Reconstruction in Mississippi

Preface

The primary purpose of this work is to give a detailed study of reconstruction in Mississippi with reference to its political, military, economic, educational, and legal phases. A secondary purpose is to present a brief review of the Civil War so far as it affected directly the state of Mississippi or the people thereof, and, accordingly, special emphasis has been laid upon those results of the war that sustained more or less relation to the problems of reconstruction. Realizing the incompleteness of any history of reconstruction which concludes with the readmission of the state to iMic Union and the reestablishment of civil government, the ai.'thor has followed up the results of the congressional policy as t.he}" appeared in the period of " carpet bag " and negro dominu-tion, and has carried his narrative down to the final overthro%v of the party that had been the especial beneficiaries of the congressional policy, — an event locally known as the "revolution of 1875."

The author is disposed to believe that a thorough study of the actual working out of reconstruction in its different relations a\id activities in any one of the Southern States will be of sovne value to the general student of American history, for, aiter all, the process and results in one state were essentially the same in all. So far as he knows no attempt has yet been made in this direction, and in undertaking to write such a history of Mississippi he has been possessed of a good many misgivings. More than one person to whom he applied for advice ventured the opinion that the smoke of battle had not sufficiently cleared away and with it the passions and animosities of the war to make it possible for any American to discover and set forth the facts of reconstruction without bias or prejudice. Although fully sen-

vii viii PREFACE

sible of the difficulties that beset the historian of this period, the author does not sympathize with the view that tlie events of that time cannot be narrated with reasonable fairness and justice to all concerned. The time has come when the history of reconstruction can be written, and it ought to be written by a Southerner, for it is the Southerners who best understand the problems which the reconstructionists undertook to solve and the conditions under which the solution was worked out. This, of course, does not mean that the history should be written from the Southern "point of view" or from any other "point of view," unless it be that from which the truth may be best discovered and presented.

The author of this book feels keenly his own prejudices, but he has made an earnest effort to divest himself of every influence arising from early environment or from later education that would tend to swerve him from a plain and unprejudiced statement of the truth, and has endeavored to set forth his findings without fear or favor, but with charity for both reconstructionists and reconstructed. Most of tJne events recorded in this book occurred before the writer was born ; not one of them is recent enough to come withm reach of his memory. He is not, therefore, handicapped by any prejudices founded on personal observation or experience.

On the whole, the author concurs in the view of Lamartine, that it is the province of the historian to relate and not to judge. He has, therefore, except in a few ins^tances where opinions were clearly warranted by the facts, confined himself to a simple statement of the truth and left the reader to form his own conclusions.

In concluding these preliminary remarks the author desires to acknowledge his indebtedness to ex-Governor Adelbert Ames, ex-Governor R. C. Powers, Mrs. ex-Governor J. L. Alcorn, ex-Senator H. R. Pease, Hon. C. E. Furlong, Major Alvan C. Gillem, and Mrs. Betty Dent Smith for placing at his disposal private papers of historical value ; to Hon. H. M. Street, Judge H. F. Simrall, and Hon. John R. Lynch for information conveyed through private letters ; to

PEEFACE ix

Mr. R. H. Henr}-, editor of the Jackson (Miss.) