The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1874-04-29
Southern Troubles Their. Cause and
=, Remedy.

The New York Herald, in . recen
article, attributes-we think, very
;iustly-the evils under which tn
South is now laboring to the Congress
lsional scheme of reconstruction, anc
especially to the impatient haste Will
which the policy was carried out
Had the military occupation OF the
conquered STATES been prolonged iol
live. years further, there would have
been no excuse for disfrarchiscmcnt
and universal suffrage; all classes
would have accommodated themselves
to the new order Of things, and peace
and harmony between conflicting IN
terests would have been secured
The passions of war would have sub
sided, disaffcction would have bce"
.reconciled, the freedmen educated to
proper appreciation of their prlvl-
;leges and duties, immigration pro-
NOTED, and when tho time came tor
reconstruction, tho worthicst would
have ruled, and the government
would have been true expression OF
The popular will. A different course
was pursued, and as consequence
we have had disturbances III eVory
Southern State, party arrayed against
party, race against race, oppression
and corruption.
:. To use the language Of the Hsrald'
"to.day we SEQ the smoke in Arkn"n-
sas. Yesterday we heard the rum
bling in South Carolina; tomorrow
the earth may rehd in Louisiana or
Texas, with spouting fire or lava
streams All these phenomena mean
the samo thing. There arc flames
and consuming fire under the surface.
With all of our craftsmanship, We
have never been able to. reach the
owl, 1t is idle to talk of'reconstruc-
tion or peace SO long as we sec what
we see in Arkansas. Is is easy to
make desoiation and call it peace.
1t is easy to provoke chaos and call
it reconstruction. This is what we
ihave done in the South. Its condi-
ton to day is far worse politically
than Poland or Ireland. In Poland
tho military hand presses rudely upon
the people, but they are not robbed
In Ireland aliens sit in authority, but
1hoy are gentlemen who do not show
.their dislike to home rule and repeal
by robbing tho exchequer. 1t has
been reserved for the American Re-
public. to unite Russian severity with
a rapacisy which belongs to go other
nation, aad for which we have to find
o parallel in the careers OF Ferrcs
and Warren Hastings. The blame
for this rests largely upon the general
government, but not wholly. We do
not excuse the leaders Of the South
for their apathy"
The Herald states that with the
return of peace and amnesty, it ex-
pected. the statesmen of the South
to have retained their leadership, and
it sees proper to attribute the evils
under which the South has suffered
to tho apathy or helplessness Of its
leaders. But whose FAULT, we would
ask, is it that Leo silently retired into
seclusion after Appomattox? that
BENJAMIN became an exile, that Brock
inridge keeps his own counsel, and
that Hunter has failed to re-enter the
Senate? 1t certainly was not the
fault of these gifted men that their
talents were lost to the country, that
until late day the test oath cxclud-
ed them from all civil Office, and that
as a consequence Of universal suffrage
the ignorant, the corrupt and the
impecunious were made their political
masters, and that virtue and intelll-
eence were ostracised at the polls.
These men doubtless could havo ob-
tanned preferment by the use OF un-
worthy means to attain it, but they
seorned to pay the prico which was
demanded, and preferred principles
to expediency. As 3 consequence,
the county has lost their services and
suffered from the loss but the fault
is not theirs, and the same power
which imposed the evil must furnish
the remedy We do not look for now
any inteposition of tho general gov
and perhaps it may not be
desirable. 1t is too late now for mill
.ary rule, and wo suppose that matt