New-York tribune., 1868-03-02
THE SOUTHERN CONVENTIONS.

prescription.
THE SOUTHERN CONVENTIONS.
Reconstruction Conventions have been held
or nre i'm session in all the late rebelliOus
States except Texas Alabama has done her
| work, and although nearly 900 electors voted
TO indorse the Constitution, and not 800 against
il. it is not yet certain that the organic law
is adopted. In spite of most formidable OBJ
stacles, the other Conventions are steadily NOV
ing on TO the cOnsummation of their work. The
| people in this part of the country know little
of the difficulties under which these RecOnstruc-
tionists have labOred; and for the better under
standing of the matter we will briefly state
some of the most prominent. Tho Con-
ventions are organized in the midst of q peo-
pie still overflowing with bitterness toward the
dominant loyal power. 1t is not to be expected
that absolute submission followed the Apo
mattox surrender for when we consider the
nature of the Rebellion we cannot Halter our
selves with the idea that the sentiment that IN
spired it went down with the physical fOrce
| that sustained it. There is to-day bitter
| though subdued hatred Of the loyal Govern
mcnt all through the Southern States
there ia, in addition, the fact of failure
| to stimulate this bitterness, and unfortunately
there is. as there was before the war, that in-
sane hatred Of anybody and everybody from
| the North, or from any part OF the world
where personal and political freedom finds
favor. Nearly all the recognized leaders OF the
| Southern people have set their faces against
| the existing plan of reconstruction. Hence
| none of them would go into the Conventions
| the single bugbear of Negro Suffrage was
| enough to decide their course in this respect,
| although had that not been granted they would
quite as resolutely have opposed the admission
Of the poor whites TO an equality of political
| power with the old arstocracy. Ever since
| voting was invented in the Southern States,
the rich few had manipulated the poor many
| for their own benefit, and it was not in human
nature TO suddenly and completely recognize
| their equality.
When the registration law came into opera
ton, there was hesitation among the old-time
leaders-whether 10 recognize the law, and thus
secure power, or loftily to repudiate it, and
thus break down power. was the question
The oath was a bitter dIaught, but then the
contingency of disfranchsement stared blankly
into their faces, and great numbers of them
went up and registered their names on the
same page with their former chattels-n0t with
the intention of immediately exercising their
power, but to provide for the accidents of the
future, when it might become their interest
to vote down some obnoxious proposition.
Thus the names of nearly all the original, un-
adulterated, unconciliated Rebels are now
safely recorded upon the books with conscien-
tously loyal voters.
Having secured the right to vote, they
refused to exercise it. When the elec-
tons for Reconstruction Conventions came
on, they stood afar off. They not only
did not elect their own able men, but they
secretly plotted and, in many instances secured
the election of bad OF Indifferent delegates on
the Otber side. Well knowing that they
could not prevent the holding Of the Conven-
tions and consequently could not dictate the
names and character of members, they set to
work to embarrass, rs far as possible, the
movement they conld not check. To most
of the Conventions they elected few
sharp, shrewd practical men, whose education,
talent and experience were pretty sure to make
them masters of the situation. Two or three
such men, in Convention like that of South
Carolina, are able to work their will-the un-
learned delegates, whose white skins will stand
examination by the microscope, and the dingy
majority whose epidermis manifests African
descent are but clay in the hands of
expert politicians, and bend pliantly to
their will Remember, therefore, that in these
Reconstruction Conventions we have two active
powers. First the loyal whites of the South,
combined with the loyal blacks. Secondly, the
combined cx-Rebe element, led by the
cotton-land aristocracy, and sweeping into Its
vortex every man who is too rich or too lazy
to work, every man who ever owned or whose
great grandfather ever owned a slave, and
every loafer whose long service for the
white "massa" gives him claim to pauperism
for life.
Now, with such timber, aud under such cir
cumstances, what have these Conventions
donol Alabama perfected her Constitution
some weeks ago. and an election has been held
upon it but the actual result is not yet truly
ascertained. Arkansas has made what seems
to he an excellent Constitution-her people will
vote upon it in March, and the present out
look seems to promise its adoption by
large majority. Texas has just voted to hold
Convention. In that State they did not
accept the dog -in-the manager policy-both sides
registered pretty fully, and good many OF