Funding for the digitization of this title was provided by R.J. Taylor, Jr. Foundation.
About The banner of the South. (Augusta, Ga.) 1868-1870 | View Entire Issue (March 13, 1869)
4 j|lp KEV. A. J. RYAN, Editor AUGUSTA, Ga., MARCH 13, 1869. ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS AND BUSINESS LETTERS FOR THE “BAN NER OF TIIE SOUTH” SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO THE PUBLISHERS - L. T. BLOME & CO. TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS- We hope our friends will renew their subscriptions at once. Those who do not intend to renew will please notify us of the fact. All who don’t renew in two weeks will have their papers discontinued. THE BANNER OF THE SOUTH. This issue of the Banner brings the first volume to a close. We established our journal under many difficulties. A few predicted success ; many foretold failure. We, ourselves, were not without many misgivings. But steadily our Journal increased in popularity. Every month increased its circulation. This encouraged us—and on we worked. Not that we care for popularity save as a means of doing good ; for if we know ourselves at all, we are sure that the good of the South has prompted every effort we have made, has inspired every line we have written—and has been the sole, supreme object of our editorial labors. In these labors we have, per haps, at times somewhat failed—owing to other duties more important ; but we did our best. Our Journal we do not publish as a matter of speculation. It is not our means of support. Whether it pays us a cent or not for our trouble, we care little. For this, though we do care, that it may be one of the many humble means promotive of the welfare of the South. A mercenary Press whose sole object is to make money—and which, to reach that object, will stoop to means most de grading, is one of the greatest evils of our country. We are not such. We have never written a line merely to please. We arc a little too proud for that. What we know to he the Right, the South, the Principle, that and that alone, regard less of fear or favor, unmoved alike by llattery or censure, we advocate. We cater and have catered to no prejudices ; we have been sycophants to no perverted tastes. And fearlessly as we try to sus tain the Right; so just as fearlessly have we denounced the wrong. The first issue of the Banner of the South, in language plain and unequivocal contained our “Principles and Position.” We have stood by them. We intend to, stand by them. We would sacrifice the interests of the Banner to-day rather than yield a single iota of these princi ples or retreat a single inch from our original position. We defend the Roman Catholic Church. We have defended that Church for one year, editorially ; we hope ever to have the honor of being ranked as one of her warmest, though perhaps one of her humblest defenders. Some have not liked our course on this point. We care not for what any one likes. We are the slaves to no one’s likes. But we are royal slaves to the Right in the Spiritual as well as in the temporal order. Time and again we have been, tho reluctantly, obliged to call at tention to attacks planned by malice and made by ignorance against our holy Church. We have expressed them ; and wc still watch for any assault that may be made upon that Church. Another object of the Banner was to defend the temporarily—defeated princi ples of the Southern Confederacy. As a matter of History the Confederacy is dead and buried. We waeh at the grave and await the Resurrection. For as a mat ter of Principle and Right the Confede racy still lives—in no one’s heart more sacredly than in our own. We arc still a People —distinct from the People of the North. Our histories and memories arc diverse. Our tastes cannot be made to harmonize. They arc the conquerors—we the conquered ; though it costs a bitter pang to write that fact down. But our Rights are only held in abeyance for a while—a while by wrong—but over the little whiles of wrong rests the Eternity of Right. Right, like God, is patient—because immortal. And hence, to-day as the first day we issued the Banner, we can but repeat the self same words used then to define our Position. Those who do not like it ; those who stood with us then in that posi tion; but have since surrendered to wrong —let them go. We do not wish their names on our Rolls. “No deserters”— that is our motto and watchward. Who will stand by us ? Who will rally to our side and keep vigils when Wrong has lit his bivouac-fires over the graves of Rights? Who? He is our frieud, and our Banner should be his. As long as we hold the editorial staff, these are the only supporters we want ; men who are true , who scorn the false and who have vowed eternal war against wrong. We have no more to say. We are not beg gars for subscriptions. THE PRESIDENT. The Fourth of March has come and gone. Andrew Johnson has had his day, and passed from the White House at Washington City to “the shades of private