The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-05-18
Radical Enforcement of General shcrman's
| Views ON she Hu KIux.


Views ON she Hin KIux.
The radical organ Of this city confirms the
views expressed by General Sherman on the
condition Of the South and exaggerated state
ments about the Ku Klux, although 1t assailed
the General few days ago for what he said.
1t says:-
Our correspondents have now been so long I'm
the disturbed districts or the South that we can
form from their letters distinct idea OF the state OF
society In that unfortunate cart or the Union IL Ii
melancholy picture mat they draw for us. The most
intelligent. the influential the educated the really
useful men OF the South, deprived OF all political
power have come e look upon themselves as the
and swindled by horde OF rascally foreign adyen-
turers and by the ignorant class which only yeser-
day h0ed the fields and served In The Kitchen they
care nothing for politics except TO throw on the
oppressive yoke; they have no interest In national
adairs; they would call themselves Of either party
provided their rulers were only OF the other. The
refuse OF Northern cities who went Southwark after
the war, out at elbows and destitute OF character
and education now roll IN splendid carriages, drink
rare wines, glitter with diamonds IS big as Fisk's
and steal taxes rs fast as New. York street COM
ished planter, growing poorer every day. the
ex-Confederate oflcer, who fought SO brave!y
for cause In which ne honesty believed , the pro-
office and lead the public sentiment or their CON-
munties look on such things with ranoorous hearts.
They might submit TO DC ruled by soldiers VINO haa
beaten them in battle; but here they arc plundercd
by suffers and camp followers.
This is o miserable state OF things indeed for
republican governmental Durlesque upon the SUI
frage when the only restriction upon voting IS That
the votes shall not he cast Tor the most intelligent
party In Congress Of the inevitable result OF the VIM
dictlve method OF reconstruction. We have told
them, and we tell them again, that there Is only one
way to restore the Union-unlversal amnesty and
Impartial Suffrage.
We do not care to discuss the probable mo-
tives for this change of base. 1t may be that
the secret purpose is to strike General Grant
in an indirectway on the coercive policy he
inaugurated and pushed through Congress, or
that this assumed leader of the radical party,
seeing the popular movement to make General
Sherman President, wants to take him up and
forestall7 the democrats. In the subsequent
part of the article, of which the above extract
is the commencement, there Is something said
about the poor negroes and violence In the
South, by way of qualifying what was said
before but the gist Of the whole is in what we
have quoted. This Ku Klux matter is likely
to prove troublesome one to the radicals,
and their organ here has sense enough to see
it. The sentiment Of the country responds to
the views expressed by General Sherman, that
the statements made about the Ku Klux are
greatly exaggerated and that the troubles in
the South can be settled by the Southern
people themselves, without the employment of
federal forces, if the government would act
wisely. Any attempt to control the Southern
vote in elections, or at the next Presidential
election, by coercion, under the pretext of
Ku Klux outrages, will produce reaction
against the administration and radical party
and defeat their object. It will be well if the
warning note sounded by the radical organ
here be needed by General Grant.