The New York herald., 1875-09-14
The Vice President and the RePub-
lican Policy.

year-it does not praise directly the Southern
policy of President Grant Is it possible that
the republican politicians are at last learning
wisdom? The Pennsylvania republicans in
their platform, though they would have no
third term, heartily approved of the Presi-
dents policy, and particularly of his conduct
of Southern affairs. The Ohio men were not
less warm in their approval and the Califor-
mans, since then very badly beaten, were just
as strong At Saratoga, for the first time, we
hear gentle, very gentle, remonstrance.
'just generous and forbearing national pol
icy in the Southern States" is required, with
ga firm refusal to use the military power,
except for purposes clearly defined in the
constitution" And the Vice President
hastens, in letter to Massachusetts, repubi-
cans, to ''second the motion"
1t is high time. The policy which the
President and the republican administration
! have pursued toward the Southern States has
been huge blunder, in this respect, that it
has been unaltered. 1t has made no allow
ance for the great changes which time and
custom have brought about in the South
since the war. 1t is the same in 1875 that it
was in 1869; the same when the patient was
i'll unto death and when he is past his crisis
and convalescing. The republican doctors
seem to have had not the least faith in their
own remedies.
One result of this iron-bound policy has
been that the republican party has to-day
substantially no existence in most of the
Southern States. In 1869 it ruled in every
Southern State, and it counted among its
members a number of eminent Southern
public men and many thousands Of Southern
whites To-day it can count only on
South Carolina and Mississippi, and
not certainly on those. In the rest
of the cotton States the party is
to-day composed almost exclusively of the
negroes and the federal office-holders. In
Arkansas the republican party has been over
thrown and will hardly be reorganized. In
Alabama it is hopelessly demoralized. In
Louisiana it was fairly beaten in the last
election, and is sustained to-day only by the
federal power In Georgia it is in a hopeless
minority In North Carolina it has squan-
dered large majority, and it is doubtful
whether it can recover its ground next year.
| Even in Mississippi and South Carolina,
States which have overwhelmingly large ne
! gro majorities, the party is in danger. We
need not speak of Tennessee, Kentucky, V.n
| ginia or Missouri. In all the cotton States the
republican policy has resulted only in
arraying the mass of the white voters
against it. In Louisiana in 1874, not more
than five thousand white men supported the
republican ticket, and these were the office
holders and their friends. In Georgia, to
take another State, less than five thousand
white voters belong to the republican side;
and again, these are mostly federal office
holders and their relatives and friends.
Now, this is very serious calamity. It
means that in a number of the most impor-
tant States of the Union the wealth, the in
telligence and the political skill are massed
on one side, and opposed to the mass of the
! ignorance and poverty. There can be no per-
manent prosperity under such a condition of
things. Indeed, no one pretends to doubt
this. Senator Morton himselfcries out against
such division of parties. But there is not
the least doubt that the republican policy
toward the South is primarily and almost en-
tirely to blame for it.
A wise political management of the South,
by statesmen anxious for the security
of the colored people and the peace
able settlement of political questions,
would have carefully sought to prevent
such a division on the color line, and
would have found it easy to prevent. In
every State there are a number of men prom
inent and influential in its politics men of
brains, naturally and justly ambitious of
political power and capable by social infu-
ence and natural predominance, of infuenc-
ing others. Take all the men of this
/ character and position in any community
and they inevitably fall into two par
| ties, by reason of differences in tenn
| permanent, old party associations, and per-
sonal aspirations. For instance in Georgia to-
day there are at least ten candidates for Gov
! ernor, all prominent and influential men
/ but all democrats. Under the republican
policy they can be nothing else. That policy
has, in fact, made it impossible for any man
of real influence in the South to be repub-
! lican- 1t has prescribed them ALL and has
/ compelled them either to abandon public life
entirely or to unite, regardless of political
/ differences, in opposition to the administra-
ton No matter whether they are old wings
or democrats; no matter whether by tempera-
ment thay are conservative or progressive;
no matter whether, by political education or
opinion, they are hard money or rag money
men, for against a protective tariff, op-
posed or favorable to internal Improvements;
no matter how strongly they differ on all the
most important points of national policy, all
are to-day united in solid body of opposi-
tion to the republican administration.
How can they be otherwise? The adj
ministration since 1868 has united them all