American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1874-06-20
A Republican Organ ON the Question
Of State Rights.


Mr.. Eaton, the newly Senator OF |
Connecticut, recently delivered an adj |
dress to his fellow-citizens, in which he
referred in a general way to his political
opinions. These opinions are already
tOlerably well known to everybody who
has followed the course of politics with
probable that MIR. Eaton will make any
change in them He declared that he is
now, land always has been, and always
would be- a State-rights Democrat of the
old Jeffersonian school," He said also:
First, first, first the State of Connecti-
cut, and then the Federal Union," which
of course is essentially the position
formerly taken by men like Gen. Lee.
/" shall try" added Mr.. Eaton, "to take
away the Federal bayonets from our
brothers in the South, SO that every State
in this land shall have the same right OF
local government and the same exercise
of it as our own State" The regulation"
way of answering all this is to stick
label on Mr. Eaton's back certifying that
he is a Bourbon and copperhead, and
to call attention to the fact that he was by
no means "seund" on national issues
during the war But even after all this
had been done there would still remain a
question in the background which will
have to be met fairly in the face some day
or other The extreme length to which
State-rights theories were pushed in 1860
and 1861 brought about reaction, and
that reaction has led many people to
think that State rights belong to the dead
and-gone class of questions, and that any
man who talks about State rights is suf-
ficiently answered when he is called
Bourbon" 1t is unnecessary to say to
any intelligent reader that this view is a
miserably shallow one, and that in
reality the right of States to govern
themselves is as dear to the people
as ever it was. And it ought to be dear
to them, for when they abandon it they
will have utterly fOrsaken the system of
government established under the Federal
Constitution. They may set up some
thing else in its place which may be
called by any name that may please the
persons then living; but it will not be the
government designed by the founders of
ty based upon parliamentary rule, or it
may be a monarchy or despotism; but it
will no longer be constitutional repub
lie such as we have seen here for nearly
one hundred years. We say, then, that
when Mr. Eaton talks of the necessity of
maintaining State rights and of giving
the citizens of South Carolina the same
freedom which the citizens of Connecticut
enjoy, it is not enough to allege that he is
q "copperhead," and to fling at him the
missiles which darkened the air between
1851 and 1865. If the citizens of the
South are living in state of oppression
Mr.. Eaton is right in calling attention to
their situation; if they are suffering from
injustice the nation at large will never
tolerate its continuance, and, therefore,
the sooner the injustice is redressed the
better. All such questions as these
should be dealt with frankly. 1t is very
bad policy on the part of the Republican
party to try to stuff them away in corners
and cover them with the battle flag" or
with any other of the war paraphernalia.
The people will not consent to see either
q Poland or an Ireland created on this
soil. 1t is not impossible to redress mis-
takes when they are discovered; but to
persist in those mistakes after discovery,
and to pretend that religion and morality
require us to persist in them-this IS
course which we certainly shall not take
the responsibility ofrecOmmending to the
Republican or to any other party. The
Southern States are not living under a
fair or free Government-so Mr.. Eaton
and many others allege. Well, is the as
sertion truei Look at South Carolina
The facts in reference to that State seem
to be about as well established as any
historical facts can be, and they amount
to this: The negroes, assisted by rascally
whites, have held sort of grand orgie in
the State for several years past, have
swallowed up among them pretty nearly
all the private property in the State, have
ruined what may be called the native citi-
zens even more thoroughly than the war
had done, have robbed and harried like
70 many highwaymen, and have reduced
the State TO q condition which must
shock every man who sees it or reads
about it The very Governor is a thief
The Legislature is gang of thieves. Is
- al II,
the Constitution guarantees to all the
States? We venture to say that it is not
that, on the contrary, it is a government
of which the Republic has every reason
to be ashamed. No doubt the system in
troduced as q "war measure'' into the
South after the war-chiefiy upon the ad-
vice of Senator Sumner and Thaddeus
Stevens-was experimental; but can we
wonder that people everywhere begin to
There should at least be some sign of i'm
provement visible as time goes on. Nine
years have passed since the close of the
war, and is South Carolina better gov
erned than she was then? She clearly is
not SO well governed as she was under a
purely military rule. The same
and Arkansas. Now it is folly
to suppose that the Republican party, as
an organization, will continue much
longer to look on with perfect satisfac-
ton at this great failure. The leaders of
the present moment may not pay any at
tention to the subject, but if they do not
other leaders will arise who will see that
Justice is done. Last week we all wit
messed the United States Senate engaged
for about twenty four hours at a stretch
in passing bill for the benefit of the
negro merely out of a sentimental sort of
Difference to the wishes Of a deceased
Senator. Respect for the dead is incum-
bent on US all, but legislation should be
based on q careful and wise regard for
the welfare of the living, not upon man.
dates" real or fictitious, of the dead. The
negro has had q very fair amount of pro-
lection. 1t is important before going any
further to find out what use he has made
of the freedom given to him; in what way
he has exercised the vast political pow
ers with which he has been endowed
what sort of a government he has helped
to set up in States where he is most pow
erful; whether, in short, he at this mo-
ment stands in need of protection from
the white man or the white man stands in
need of protection from him. If Mr..
Eaton intends to raise these questions de-
pend upon it he will obtain an audience,
and he cannot be suppressed by howls
and groans, and we, for our part, shall
not join IN any such attempts at suppress
SION We should like to see the questions
taken up by Republicans. Mr.. Carpen-
ter made a great beginning in reference
to Louisiana. Such a work would be far
more conducive to the prosperity of the
party and to the cause of good govern.
ment now and hereafter than the head