The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1882-03-07
THE SOUTHERN soURBoNs.
They are Described by . Norshern
Vtsiter n she LEADER Of 30.
ckety and ahe MBesa People
Of she @Outh.

Ihe following IS an extract from an article in
the Atlantic Monthly, written by an independent
and thoughtful gentleman, whose letters to the
New York Tribune last year attracted so much
attention
As used in the North, this word Bourbon y
designates q class Of white men, composed
chiefly OF the leading citizens OF the Southern
States. The Bourbons are the principal business
men, lawyers, physicians, teachers. elergymen,
merchants and farmers of the South They are
everywhere leaders OF society, in the bes, sense
OF The word. They sustain the churches, and
give efficiency to the moral activities and discip-
line OF the local communities as they have thus
far attained Taken broadly or generally, the
Class includes the best people of the South, or
most Of them. They are Bourbous because in
politics they are Democrats, and act in opposi-
ton to the principles, policy or methods of the
Republican party, which has administered the
national government since the time OF our civil
war. In the Southern States the term Bourbon
has no distinct significance. Il is applied indls-
crlmlnately by all classes OF politicians 10 any
body who differs with them. 1t is there a cs,n-
Venient though empty epilhet or name of re-
proaeh- Every politician insists that has party
Is the party OF progress, of improvelneni-the
representative and embodiment OF the only ideas
oy which society can exist or civilization be
maintained; and he is of course entitled 10 stig-
matize his opponents as Bourbons. The word Is
sham or burlesque weapon ID the South, and
is used there by everybody in p,litical Wrang-
ling, 4" for all it is worth" As to the southern
men who compose the class TO which this name
IS usually applied in the North, am compelled
10 say that aside from political matters they are
much Ike our people, or like the best people in
our NoFtnern cotnununities They do not appear
70 ioFe "nAt = wrong for its own sake, nor to
prefer Alsenooo Daseness, cruelty or iniustlce To
the virtues and good quaIitieaL which are eI4.
where revered by go0d mon The a.. .,.;hI
truthful, conscientious, kind, public spl ~ -,
religious, resembling very closely The fsremSs
men in our New England towns in all the i'm
portant elements Of personal character differ
ing only, in general, in being more communion
tive and having less reserve than is usual amung
New Englanders. As to their political action, it
seems TO me to have been for some years largely
inevitable; the necessary product and result of The
peculiar conditions 9flife and society in the South
since the civil war. 1t does not appear to have
been owing to sheer depraviiy on their pari, nor
to any choice or agency Of theirs, that there
was for some years disturbed and unsettled
state OF things in the Southern States. Collisions
between different classes followed unavoidably
upon the elevation of the emancipated slaves into
political superiority the disfranchsed white
citizens OF the country. There has never been
any such completeness Of organization among
the people of the South since The war as many
persons believe 10 have existed there. That
part OF our country is distinguished by much
ganic life than belongs to Northern society, and
the BOurbons are not really responsible for ev-
crything that has been done south OF Mason
and DixOns line. ] shall have more 10 saw
hereafter OF Southern politics. Here wish only
tn place the so-called Bourbon type plainly
as possible before my readers The men thus
designated are as a class, eminently social, hos
pitable, honest and upright men, il we leave their
politics out Of view. They have in large meas
ures built up and maintained such moral social,
industrial and religious organization and activity
as the South now possesses, and much Of what
is best and most encouraging in the present state
OF things ia the principal Southern States Is due
to them, and TO their effort for practical recon-
struction in time of extreme difficulty and un-
certainly, when their resources were most dis
eouragingiy slender, and when they had no pre-
cedents to guide them except such as were fur
nished by the experience OF mankind in the long
contest between civilization and barbarianfsm
in the past think they have made mistakes
and have done wrong things since the war. l
am not certain that We, or anybody else, would
have done better than they.
In conversation with the gentlemen, every
where expressed my conviction that illegal in
reference with negro suffrage could not be con-
tinued without the most serious injury TO all
Southern interests and that il would be better
that Southern men-Democrais-should make
the ballot entirely free to all who legally en-
titled to It's possession and then endure what
ever ills might result They always replied that
disturbance, violence and fraud were each year
diminishing, and that negro political supremacy
would be utterly ruinOus for the State and for
society. and insisted that, If the Republican
party in the South possessed the character aud
employed the methods OF the same party in the
North, they would gladly cooperate with it /;
that they were ready TO discard and abandon
their present politieal Organization whenever
any other party would take up the real problems
Of the South and seriously address itself to their
solution -
In studying the Bourbous have been forced
to conclude that nothing has yet been attained
anywhere much better than the domestic life Of
this class of the Southern people In its intelli-
gence, refinement, beauty and general elevation
and Whoies0menesa