North Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1867-current, 1870-02-16
WHOLE No. 696.
Re.enter Virginia.

AC IaSt, out hampered with straight
jacket of hard conditions, Virginia has
been re-admitted into that "area of Frees
dom," the American Union. She is again
state, but not sovereign state. That
term may as we'll be banished from our
political lexicon. State Sovereignty has
been arbitrarily abolished by act of Con-
sress in every southern commonwealth,
and when the fifteenth amendment to the
constitution shall have been finally adopt
ed, will be extinct, for the time being at
least, in all sections Of the republic.
Virginia, after having fully complied
with the stringent terms upon which the
party majority in Congress consented to
reinstste her, was denied the boon for
which she had honestly rendered the re-
quired equivalent. Her representatives
having been contemptuodsly thrust back
from the doors of both Houses of Con>
gress, she was compelled to remain under
military rule, while her case was. .reopened
and re'discussed in both wings of the
Capitol. In the course of this new ordeal
she was snubbed, bartered, belied and COW
cred with unjust approbrium by clique
of extremists led and inspired by Benja-
min F. Butler.
Butler had, and still has, we presume, a
vehement and bitter spite against Virgins
ia. In that state he had been humiliated,
abased, rendered ridiculous, and time
when he could take his revenge safely
having arrived, he determined to feed fat
the ancient grudge he owed her. He had
been "bottled' at Bermuda Hundreds,
humbugged at Fortress Monroe, disgrace
fully and disastrously beaten at Big Beth.
Ell, and made the laughing stock of the
whole country by his engineering fasco
on the james river, and was eager to
wreak his wrath on the state when he had
played the military mountebank amid the
Kisses and scorn of the whole country.
His scheme has proved successful, and
Virginia returns to the Union under on
erous restrictions.
The negroes there-all of them, at
least, who are under ultra.ra influ-
ence-regard this contumelious treatment
of the commonwealth as grand triumph
of their race over the whites. At
meeting held in Richmond on Tuesday
last, to celebrate the re-admission of the
state, the black extremists took the lead,
shouted down the white speakers, de-
nounced all southerners as disloyal,
demanded that the state o.fces should be
filled with colored men, and warned the
white population that "the little rights
they had just got should be taken from
them unless they submitted quietly to
negro dictation." So savage and furious
did the black mob become under the in
flammatory harangues of the ringleaders,
that the conservative whites deemed it
prudent to withdraw in order to escape
violence. Butler, Sumner, and their CO.
adjutors in the House and Senate are
responsible for this threatening demon
stration and for any outrages that may
follow in its train. The speeches of the
negro orators were modelled after those of
their Congressional patrons and chanp-
ions. The language was more coarse and
brutal, perhaps, but the threats were of
the same character, and the demands
made by the colored demagogues for
themselves were not whit more prepos-
ferrous than those made on their behalfby
their hackers on the floor of Congress.
We are glad, however, that Virginia has
been reunited to the Federal family, even
on Buffers terms. We are glad, too, that
her white citizens are determined to avoid
if possible all difficulties with the freed
men, and to conciliate them by promptly
and cordially conceding all their rights
under the law, and by kind and generous
treatment. If the people of the recon
structed states will only act prudently and
wisely, accepting the inevitable good
naturedly and in good faith, and making
the best of it, there is no good reason to
oubt that the entire group efstates south
Of the Potomac will "vote solid" for the
democratic ticket in 1872. Meantime,
there is storm brewing in the north on
the subject Of the national finances.
Grinding taxation consequent upon the
extravagance, corruption, and incompetent
cy of the administration, is the rock ahead
of the party in power. Upon that rock
it will split, in fact is now splitting, and
we have firm and abiding faith that it
will 60 utterly to pieces within two years
from the present date.-N. Y. Sunday
Times.