm of q mn
Der 80 on the verdict Of a negro jury.
The orders OF the military sstraps re-
sDectiug iuries are a virtual denial Of
Justice 10 the citizens OF the South until
they will consent to political activity
under the reconstruction acts. They are
a means Of coercing the white citizens
into such participation in the bastard
State governments IS will redeem them
from the repr0ach and Odium OF repre-
senfing only tue negroes. They are a
declaration TO the South that IL shall
have no other security for its rights than
the verdicts Of ignorant and stupid negro
iuries, unless il will give the Northern
Republicans 8 colorado preteXt for say
ing that the new governments represent
the whole Southern population, and not
merely the blacks.
It is difficult to conceive Of q more re-
voting abuse Of courts Of justice than
their prostitution 10 party politics and
negro ignorance. Courts are supposed to
be organized for the intelligent and i'm
partial administration ofjustice. A jury
should be capable Of comparing the vari-
Gus parts Of the multfariOus and often
contradictory evidence presented by the
parties to 9 suit, and intelligent enough
to follow and understand the arguments
- Al. --rHaHrT ar4I Ahn 4fFgwwn and Glmn1-
dations Of the judge. Who believes that
negroes, ive per cent. Of whom cannot
read, are equal 10 this sustained mental
effort? Politics entirely apart, such q
constitution ofjuries is 8 disgrace to the
administration Of justice in q civilized
country. But the ignorance n imbe-
cility Of the negro juries Is not perhaps
g worse evil than converting the South
ern courts iRto footballs OF party politics.
Republicans may see 10 this hideOus
PROSTITUTION Of courts, IN this insult TO
civilization, one OF the many detestable
fruits oftheir policy Of reconstruction.
These wretChed demagogues are firing
the negro heart, or, rather, the negro
passions, for a terrible purpose. Negro
supremacy is determined on by the Rad
icals, or, failing in that, the ruin Of the
South. In this the Southern Radicals
are aided and encouraged by the Radical
party OF the North. They are resolved
TO maintain their political power in the
Republic through the ignorant blacks,
though the white people Of the North
may defeat them at the polls. Since the
late elections they svow their main re-
lance to be on this negro balance Of
power. Even the Tines, the lesser
organ Of the Radicals in this city, which
ureUeuGs to be Conservative, declares it
A. necessary now 10 seCuTe this negro
balance Of power. Let instruction
come. let a war Of races take place, let
the South perish, rather than lose pOliti-
cal power and the spOils Of the Govern
meut, is the cry Of this Infamous party.
Ten years ago no man In all our broad
country dreamed that such outrages,
such insults to civilization" deeds and
plots and damnable devices that so defy
common sense aud decency alike, so ut
terly shameless and brazen in their eff
froutery, crimes as p~rodigiCus as parri-
eide, were possible. Who would then
have believed that the day would come
IN our lifetime when a Senator from one
Of the old Thirteen States would exult
in his place over the prospect Of having
negroes FOR his colleagues? and that
the people Of the North would rejoice,
Ike idiots or msniacs, to see the negroes
Of the South invested with the power Of
governing and making laws for the white
Or, If any one had conceived
that as possible, who could have con-
it possible for a decent Southern
to become willing TO accept that
incredible degradation, for fear OF worse
consequences II he Were coHtQmaciots.
GEN. JOHN B. GORDON.
The Atlanta Intelligence contains &
long letter from this gallant leader in the
late Confederate armies, on public affairs.
de denounces the reconstruction acts
as unjust, unnecessary and unlawful.
He says the South may be a
g martyr" but never q suicide ~
that she "never will consent to
her own death warrant, and
her former slaves as her rightfIl