The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1872-09-24
GREELEY ON AMNESTY.

An old-llne Democrat must leel the aWk-
wardness Of the 6 situation " when he at
tempts to show that Horace Greeley has
been the prince of magnanimity towards
the South since the war, and that to-day he
is a better man than Grant in his amnesty
record. For, in order to show this, he
must unsay everything that Greeley has
said and written on the subject since the
war, and must undo all that General Grant
has done since he entered the Presidential
chair. In other words, he must arraign
Greeley against Greeley. and fortify Grant
against Grant, and make out that each is
not himself, but incontestably another, be-
fore he arrives at any satisfactory conclu-
sion in his own mind.
It is the easiest thing in the world for
any fair and unprecedented mind to see that
General Grants little finger Of Presiden-
tal policy displays more amnesty than
Mr.. Greeley's entire nature is capable of
holding, if all that he has ever said, written
or done is to be taken as any rational cri-
terion in the premises. General Grant has
never allowed single yindictiye utterance
to escape him in all his intercourse with the
Southern people, nor has any one of his
numerous state papers contained the least
unkind reference to the South. "By
their fruits We shall know them," is a
safe, because true and scriptural
guide, to go by, and Horace Greeley
and General Grant, tested by this rule,
stand as wide apart as the two poles of a
universe. Greeley wants his past record
forgotten and forgiven. But if he is no
less Republican now than when he vented
his vindictive utterances against the people
of the South, and they no less Democrats
!. than when they were thus bitterly
denounced, where is there any room for
forgiveness and forgetfulness to come in
A thorough examination of Mr.. Greeley's
record will show that he is no less dema.
gogue now than ever, whatever change he
may have undergone in the yindictiveness
of his hate. We quote the following from
the Tribune of December twenty-6rst
1866:
In the perplexing question of recons tructiOn WI
see no reason to amend the policy which we have
asserted since the close of the war. 1t then seem
ed to US that emancipation of the black should b'
followed by suffrage for the black. We did no
see the wisdom of q policy of promiscnous con
iiscation and hanging We had too much bloot
in war to ask for blood in peace-eyen TO CRAFTY
angry vengeance 1t seemed important that thu
South should eoneede suffrage, and that thu
North should concede amnesty. Some OF on
friends disapproved of this but Congress ha
followed advice, AMNESTY
PROVED BY CoNGREss-ro GREATER ExTEN
THAN WE CLAIMED IN THE Tribune. we
have held that the men who starved captive
in rebel dungeons, who murdered surrendere
prisoners, Who violated the roles OF wal
and aided the assassination OF Mr.. Lincoln
should be tried and punished Congress and Ia
Administration have agreed that no punish
tnent should be inflicted even upon men who ar
charged with these crimes, and the only meas
nre looking like punishment is the amendmen
OF acknowledgements from holding office, whic
is merely sentimental and not practical pen
atty On the other hand, the passage of tn
civil rights bill, the freedmen's bureau BILL an
the bill for suffrage in the District of Columbii
show that reconstruction will not be consuI
mated without suffrage and protection for II
blacks. The policy of the Tribune has been pra
ticalIy adopted by those who differed with |
during its discussion.
1t seems then that Congress was far MOI
lnaganimous than Mr.. Greeley was di'
posed to be, and that no special credit
due to him for the advocacy of amnest
measures. In the following paragraph, irol
the Tribune of January Ia, 1867, Nj
Greeley gave assent to the cautious polio
Of the Republican party:
If il be deemed necessary temporarily TO witt
hold the right Of suffrage from some of thei
who were jealous active rebels, we have not
ing to say.
And November z, 1867, Mr.. Creole
gave General Grant, very grudgingly, fc
he was struggling against his nominatio
by the Republican party, credit for MAJ
nanimity, as follows:
General Grant we esteem by no means gref
man, nor even q very great general Yet he Ia
IN every position he has fited, eYinced mode
good sense, q practical, transformations sagaeit
which have Justly won for him large measu
Of public confidence. He Is not by training
staies man; yet his negotiations with dener
Lee and the terms of capitulation conceded Z
him Mt Appomattox, eyince wisdom al
breadth of view which few among our tatesms
could ha fe equaled, and none OF them has so
passed. We do profoundly honor anu estee