Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-05-10
The Hayes Policy.


timated an intention to publish an
article showing the merits of Prasi-
dent Hayes's Southern policy. We
answer that we are not yet ready for
it. The HERALD intends. like nine
teen out of twenty of the Republican
papers that we see, to "give Hayes a
chance" A part of the ''policy" is to
bring into the fold the lost sheep and
some converts. If the whole plan
should be exposed it would make
enemies of some who are living on
expectations. There are many Dem.
ocrats who now support Hayes. The
most of those who do, do so because
they think be has proved himself q
traitor. If they should be persuaded
that he intends still to be Republi-
can and give to the party it's former
purity and strength they would de-
nounce and curse him as they did be-
fore he became President. Hayes's
policy turned out Chamberlain and
Packard. We are sure it was
blundor. We fully convinced
that the South were tired of the eter-
nal political war, and ashamed of the
fraud the New York Democracy had
given them for a Presidential candi-
date, and that whenever Hayes said
to Hampton and Nichols that they
must abandon the fight and give the
States up to the lawfully elected Of.
ficers, they intended to make an entire
change in their tactics. Hundreds
and thousands Of them before this
date would have proclaimed them
selves beaten and would have asked
leave to adopt the Republican policy
and to help enforce it. But Mr.. Hayes
did not see the situation in this light.
He did not discover the fact that the
South thought itself in the last ditch
and was awaiting an invitation to
climb out on our side and surrender.
They were more surprised than
the North when President Hayes
flung out Key as call for ar
mistice. Yet while we think that the
proper policy would have given us
success at once it may be that the one
adopted will in its slow way bring
peace. Hayes's estimate of the South
was right in one particular. He evil
IDENTIFY saw that they would throw up
their hats for him il he would give
them Offices. He could be pensioned
soldier of the Union; he could be
Republican Congressman, a Republic
can Governor; he could in their est.
nation be chosen President by freud
and villainy, but the moment he gives
them taste of Office they hurrah for
for him. Even Bob. Toombs, the
most Satanic of the fre-eaters, who
told his countrymen that the man who
accepted reconstruction should be
despised-even he 10 for Hayes if
Hayes will give offices to southern
Democrats. That he would do so
there was evidence in the fact Of his
choice of one of them as member of
his Cabinet That they accepted this
as enough to reconcile them, there is
evidence in the fact that nearly every
Southern post-office was applied for,
to that Cabinet officer, by Southern
Democrat. Republicans had the State
Offices of Louisiana and South CARROLL.
ma. To get them they were willing
to give up every principle for which
they ever commended. They bargained
that if they could have those offices,
the negroes should ever after in all
respects be their equals; bargained
that for these offices they would en-
force the equality with their own
laws and their own bayonets! Now
if they can be made to live up to their
bargain We shall not quarrel with the
Hayes policy, and We don't believe
the negroes of the South should have
been given the ballot in the manner
and time they were either. Every
southera State that lives up to the
promise imposed upon it by the Hayes
policy at once becomes Republican
State. Nichols and Hampton are by
their acts proclaiming themselves Re-
publicans. Even Bourbon Georgia