life.” His successor, elected under the forms of the Constitution—perhaps under its letter, but not under its spirit—has taken the oath of ofliee, and assumed the position once honored by a Washington, a Jefferson, a Madison, a Monroe, a Jackson, and other illustrious men, whose deeds have shed a halo of glory around their country’s history, and whose names live in the memory of patriots everywhere. The forms have all been complied with, and Grant is now the President of the United States of Ameri ca, so-called. What will be his course— his policy ? lie gives us no clue to answer this query. He only promises that lie will be iintrammeled by any party policy or party promises, and thus he gives us some hope that justice will guide his conduct of the affairs of State. His Inaugural is, in the main, non-com mittal and un-meaning ; but he holds these three points : Ist, That he is un trammeled; 2d, That he will execute all laws—good or bad; and, 3d, That he approves the “15th Amendment,” as it is called. With the first, as we have already said, some hope of relief comes to us; with the second, much of that hope is diminished, while we see a blind submission to the will of Congress, from whom must emanate these laws—good or bad ; and with the third, there is the assumption of a position which can re sult in no good to the country —the ap proval of a measure which, if adopted, must make evil and only evil, to every section of the Union, but more particu larly to the South. We regret it. Still, wc are not disappointed. Grant was not our choice ; he is not, in our judgment, the choice of a majority of the legal voters, of the Union ; but he is the Presi dent of the United States, and, good or bad, wc must endure his administration hoping, however, that he will do justice to our section, and stand as a breakwater between 11s and the waves of Radical fanaticism. SUBMISSION. There are three kinds of submission. There is the Christian submission to the will of Heaven, which accepts every' Providential occurrence, with humility and patience ; there is the honorable submission to what cannot be prevented or avoided; and there is the mean, abject submission which yields not only obedi ance to the will of the conqueror, but —— " ' » _ 3. : licks the very hand that smites the blow. The first of these kinds of submission is a crown of glory to every human being who practises it; the second is an honor to our human nature, and commendable at all times ; but the third is a disgrace to humanity, and sinks those who practise it to a depth below the brutes. This last is the kind of sub mission to which we wish to allude, and which we wish to condemn. It is a kind of submission which has been practised pretty liberally in the South since the war, and made it the prey oi political vultures, instead of what it ought to be, the pride and the glory of the Union. There were men who, in the darkest hours of Southern history, stood lip for principle, and honor, and patriotism; but they were well nigh overwhelmed in the popular anxiety to escape the troubles which encompassed the ex-Oonfederate States. Still they battled on for the right; they kept the faith political as it ought to be kept; and they held up the hands of their people, arid made them strong. Around this faithful band of patriots, others clustered, and finally began to speak above a bated breath, and even dared to say that, though they were forced to yield up their arms, they were not yet forced to give up their principles or their opinions. If their cause was just when it triumphed, it was equally just when it failed ; and they would de - fend it with their lips and their pens, now that it was lost, as they had defended it with their swords and their guns when it lived. But alasl there were others who went down beneath the surging waves of popular fear and popular corruption. Some feared for their safety, if they did not, in addition to submission, give prompt and public evidence of their “loyalty” to the “glorious Union.’’ Others saw golden opportunities for securing offices, which they never could obtain, when their fellow-citizens were free and unshackled. And thus be tween the cowards and the traitors, treason flourished and corruption ran riot. These creatures cared not for their country. Some of them, it is true, had been good and faithful soldiers in the cause of the South; but their gallantry was not proof against temptation and wrong, and they fell in on the side of error and corruption. These men have done a grievous wrong. They have given strength to the enemies of their, section, they have ruined the South, and injured their fellow-citizens. It is no wonder, then, that they are hated and despised. It is abject submission and abject meaness that has brought the trouble upon them; and if they are now tabooed and outlawed, as it were the fault is their owu and nobody else’s. Oh ! if there be one of these unhapp y creatures who reflects and sees the evil of his conduct, we appeal to