, 1876-12-22
THE SOUTHERN "COPPERHEADs."

We nave taken pans on more than one
occasion recently to point ont evidences
| that, if civil war is to come of the proposed
Democratic resistance to the Inauguration Of
Gov. HATES as President, the Southern peo-
pie will, for the most part, undertake. to act
the same role as the Copperheads Of the
North during the last Civil War. Among the
significant indications Of this purpose are
the utterances Of newspapers like the Rich
mond Enquirer, which vacillhtes between the
most emphatic renunciations Of warlike in
tent on the part Of the South and taunting
appeals to Northern Democrats not to yield
to the "despotism of the Republican party,
which it depicts in true Southern style. One
day it rebukes the New York Herald for talk
ing glib1y of civil war, and says if the North
"imagines the South will catch the
infection, it reckons without its host" An
other day it charges that the troops have
been concentrated at Washington to enforce
the Inauguration of HAYES on fraudulent
count, and adds: 80 Yet there is no sign of
resistance in the North" In, its pacific
mood, it dis1nisses utterly all idea of civil
war, says & the country cannot afford it,"
and claims that the Southern people laye
the nerve and pntience to await a peaceful
termination of their sufferings. But it soon
resumes the Mephistophelean taunt that
- forty millions crouch and tremble before
handful Of conspirators with low-born, be-
sotted, and ignorant soldier at their head"
The apparent contradiction of these express
slons may be explained partly in the light
which the following sentence throws upon it:
We think it great pity that any Southern men,
ber Of Congress should in this crisis be unable to
control himself, and should allow "a temporary irri-
tation to get the better OF Judgment. Endoubted-
ly the South will take no initiatory steps. Our
duty to ourselves and our purity is to preserve q
passive policy, but heart is with the Northern
Democracy. II they have any men equal to the
occasion, and We believe they have, VIC want to
see and hear them; but if they have none, and the
masses are no better than the leaders, then we
who have already passed nnderthe yoke and have
tasted. nay qna,Ted thc bitter cup TO the dregs,
will throw our handful Of dust upon the grave Of
the Republic and turn away sorrowfully to attend
to onr immediate concerns.
All this simply means that a large class in
the South will have no objection to another |
War, and will contemplate serenely the dis |
ruption of the Union and the downfall of the
Republic, but they have no ambition to act |
as leaders in the movement to bring this
about, nor to take IN active part in the civil |
strife incidental to it. This is about the
same attitude assumed by the Northern Cop
per1eads in the beginning of the War Of the
Rebellion, and maintained by them as far as
possible up to the surrender of LEE. They
the Southern Democrats to strike
the blow, they supported the right Of seces-
sion, they held out the belief that the "d-d
Abolitionists wouldn't fight" they intimated
that they (the Copperheads) would join in
when;the proper time should come, and they
did everything they could negatively and pas
sively to cripple the Government This class
Of Southerners want to be the Copperheads Of
the next war. They are willing tobe sympa-
thizing non-combatants, and will hiss and
applaud while the scene of strife is confined
to the Northern States. 1t is certainly not
very high-minded or honorable attitude to
assume, but the Southern Democrats can
scarcely be blamed for taking it after their
former experience with the Northern Demo-
Gratis,