New-York tribune., 1877-06-02
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
rTrR FROM GAIL HAMILTON.

ro me Editor OF The FrtbWne.
SIN. The Boston Daily Adreriis~ says:
Tho Presidents inaugural address and his policy in
,.pect 10 the southern question hat policy WHEN had
hOo hhw - In 1866 Gov Andrew gave, IN bis
dIeNSic,orv prophetic voice as the failure OF the
NaS ~ rseonstrucon which has been tried and he sug
n'e6 The precise method.by which President Hayes
nov PROFESS eRcd ne Which had never been even! Let
H. read nom that phosopic and solemn legacy few
,terees which bear upon the politics Of to-day with as
seem force as if they had been framed for the crisis.
This statement is it must be confessed, not little
..r,lipc If Gov. Andrew foresaw and fOredoomed
wbat we have all been trying to do, why did
aot n, 4drertiser tell us before Why did it wait
,Iroreh the anXieties of Gen. Grants Administra-
t;on and the Peoples campaign and the Electoral
commissions campaign, and till President Hayes
Iod nroposed his Policy without Words, to tell us
TIat Gov. Andrew had suggested itl Why has not
;,s voice been lifted in season and out of season
ocainst sending troops TO the South to prevent the
massacre Of the colorcd people by the white people
,be only purpose to which national force has been
onnliedY We wait in as phlosophic and solemn
silence as we can muster short notice, to hear The
Advertiser deliver over this long-supprcssed legacy.
And this II IS:
W. sbould not he satisfied with the "loyal vote" We
want The popular vote and the rebel vote is better than
tbc loval vote. II on the right side. ] ain conf
dent We cannot reorganize political society with any
rrrer security-FrSt: Unless let in the people TO
Generation and not merely an arbitrarily selected por-
ION of them Sec0Rd Unless give those who are by
thcr intelligence and character the natural leaders OF
tbc DeOpe AVID who surely will lead them ny and by,
an opportunity 70 lead them now. am aware tha1 "
Lasbteu favore dogma IN many quarters, No rebel
svv voting 10y white men, If only loyal men, those
Who continued during the rebellion, are permitted to
vote.
This Is al. The whole question presented and
discussed by Gov Andrew is that the Southern rebel
popuation shall not be disfranchised; that they
sbal be permitted to vote. All the rest of the quo
tation is occupied by the arguments in favor of this
position Aud now political Rip Van Winkle rubs
hscyes and gives the Recent Intelligence that Public
Opinion demands that the experiment which Gov.
Andrew SO long fore,hadowed must now be tried
The A4rertiser Of course cannot tell lie, and we
must suppose that it is not yet aware that the ex-
nermcut has been tried and concluded, and claSScd
among things accomplished, and passed out of the
arena of debate. II apparently fancies President
Iaves 10 be querying whether he shall let Southern
citizens voc Ii has not yet got far enough down III
cotemporarv history 10 have learned that no cOnsti
u.ional amendment, no logislation by Congress, no
measure OF policy by the Republican party ever de-
prycd or ever attempted to deprive single rebel
not even jefferson Davis-of the right to vote. Yet
The Aar0iiser painfully digs up this corpse of
phantom. and solennly bears it into public parade,
and imacnes that it has contributed its quota OF
living souls to battle for an imperiled Republic
Julia" said an energetic lady TO her nervous
friend who was consumed with anxiety lest she
might have omitted to invite some possible person
TO her silver wedding; Julia, make yourself per-
fecty easy. You have invited people who have been
dead ten years r The AdrDtsa may congratulate
itself ON a similar thoroughness.
If The Adrertiscr can take violent stride into re-
cent history will it be so good to point out the
precise feature Of Gen. Grants mode of roconstruc-
ton. for which Gov Andrew prophesied failure in
his argument for rebel suffrage? VIII it give the
exact point of Gen. Grants programme that was III
frinred upon by GOV. Andrews plea for rebel suf-
frage? For, let it be borne in mind, Gov Andrew
was talking about the suffrage and nothing else.
The intelligent and moral leadership which he ad-
yocated was based upon suffrage and upon nothing
else. Gov. Andrew proposed and defended universal
suffrage. The nation adopted universal suffrage
almost before his words had mingled with our free
air. The North has always been more eager to give
than the South has been willing to receive Gov.
Andrew argued that the leading Of the South,
"men of great moral courage, who can renounce
their own past opinions and do il boldly" though
they had been IN rebellion should yet be allowed to
come to the front again and resume leadership hy
popular suffrage. They came TO the front long ago.
The country went far ahead of Gov. Andrews recon-
mcudations. The leading minds resumed leader
ship without TcnOuncing their past opinions at
all, and we would have il so. They are in the
Senate and the House of Representatives.; and
did President Grant intcrpose an obstacie' Did
any man connected with President Grants Admins
tration ever put a stumblmg-block in the way of
rcpentant or even an uurepeutaut rebels return 10
Congress, Heaven forbid should do so unpatriotlc
so uuIefounatoIy, partisan a thing as to speak
Gair and fruitless word for man who has been
III. I,,,ft fa ,ir,A
which touches the honor Of every man and woman
who composed the Republican party through the
eight years Of Grants Administration. The mag
nanmity advocated by Gov Andrew was bat faint
oreshadow of the me agnanimty formulated in law
and realized in practice by the American Govern
ment and the American people. Villains from the
North aided and abetted by villains at the South,
have, as their manner is. rushed III and so far as
they could, prosbtuted the public welfare to their
own personal and selfish ends; but never were un-
repentant prodiqas so tenderly treated and trusted
as were her rebellious children by this nation that
they strove to rend and destroy.
But when the South undertakes to draw ont
ieyiathan with hook when it would put that hook
through the nose of the National Administration
and lead il to and fro at will; when the South
stands up on broken law and violated Constitution
and bloody instruction and dictates terms to the
National Government, it is not magnanimity but
pusillanimity which cOunsels surrender and calls II
eOnciliatiOn.
The DAILY 1drc,tise ahirms that one reason why
the policy of the Southern Republicans up 10 tins
time has proved failure is that
The educated propcrty-owulng and influential classes
IN the South have not been trusted consulted Iney
have been steadily ignored, O,TaclZcd ana repcAod I'M
less they would become Republican pdrtisaus. Henry
Wilson . always believed that moro liberal
policy, without the sacrifice of prnciple, mignt
ytQ a
meut. under one banner But this element was 100
proud and had too much selilcspec 10 be content 70