him to change his policy, to come out of the wicked party, and act in the future, for his coun try’s good, and his country’s honor. THE REDEMPTORiST FATHERS- Tlic Mission of the Redemptorist Fath ers, Revs Gross, Rathke, Freitag. and O’Donoughue, closed at the Church of St. Patrick, in this city, last Sunday even ing. Their zeal, fervor, learning, and piety, have impressed our people most favorably, and their labors have produced abundant, and we hope lasting, fruit in this portion of the Lord’s Vineyard. Sunday, the 27th ult., the Mission opened, the exercises and devotions con sisting of Mass and instructions at 5 and 8 o’clock a. m., and of devotions and instructions in the evening at seven o’clj|ek. Great interest was manifested by the entire congregation, and the spec tacle presented was truly edifying. Hun dreds approached the sacraments. The lukewarm were aroused to a sense of their spiritual welfare and reconciled to the Church, and thezealous became more zealous in the good work. The Redempt orist Fathers left here last Monday even ing to prosecute their labors in other portions of our State, carrying with them the heartfelt prayers of the Catholics of Augusta. We fervently hope that God will long spare them to make their an nual visits to the Diocese of Savannah — where they have accomplished the greatest good by their indefatigable labors and self-sacrifice in the cause of the Church of Christ. Our prayers at tend them, and in the name of our people we thank them from our inmost heart. May God protect them. [For the Banner of the South.] PRESIDENT JOHNSON. It is a usage in political salons —often “more honored in the breach than in the observance”—to turn from the setting to worship the rising sun. The sun of Mr. Johnson is njt setting in a clear sky, but the clouds which shade it are slightly tinged with crim son which serves to soften, while it sad dens the scene. Asa public man, his course has been marked with many demerits, and has not been without some commendable conduct. He has stood firmly in theory by bis “policy.” He lias been powerless to enforce it in prac tice. Having once given bis adhesion to a policy which was in utter disregard of the Constitution, he in vain has striven to restore the Government to its Consti tutional orbit. II is first departure was Radical, and, therefore, irretrievable. Tiie law of retribution could not be evaded, and it has vindicated its power upon the offender, and with him upon the country. “The way of the transgressor is hard.” And the present times have furnished another signal exemplification of the Scripture teaching that, “when the wicked beareth rule the people mourn”—which, the benevolence of the Divine Providence mitigates. With a moderate portion of public, virtue bo has exhibited a modicum of personal in tegrity that is honorable to his reputa tion in this generation of almost univer sal demoralization. But even this generation would scarcely excuse the commendation or accusation of the justice and clemency of President Johnson. Yet, in a day of equal retribution, and before an infallible Judge, the wronged and gentle spirits of the Widow Surratt and her orphaned daughter—trie un timely ghost of the unfortunate warden ot Andersonville, and the many sufferers from, and victims of, military commis sions and despotic power, will have some thing to allege or testify against the compassion and humanity of his Excel lency. His treatment of the vanquished verged on an abuse of the rights of con quest, and his military orders werebut little less sanguinary than those of his military sub-alterns; and, in the just com putation of his motives, whatever may be subtracted from animosity must be accredited to temper ; and whatever may be* justly deducted from this infirmity of the Great , is attributable to the national compassion for a great and fallen peo ple; and this was accompanied with concomitants which made it less grate ful to the recipients than generous in the bestower. We commend him to the retributive justice es history, with the hope that in the adjustments of its compensations to the merit or demerit of human actions, it will find something to mitigate the penance it rigidly imposes on human delinquincies, and rescue him from all impalement with the oppressors of past generations. Selma, Ala., March 4, 1861). Procopius. [For the Banner of the South.] THE BANNER OF THE SOUTH IN TEXAS Belton, Texas, Feb. 1869. Rev. A. J. Ryan: Dear Sir : Several numbers of The Banner of the South have reached me, and filled my soul with gladness. The glowing sheet comes like rich music to one who has been long doomed to harsh discord; like air and light to a wasted inmate of a dungeon ; or, like an ample feast to one who feels the keen fangs of hunger. Siice the surrender of our glorious arms, I have mourned over the fact that there was no Southern paper in the South—at least, within my know ledge—but am now rejoiced to find a journal brave enough to express, in lan guage as