The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1880-09-07
Hancock and Reconstruction.
New York World, Aug. %, 1881.


President Johnson and Secretary Sc
ward found themselves almost alone in
fulfilling the policy of President Lin
coin. Yet President Johnson had been
nominated for Yice-President by his
party mainly upon letter which he
wrote in November, 1868, to President
Lincola's Postmaster General, and in
which he had said: IL hope the Presi-
dent will not be committed to the prop
ostion Of states relapsing into terrific
ries and held as such. 4 The
institution of slavery has gone, and there
is no good reason now for destroying
the states to bring about the destruction
OF slavery" And that letter remained
duri & 1865, 1866, 1867 and 1868 the
nnalterable text of President johnson.
When the autumn of 1867 came it ap-
peared that the party policy of coercing
the South would succeed, provided that
johnson could be got out of the wav
and accordingly on November 25, 1867
while every Southern state was fully
represented in Washington-Senator
Boutwell, reported the first resolution
impeaching President johnson. 1t was
when this new revolution against the
Union was at its height, that the Presi.
dent summoned General Hancock to
Washington and assigned him to the
Department of the South, and to the
practical consideration of what were
then the urgent questions whether there
should he an ascendancy of the military
over the civil power, and whether the
war which had been begun and carried
on in order to restore the Union should
result in quasi military despotism P
Four days after Boutwell's impeachment
resolution General Hancock assumed
command at New Orleans and his Order
: No. 40 was telegraphed over the United
States to give the first blow to the great
stalwart conspiracy against a constitu
! tional restoration of the Union. From
that time until General Hancock was
displaced, six months afterwards, Gen.
eral Hancock showed that he went to
: New Orleans with perfectly digested
! constitutional policy of action, which
day by day he unfolded and developed
against storm of ri licule, obloquy and
insult from every stalwart Republican
journal and Congressman in the North.
That policy was the pivot upon which
began then and there to turn that Union
! feeling which early in 1868 fairly COM
PEELED the stalwarts-after the most In
effectual attempts at removing General
Hancock and at preventing the Federal
Supreme Court from hearing cases aris.
; ing under the reconstruction acts-to
admit all the Southern states to partici
pate in the ensuing presidential election.
And the closer those six months of Han
cocks administration are studied, the
more certain becomes the conclusion
that what Jefferson was to Democracy,
or Hamilton and Gallatin to Federal
finances. or Jackson to notification,
Hancock was to the restoration of the
Union And when the full history of
the political war for the Union shall be
: written, it must be said of General
) Hancock that at New Orleans he secured
the victory at the turning-poi of the
, political struggle against the Union, as
at Gettysburg be had secured the victo-
ry at the turning-point of the military
struggle against the Union.