National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1875-03-11
TIE SOUTHERN SITUATION.

two hundred thousand men in organizations,
under arms, aud busily engaged in drilling.
To show that this is not an overestimate:
There are in the city of Savannah twelve COM
panies-infantry, ten; cavalry, one; artillery,
one; or, allowing fifty members to each COM
pany, one soldier for every forty-seven of the
population, at which ratio through the fifteen
Southern and Southern-border States, accord
ing to the census of 1870, it will give total of
291 ,366; from which set off the odd 81 1866 as
an allowance for oVerestimate, country places,
&C., and have no doubt that the allowance
is more than ample, for believe the average
of the companies to be over sixty members.
This body of men are fully armed, equipped,
organized, differed, and while the great ma
jority of them will deny any present hostile
motives, (and honestly so, too they are fully
ripe for whatever may occur. At no time
since the war closed have the Southern people
admitted that they were whipped. They claim
that they were fighting the whole world, and
were "simply overpowered by the foreigners
combined with the Yankees; the Yankees
alone could not have done it." They have
never admitted that their cause was unjust,
but on the contrary the whole tenor of South
Gil sCullluCuI udb DSCu ID duu
will prevail" and Father Ryan but expressed
the feeling of the whole people when he de-
clared at Bezelia, July 4, 1866, referring to the
cause which he said was not lost, "Ideas
never die; they continue gathering force until
from them spring forth men, strong men, full
armed to carry their cause on to victory"
The average Southern heart has-down deep
in it-been full of smoldering fire ready to be
famed into a blaze. In all matters, aside
from strict personal business, the people have
obeyed their leaders. During the campaign
for the convention (1S67) "digniied inactiv-
ity' was ordered; the people obeyed. During
the campaign for the constitution and Gov
ernor under it, (April, 1861 no certain sound
was given by the leaders, and few-pressed
by their Indebtedness, and needing the relief
ofFered-voted for it, but the majority went
for Gordon; but how great a change by No
Vember of the same yeara The orders had
gone forth that Grant must be defeated, and
with intimidation and murder they responded,
and Georgia scored As 900 majority for Sey-
mour and Blair. The people have believed
what their leaders have permitted, and to-day
half dozen men hold in their own hands the
political faith and loyalty of the white people
of Georgia, and the same assertion will hold
good with any other Southern State. In few
months in 1868, Ben Hill, through his "Notes
on the Situation" gave birth, in this nine
teenth century, to ostracism. Persecution for
political opinion, which had died a natural
death in civilized countries long years ago,
was resurrected and fastened upon a people
who claim the civilization and enlightenment
IF fha rrorld nd h.f Too h. aF
an eloquent, INSCRIPTIONS, political dema-
gogue.
Mr.. Hill is to-day the leader of the Demo-
cratic party Of Georgia, and as such his utter
ances ought to have great weight. He said, at
Atlanta, not long since: Secession was q mis-
take, terrible mistake, but secession was no
crime. The great final struggle to
settle the question whether constitutional lib
erty on this continent shall be continued or
not is to be fought in 1876. C,nit be success
fully fought by the BALLOT : Never,
never. That is what 1 am preparing for. +
Who In American history is a rebeli Is 1t
man who tramples upon the Constitution, or a
man who simply resents such infdelity by
seeking to get away from such party! y
The public man in America who has not under
bOOOA 4AOA bAC lL4ab bA4C HuOlG pOlub
and power, as well as danger of RadicaIism,
lies in the fact that they expect to perpetuate
their power by force and in spite of the ballot
box, has been stupid public man, and not fit
to be public counselor. If the peo-
pie of the country cannot be aroused to give an
overwhelming vote against this Republican
party it will perpetuate itself in power in the
United States by precisely the same means as
the President has taken in Louisiana, and the
people will be powerless to prevent it except
they go to war. If we fail with the ballot-box
in 1876, by reason Of force, a startling question
will present itself to the American people.
The question is: Is the Constitution
of our fathers worth bloodl VIII you have
war or despotism? VIII you have blood or
empire That is the question. = tell
you, my friends, there is no peace for this
country until Radicalism is crushed; not only
crushed, but despised; not only despised, but
made infamous throughout America. =
If inordinate love Of power shall decree that
America must save her Constitution by blood,
let it come; l am ready. II another
war should come, we of the South will rally
under the old flag of our fathers. It always
was our flag. We were never faithIess to 1t,
and our enemies were never faithful to it."
You will see from these utterances that the
successful apostle of ostracism is now the
apostle of war, and have no doubt the people
Of Georgia will support him in this position as
ferventIy as they did in the other. Indeed, it
is quite probable that he will shortly be elected
to Congress to the seat made vacant by the
death of Mcmillan.
The New York Weekly Witness asks Gin
what does the relative position Of the North
ern and Southern States differ now from what