eloquent as emphatic, the feel ings which lie deep in the true Southern heart. Generally, the papers in our section of the country declare the distorted and unnatural sentiments of those whose feelings arc dwarfed and deformed by political and pecuniary interests. These journals do not reach below the surface of general Southern opinion. Thereisan under current, seldom rising to the lip v nich the old Confederate reco<*niz n s when he communes with himself. ° The press, on this side of Mason and Dixon’s line, has endeavored to dry up the pure fountains of this stream, and teach the people to stifle and forget what they so fondly cherished and loved a short tin H > ago. Under such influence, many good persons have despondingly yielded°too much of their manhood. But I believe there is a gradual recuperation or re assurance going on in the South, carrying the press along with it. The weak are gaining strength, and the strong are be coming bold. There is the life in the old land yet. B. H. Hill, of your State, sounded a thrilling blast that echoed and re-echoed throughout the Southland. His burning and brave words electritied the chain that links our hearts together And the Banner of the South beauti fully gives to the light the thoughts that dwell in the inmost souls of those who are faithful to the soil. Too much admiration cannot be ex pressed for him, who, scorning to throw himself into the polluted current which hears others on to place, power, and wealth, boldly stands aloof, and, in hj honest rags, dares to be a man. This is the spirit which despises Southern ackn. tion of Yankee meanness, and rt*p<*ls Yankee encroachment; which firmly un holds Principle ; loves Truth lor its own sake; and cannot be driven, purchased or cajoled. Its home is in the South, an 1 the Northern mind is unable to appreci ate, or even understand it. This is the unconquerable spirit of Southern chivalry which is so much hated by the envious craven. And it is fortunate in finding an exponent and friend in the Poet Editor. As an unsubdued son of the South— one who remains faithful to his native clime, and yields no principle—one who cannot be Yankeeized —l wish you all success, and hope the Banner will soon find its way to every “nook and corner” of the sunny land. Shenandoah. For the Banner of the South. THE PRAIRIE LANDS OF LOUISIANA NUMBER. FOUR. The traveler who seats himself in the cars of the Opelousas Railroad, opposite New Orleans, is in a few hours at the broad tide water of Berwick’s Bay, where he takes passage on a steamer and is rapidly carried up the smooth waters of the Bayou Teche, through the most charming agricultural lands of the State, meandering all the time amidst groves, of pecans and overhanging live oaks, and constantly in view of handsome residences surrounded by groves of sweet orange, and other evergreens. This is known as the garden spot of Louisiana. The M inter frosts scarcely leave any traces of a visit in this region, which is so hap pilyytnd beautilully known as St Mary’s Parish But we must not tarry too long as our destination is “the Prairies,’’ and we must leave our steamer at New Iberia and take stage to Opelousas, a charming old Catholic settlement where the Arca dians and the Marylanders settled long ago. Near this point commences the beautiful rolling Prairies, where the bor ders are skirted by groves of lofty tim ber; and the farms stretch off into the vast expanse which teems witli herds of cattle and horses. Sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, and all the usual crops are cultivated, whilst the vast range enables the cultivator to be the owner of large droves of stock, ramblihg over the Prai rie pasture. Hogs abound and grow fat in the heavily timbered creek lands throughout the parish of St. Landry. Lands are $2 to $8 per acre. Louisiana. For the Banner ot tho South. CHEAP RAILROADS- Our Southern States labor under the disadvantage of not being sufficiently intersected by Railroads. A glance at the maps of the different States will soon convince any one of this. There are vast sections of immensely rich lands that are either absolutely inaccessible to railroad or river transportation, or >0 nearly so as to render the transportation of crops one of the most expensive items of making them ; especially now, tha the hire of teamsters is suah a costly luxury, and teamsters, too, who care very little for the cattle under their charge. In the best of times the waggoning of :l load of corn, or of cotton, twenty, tha A or fifty' miles, in the winter through mud and mire, over hills and down tial<‘>. stalling here with the wheels to the hiu*' in clay, or detained by a swollen stream or a broken bridge, and the hauling through the same difficulties, of a of provisions or of guano, was extreme..- onerous, and no slight undertaking. Now it is much more so! Dy 1 * such an expense to a crop which iu ; already cost nearly as much as u brine: in market, is ruinous to the p ia - u O or to the farmer.
