American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1881-04-16
The Administration Of MIR. Hayes.

with the veto of the Funding bill began
amid rumors of civil strife. But for the
fact that the war of secession was little
more than ten years behind us, and that
everybody who in 1876 had any part in
the electoral controversy retained d
vivid remembrance It's perils and
horrors, nobody can doubt that the in
auguratiop of Hayes four years ago
would have been resisted even at the
cos, Of war. In 1876, however, nobody
seriously thought of fighting, and the
audaciodS and INSCRIPTIONS leaders of
The RepY liean party took advantage of
this tenn r OF the people to devise and
carry oua scheme of fraud which has
no preca.c spt in our own history or in
the the modeuAf fory osf-ahs civilized Ma
It is AZ much historical fact that
MIR. Hayes was defeated for the Prcsi-
dency in 1876 as that General Nc Clellan
was defeated in 1864. or MIR. Seymour
in 1868. or MIR. Greeley in 1872. and
there is no more reason why the defeat
of Hayes should now be disputed, ex-
cept by persons who were engaged in
the conspiracy to inaugurate him in
spite of it, than.why any other historical
fact should be disputed. Indeed, there
would be no particular reason for now
referring to the fact of his defeat
at the polls had not that fact
exercised controlling influence
upon MIR. Hayes's whole Adj
ministration. The temper of the DEM
ocratic party during the winter of 1876
~ made it necessary for him to give
assurances to its leaders that the local
self-government Of the South should be
secured. These pledges he faithfully
10,
keeping of them that has made him a
- moderate instead of a "stalwart
Republican. Mr.. Hayes is moderate
enough by nature; no man is more so.
But by reason of his very moderation
he would have fallen into the hands of
the stalwarts, and been as clay, therein,
if he had not been bound by pledges
which he could neither retract nor dis
regard. If he had been elected by the
people he would not have found it
necessary to make those pledges, and
there is no reason to suppose that he
would have made them except from
necessity. In the little speech which
he made on the night after the election
of 1876, and in which he acknowledged
his defeat, he observed that it was not
for himself but for the black man that
his heart was heavy. The only Repub-
lican method at that time OF sympa-
thizing with the black man was to stay
him with local offices and to comfort
him with troops, and MIR. Hayes re-
marks were justly construed as an as
surance that he would have continued to
apply these consultations to the black
man at the cost of the white if he had
been elected. Yet the first thing which
he actually did when he became Presi-
dent was to withdraw the troops from
the South. 1t is quite true that it
would have been difficult for General
Grant himself to have kept the troops
there much longer than they were re-
tanned. The temper of the country, as
opposed to treating the South
and q Democratic Congress, elected also
in'consequdnce of that temper. would
have made it impossible for Hayes to
continue the Southern policy of Grant,
even if he had not found it necessary to
pledge himself not to continue it. I'm
doubtcdly it was q polite thing for him
to withdraw the troops when he did,
and undoubtedly the withdrawal was
the only public service of any great
moment which Mr.. Hayes has rendered
the country. But the black man, for
whom Mr.. Hayes heart bled in Novem-
Der, 1876, has been in precisely the
same position since March 4. 1877, with
the trifing exception of Whitaker,
which he would have occupied had Mr..
Tilden instead of Mr.. Hayes been in
augurated at that date.
The chief public service which Mr..
HAYES has rendered was thus forced
upon him by the manner in which he
became President. The chief scandals
of his Administration-inde the only
scandals for; which he himself can be
held responsible-were forced upon
him by the same cause. The canvass
ers in Louisiana and Florida who count
ed for Hayes votes that were east for
Tilden received offices which have
usually been reserved as rewards for
political services. The visiting states
count the votes and to certify untruths
were rewarded in the same manner.
The appointment of these men to office
was a virtual confession of the fraud
that was perpetrated on the people of
the country. 1t is absurd TO suppose
that count of votes conducted on
principles entities the voter
to anything at the hands of the person
whom the count shows to have been
elected to a public Office. Reward
ing the counters, some of whom
were highly disreputable, was
n confession that their count
had been conducted on principles other
than arithmetical. This was unpleasant
in itself, and especially unpleasant be-
cause it gave evil-minded persons oc-
casion plausibly to liken the President
of the United States TO Il criminal di-
viding with his ''pals" that they might
not turn States evidence against him.
But this unpleasantness, which Mr..
Hayes himself doubtless felt keenly,
was forced upon him by the necessities
of his situation, and except for these his
Administration was not in any respect
The contrast between his
utterances and his actions upon the
subject of Civil-service reform has
given occasion for some stalwarts and
for some Democrats to jeer at him; but
by people of n bipartisan turn of
mind it's thought to be evidence rather
Of an amiable weakness. Mr.. Hayes
has ut least done nothing to check the
of the country, which has
from the beginning to the
end of his term, and if it be praise to |
say of President that our annals con-
tain the record of no Administration on
the whole more harmless than his, that |
praise may be fairly accorded to him.
N. y. Horid.