The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1869-10-21
s. G.
Thursday Morning, October 81, 1859.
The wisdona OF nIr. Horace Greeley.


TO an Arkansas correspondent, in which
he takes the ground that continued IRE
bel" disfranohisement is no longer desi
rable. and should be abandoned. Mr.
Greeley's impression is that this -entran
chisement Of '.rebels" will come in spite
OF his party, and that therefore it be.
comes the party to make a virtue of ne.
cessity, and to ooncede of itself what ere
long it will be constrained to admit. Fur.
thermore, the Tribune philosopher holds
that History aud the genius of the age
forbid" this thing of ''rebel' prosorip-
tion. We repeat it, Mr.. Greeley is wise,
wiser than Wendell Phillips; wiser than
Charles Sumner; wiser than his fanatical
party are disposed. to be. At the close
Of, Mr.. ,Greeley's letter, to which we are
referring. he says al
"Shskspeare says: -'.~
I'VE teach bloody instructions,
winch return to plague tho inventor
eff waI being :uppermost. prescribe,
they ,who will yet be uppermost, are mo-
rally certain to do likewise. We canpo pot
expect them to do better than we do. If
we prescribe rebels SO long as we may,
they will in turn proscffbe radicals. We
shall have The fa6tims lof Marius and
Sylla over againo ThAre is more OK.
oellent way, anda,we must pioneer it.
There is nothing safer than faagnsuimi
ty. We Gan hold oyer by showing that
ours is theihigher and more humane ci-
viiization.raI .h.t.a ,--.,..- -
I,et Us have peace" -l ,.
These ere esgggestions, which may well
be needed by those leaders of the domi.
nant partyin South Carolina, who pro
fess to have the interests of the colored
population at heart. AS for the white
leaders Of the radical party in South Ca
rolina, it is we'll understood that they,
with perhaps some exceptions, care not
fig for the genuine interests of the CO.
lored man. They are here "down Sou .h"
for purpose. 1t is to get place and
power and pelf for selfish purposes. It
is to make, by easy methods, their for
tunes. 1t is to fill empty pockets at
honest peoples expense. It is to make
hay whiletf the political sun shines. We
need address no caution-we need ad-
minister no warning to this class. They
are mere, most of them, birds OF prey,
to fly away as soon as the hunter comes
to Poare them away. But to the colored
leaders, who, it may be supposed must,
to greater or less extent. have the inte-
rests Of their people lii view, Mr.. Gree
ley's hint is very opportune. In South
Carolina, the negro is now "uppermost" :"
The Constitution is his. The Judiciary
is his. The Legislature, or ninetenths
Of it. ia his. The Executive is his We
mean his in the main. He is therefore
'uppermost. Bat he is fool if he
imagines that he will be "uppcrmost"
long. 1t becomes him, therefore, to use
moderately and decently his present
power. 1t is true. he does not prescribe
the "rebels" in the matter of voting.
But there are hundred other methods
of prescription actual and virtual. There
is prescription in education; there is pro-
scription in general legislation; there is
prescription in taxes. Let the present
regime. therefore, take the caution of
MIR. Greeley. Let them be careful lest
they do not SOW the seeds of future re-
taliation, vengeance and hate. If they
give us political Mariuses. political Syl-
las will follow, when the wheel turns and
fortunes change. Mr.. Greeley is right.
"There is most excellent way" and it
wonld be we'll for radicalism in the South
''to pioneer it," Mr.. Greeley is philo-
sophical. "There is nothing better than
magnanimity." Mr.. Greeley is not
wrong. Radicalism may "hold over by
showing that theirs is the higher and
more humane civilization" Wesay with
Mr. Grant. and echoed by Mr.. Greeley,
"let us have peace"
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