Year: 1867

| North and South, We'd with each other In spe


who could do most for their relief, to save the
property Of the offenders, and to preserve their


persons from punishment, Notwithstanding


they were told by one once high in authority
that IL they had succeeded it was concluded


that all loyal men should be hung. or driven
from the State; and that they would have
/ seen rs all Il Id before pardon would have
been granted to any.


l. At the commencement, pardons were OBJ
! tanned with some little difficulty, and II re-
qured strong endorsements from we'll known
Union men TO obtain them. A rich harvest
was opened for pardon brokers of both sexes
OF which they freely availed themselves. The
applicants for Executive clemency made so


many professions Of devotion and LOYALTY to


Mr.. Johnson and his Administration (but not
| to the Union or the Constitution that Mr.
Johnson, who felt that he had brought them
all TO his feet conceived that 4 favorable op-
portunity was presented for the formation of
4 new organization Of all the elements of dis
affection and disloyalty in the South, which,


united with what was known as the Conner
heads of the North, would constitute 4 ma
lority of the whole, that might be used for his
own advantage. and at once pardons for She
most active and obnoxious of the rebels were
gran ted so thick and fast that the loyal men
everywhere stood aghast, and asked What
does all this mean2'' These We're followed by
appointments in various States of the most
inyeterate rebels to the highest and most in
1luential offices of the Stare governments.
The pardoned and unpardoned rebels every
where, as if it were in a twinkling Of an eye,
became bold, impudent, and defiant.


The opportunity was 1T that time offered for
the instantaneous reconstruction of all the
States. An election for members of Congress
and the State Legislatures was held, and all


that was asked Of the people was to give evil
dence Of their loyalty and disposition 10 obey
the laws and submit to their inevitable fate !;
and all the leaders had to do was to stand
honestly and in good faith to what they were
pledged rs honorable men to do-to stand back
and leave the loyal men of the South to take
the lead in reconstruction; but instead of this
they took new courage from the councils of
their old Democratic associate and friend
Mr.. Johnson and with rash, unbecoming, and
impetuous haste they everywhere threw


themselves forward as candidates for Con-
gress and the Legislatures whilst the people,
with equal indiscretion, rushed to the support
of their old leaders, and at the first opportu-
nifty every southern State government was
again placed in the hands of those men who
had aimed death blow at:the nations life !;
con tempt of public opinion, and in de-
fiance Of law, they selected men to represent
them in the councils of the nation who were
not only obnoxious for the part they had
taken in the rebellion, but who were even ex-
pressly excluded from holding any position
under the Government by the act of 1869.
This of course did not suit the loyal South,
who naturally enough concluded that, al
IL
the spirit of rebellion still existed in the
South: and as might have been known, and
trtts k,aDrn the men who were but yesterday
engaged in death struggle With the United
States were not permitted toparticipate in its
legisla ton and control.


Whilst Congress had ample power to pro-
tcct itself against the evil Vaccinations and
unfriendly legislation Of those known 10 be
hostile to the nation, yet we, the loyal men of
Virginia, were powerless in the State. Men
n icnll w HpI hol n.
ing office of any kind in the State because Of
the political offences they had committed,
with hot, rrepressible haste rushed into the
legislative halls, in utter disregard of the re-
quirements of the Constitution, organized
themselves into what they called a legislative
body and throughout their two years service
uttered no one loyal sentiment and gave no
one loyal vote. Feeling themselves un
checked and unrestrained by any superior au-
thority, they imprudently demanded for
themselves, not only 4 political, but personal
and social superiority over all the Union men
in the State, upon whom they had but a few
months before leaned for help and appealed
for liberality and magnanimty, which had
been extended with IN unsparing hand; and
against their chief bcnefactUrs they exhibited
the greatest degree of hostility and resent
ment.


Among the first things they did was TO de-
capitate every loyal man they found in office
rs the appointee of the Governor of the State.
who had extended TO them the right hand OF
fellowship and the forgiveness Of his hort 10
such an extent as 10 create strong suSr lion OF
his own loyalty and just as fast us they could
be brought 10 the block, the keen whetted
knife of the political guillotine performed its
work until none were left to tell The tale.


Even then we demonstrated against their
cruelty. injustice, and intidellty. They were
told that we We're the victorious party OF the
State and had the right, il Ne chose, TO claim
the superiority for ourselves, but we would not
ask it; we We're willing to live on terms of
equality with them, but position OF ln1eriori.
ty we could not and would not submit to, and
if the effort was perSis ted in we would eight
il out on that line" TO the end, and all the
losing party had 10 do was 10 'Sfnad fr"m M
dr. They laughed at our weakness, de-
sDised our couusels. Spurned our association,
socially and politically, sought to legislate
treason into virtue ana loyalty into crime
and carried all things with high and lordly
hand entirely unprepared Tor, ana apparent
ly ignorant Of or indifferent TO the power OF
the party that had saved and then controlled
the national councils, the permanent interest
and safety of which imperatively demanded
that the power should be taken from the hands
of men so desperate and unworthy of it.


Instead of inviting northern population,
and northern capital, and northern enterprise,
which We're essential elements 10 the pros
perity of the State, to come among us, they
did all they could 10 discourage and drive
il OIL: instead of legslating 10 harmonic the
discordant classes of the Common wealth, their
chief aim seemed TO be to defy and tyranni%e
over the latter, and rudely repulse the former
They seemed 10 be not only intoxicated, nut
maddened with the newly-acquired power
that had fallen SO Unexpectedly into their
hands. when they knew that by faithful
execution of the law-such us would have
been resorted to by any other Power on the
globe-they would not only have been eX-
Guided from all political power, but theT
lives would have been forfeited and their pro-
perty con1iScated. ."


These leaders, together with the public
press, tinulated by the vain efforts OF the
President to resuscitate them into an element
of power, seemed reckless OF all else but that
of retaining the reins of government in their
own hands What cared they for the suffer
.ings of the State? What cared those bomb
proof warriors and politicians il the people
starved so they held their places and were
fed out of the public crib? why, so tenacious
were they of Il short-lived political existence,
that they pretended to repeal the fundamental
features of the Constitution, took control OF
the public treasury, prolonged their session TO
the last moment allowed by the Constitution,
then cdLled themselves together again III extra
session, took recess for ten days, went home,
came back and voted themselves from the
hard earnings and the heavy taxes OF their
deluded followers, not only fnttea0e but the
daily allowance to which they would nave
been entitled by law If they had been engaged
in the public service. As this was the first
draft of the kind OH the treasury of Virginia
during the past history OF the State, so 1t IS
hoped and believed it will be the last, rs 1t was
the last appearance on the public stage OF 4
majority of that body. There were but thir
teen days longer that they could have set when
thew took the recess why then would they
have taken n recess, and then have made the
people pay the bill.


But, to so back all this reckless ooduracy,
occurring under the Immediate eye OF the re-
presentatives Of the nation, was observed
with profound emotion. This untimely and
unseemly spirit of rebellious pride and AFRO
eance being persisted in, whilst every interest
of the country was paralyzed from the dis
turbed and unsettled condition of the South
(which many in the North seriously feared
might lead to active hostilities again, and see
ing no one indication Of loyalty or submission
to The authority of Congress, through whose
mower alone they could get back to their ORR