Feliciana sentinel. [volume] (St. Francisville, La.) 1877-1892, 1880-04-10

| OrdlnatlnG the Military to the CiVi
Law W,-Geleral Order Number Forty and
Its Results.
| 1t s ou1d be remembered that at this
time the grca> question which confront
ed the victorious North was that of the
reconstruction of the Union. The South
ern armies had surrrn tered and the
Southern States We're Still! unrccnnstruct
ell territories under military government.
1t was apparent to all who had in view
the welfare of the country that the sooner
these revn!tiHs "tHtrs could resume heir
former loyal relations to the General
G ,vrTnmeMt the sooner uuIG the ravn.
:!rs OF war be ohliierated and prosperity
to tho whole country return. Various
conflicting interests, mainly political,
but some of them ar sing in the minis of
di>intercsted men through fear of the
| consequences of 100 sudden restoration
of the Southern states to participation
il he Federal power contributed to de-
lay and tended to IL heightened prnba-
| ton. The Sou,ll was porceIed out into
''Inilitary dis 'icts," which were rnled
| Ivy military officers on whom, of course.
were Conferred very des!'otic powers. 1t
WAS within the power of the military
| commander to treat he ilha iraEts of Il
Southern STATE according to the req ulr"-
mems Of :, military code. ana very many
Il government should he exercised in the
States lately in rebellion, duI ing he
lives of the present generation, or umil
the men lately in arms against the Union.
had by Il ong probation, brought for Il
fruits meet for Repentance. On til oti
er hand, il WAS within the power Of the
military commander to give fu!l effect to
local laws and civil regulations. only us
ing Ills military power where the reign
o! law and orlc" had not established
itself. ~ where Tie men, recently the
owners of other Of their now freed fellow
mcn, were disposed 20 exercise over the
latter power which no lDngcr belonged
to them. 1t was during such Il time as
this, and on he 2OSli OF November, 1867.
that General Hancock was ordered to as
suue command of the Fifth Miitary
District and the Department of the Gulf,
with headquarters at New Orleans
III, r' had boon Disturbances in this IL
pnrtnent which, douhtleSs, exaggerated.
haI greatly excited the Northern people,
and General IIanDock's predecessor had
not hesitatc,l to make the military arm
felt superior to the civi! law, and to con
STRIFE the power given him by the Act of
Reconstruction as absolute ard iIrcsprn-
sibic. 1t is SHli: to say that almost any
civil governor, not to say military man
finding himself clot he'd silh such an
thulity anh backed up with ample tn:-
ces, would have treated the mnrccon-
struc:cd and unrcpentait rebels with he !
iigor which was expected of him hy the
great majority of tho Nor hrrn people,
That such was not the course Of General |
Hancock is he cruwuing credit of his life. |
1t is II secret that he did not relish, |
much less covert, this command. !ir |
had displayed the executive qualities !
which imvolve nice tact and Iisclimina-
ton, in Missouri, in settling comrlica-
tons arising between Contc.cratcs and
the State troops His reputation as a
soldier and a patriot WAS unsurpassed.
He had the gratitude of al classes of I'm
ion men for his great services in the field,
and it was believed lnat the Southern
people would respect and abey his orde 5
rs they would those given by few others
Of the men who had sIblUcn them. At
the sa'Gc time 1t was expected that So
stern AID unyirldirg Il diaciplinarian as
Hancock, who always saw his orders
carried out at the greatest personal cN
D0sure of himself, would brook no di~Dr-
Ter, but would rulc Louisiana and Tex
IS with Il stern and steady hand. Gen.
raj Hancock "hcycl his orders, and as
uM' Il command Of the Fifth Military
District. His first official act was to i'll
urm the people of Louisiana ana Texas
hat he hrd come to be their Governor
ndrr thn Reconstruct, ion Act, and to let
hem know how he proposed to rule ov
L them. He issued his celebrated '.Gru-
raj Orders, Numhc" 40" dated the Goth
ay of November, 1867. Probably no
lorc astoniShed and delighted people
onll hc fonni than The pcopic Of Lonis-
ana and Texas when the puvpori of thar
r,lcr came to be inlcrstool. They eX.
ccted to have, ~lat they had had be-
ore, Il military DICTATOR. They expect
Il to be governed by '.orderS'' instead of
avs, and to live under a military IcSpot-
,m, instead of governing themselves hy
heir own civil regulations. General
hancock informed them that he took
ommnnd in accordance with orders he
ad received iran the H"adquaItcr, of
he Army. bu, that he did not propose TO
ule them by military orders at all. He
OF graduated the People of the South
MI Lhl lL.i .LI,Ll