The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1878-09-26
WHAT Is THE PRO-
GRESsIVE REVOLUTION.

1 GRESSIEE REVOLUTION.
VIM. N. EVarts, Secretary of State,
who defended Andrew johnson when
Impeached at the bar of the Senate
with SO much eloeuence and learning,
is surely one of the most Intellectual
men of our time. He is regarded in
Europe as the greatest of American
statesmen and orators. He was
wisely placed by President Hayes at
the head Of his Cabinet, and his opin-
ions have . significance which many
partisan newspapers have not compre-
hended or have chosen to pervert. We
have before US two brief extracts from
recent speeches of Mr.. Evarts. The
first tells us:
~The Southern question Of the last
campaign is no longer open. Unless
the Republican party have some new
propositions for dealing with the i'm
perfectly assimilated Southern commu-
mites, the question will not become
practical one. II the party has any
new propositions TO put forth the ad-
ministration are as likely to have the
shaping of them as anybody else"
From this assertion of a patent fact
nobody cares to dissent. The race
question no longer presents itself. All
the States are alike free, and the Re-
publican party will hardly make "new
propositions TO deal with Southern
communities" Enough of these inter-
positions of Federal power in local af-
fairs have been tried, and the admin
lstration will hardly undertake to
''shape these propositions. They nave
wrought only evil, can avail
nothing good, and therefore Mr.. Evarts
looks forward to the coming of new
and inevitable issues, which must una
voidably separate ''classes" from one
another by a force which Democracy
aud Republicanism even now seek in
vain to resist. Therefore Mr.. Eyarts
says:
at remains to be seen whether in
the course of things the intelligence,
justice and humanity of the best ele-
ments in the North will gradually per-
meate and elevate the sentiment Of the
South, or whether the South, as a
whole, will unite with the coarser and
grosser political agencies of the North,
N tho m inru Nf tho nNnpfru ~
Mr.. Evarts does not say it distinctly,
and addressing Republican audience
he presents the inquiry somewhat Of
fensively; but the gravest proposition
ever submitted to party leaders and to
patriots and statesmen is involved in
this inquiry presented by the learned
Secretary. Will the South recognize
the fact that the "best elements of the
North, and in this Mr.. EVarts refers
to the Hayes Liberal Republican,
would unite with the same class Of
people in the South to oppose all reYo-
lutionary forces, such as Ben Butler
and Kearney lead, or will the South
ally itself with Brick Pomeroy and
the destructlves and Communists of all
classes who have qusdilsteral plat.
form. Here it only proposes to cap
ture ignorance with money growing on
the very trees; In the East 1t appeals
to the worst passions OF ignorance and
to want and cupidity. and there
it is outright Communism. Its
propositions, however, are " pooled"
by Kearney in New England, with
those of the Molly Maguires aud Ma
tionals and prohibitory tariff advocates
of Pennsylvania, while in the West we
have Britton A. Hill leading wheat
growers and farmers into wilder
schemes of financial legislation than
Law, or France when crazed by revo-
luton, ever dreamed of. Mr.. Evarts
plainly asks whether Southern con-
servatism will drift off with Ben But
Ter, who now terms himself a Demo-
crat in order to capture Massachusetts,
Democratic, or whether, when the end
comes and the new issues are finally
made up, 1t will go with Butler and
Pomeroy and Hill and Hamman into
this mass of violence and madness, or
stand by the country's conservatism
Nc. Evarts, speaking as a partisan and
member of Hayes's Cabinet and ad-
dressing his own party, would have it |
appear that Mr.. Hayes and himself |
will lead in this conservative direction
and that we Of the South must follow.
The adroit lawyer and statesman is
only fattering himself and his ad-
herents. He would have the honor
of leadership, but in this he
must be disappointed. It signifies
nothing whether he and his partisan
associates accept the creed we advocate |
or not, 1t Is only certain that Commu-
nism and nationalism and "fiat" mon
ey-ism will have no tangible existence |
in the South, and if Mr.. Evarts and
the President and the Ancient Mariner |
of the Cabinet, Dick Thompson, choose
to change their base and become ad-
juncts of the only conservative and
Just and capable political organization
which would perpetuate the Federal
Constitution with all ika moral and |
governing forces, which abhors reyolu.
tion and Siulence and would found the
business on the country's sill
yer and gold. even the voIuble and
adroit Mr.. Eyarts must come over to
Us. He will find, II be will only read
Southern Democratic and Conservative
newspapers, that we have already
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