The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1874-09-03
Correspondence Of the Phoenix.

WASHINGTON, D. c., Sept. /, 1874.
Mr.. EDITOR: Almost daily the sub
sidized press of Washington (there is
not liberal. free or independent sheet
issued in the city publish articles de.
TogatoTy, abusive Of and insulting to
the South. Nothing delights Wash
ington editor more than to jeer ut "the
South Of former dnys." and credit for
nothing commendable can ever be had
from them for those who represented
the South in those days. Ouly allude
to South Caroliua anterior to 1860,
and forthwith their vile pens emblazon
on their leading columns ''Slaveocrs.
Cyl" meution tue Virginia of old, and
the whole vocabulary of ridicule is
showcred upon what they style "Ihe
Muds" aud IN. T. VS." of the Old
Dominion; speak of the Southwest.
and ut once you are terrified with the
nssa' sins stlletto or tho murderer's
B,wic knife and b!udgeon Such etli
TOTALS being the daily breakfast dish
OF the cosmopolitan inhabitants Of this
city, you may rest assured little sym
puthy or fellow feeling is ever ex.
pressed or entertained for us of the
South who belong to the above cate
cory. Every snch piece of informa-
tor is believed by the people; they
tn'k it over to the clerks, who carry it
int their daily avocatiOns, and. fiuaily.
tho national officinls have their minds
iulbne,l with these Impressions. that
are the Outgrowth Of fllsehood aud
iSnorauce; aud the result Of the whole
matter is, tue South is stigmatized az
unreconstructetl, aud political capital
is made out Of it. For the past week,
occasional sanibs huve appeared in
several OF the daily papers, stating
that letters bad been and ure being
received from South Carolina aud
Georgia. advising the departments
that anarchy prevails throughout those
States. 1t has been asserted that the
negro is being driven from Georgia,
and that in South Carolina the whites
are being marshalled against the blacks.
So many letters of this nature huve
been received by the officials. that lie
Attorney General has run off to hunt
up the President and counsel with him
an to what can the uuttrr bc." II
Attorney General Williams belieycs
such IL condition Of things exists III
more than one Of the Southern States,
lie has certainly SO impressed The
pleasure seeking President. And is it
not lauentable that Mr.. Grant can be
so cailous while his country thus
groans? Did Nero fiddle while Rome
Was burning?
To-day, the Chronicle. a sheet inca
pabie Of taking u statesmanlike view
of the political armament, and too
prone to slander to speak the truth Of
u political foe. has long letter from
Arkansas, published in it's leading trIe-
graphic column. which would doubt
less astonnd any citizen of that youug
Stnte, save tho carpet-bag fraternity,
who are, and have beel, riding it's
treasury and delrauding its people.
Elitorializing upon this letter, the
editor iuvokes the people to take Ar
kansas in hand and secure for her q
republican form OF government. What
q pity that some wiseucre cannot see au
equal necessity OF reform in South
Carolina. where his political kith and
kin have for years 1un riot over the
tax payers and produced tenfold
worse effect than he is now lampntipg
over rs being produced by the Demo
cracy of Arkansas.
am too much away from the State
to know what the political in-iooh is ut
home, but nm sure the political om.
looh for South Carolina ut Washington
is indeed gloomy. The name is never
spoken but in pity or ridicule. The
whites Of South Carolina have no
ftiends here aud not many elsewhere,
in my opinion. The Republicans to
whom l speuk denounce Moses and
laugh mt our submitting to such euber-
Material degradation. A New Yorker
said to me: IF Gov. Dix had done as
Moses did. be would now be cracking
stones with Boss Tweed" A Wlscon.
sin man said: "Curpet-bag rule would
not last in my State twenty fonr
hours" And Penusylynnia Quaker,
in the beautiful valley of the Cumber-
lnnd. inquiring particularly about
South Carolina, replied to my asser-
tion that we were doing pretty we'll:
We'll, sir, I once admired South Cnro-
linians. but you have lost your claim
to adniration by not making O manly
effort to crush out your corrupt 60
vernment." Similar remarks, Mr.. Ed-
tor. are constantly made to me in my
association with men oil over the
North. This last remark, alas! WAS too
true. Has South Carolina ever made
an effort TO relieve herself? Not that
am aware. True, we did select one
of our best men and tried to win by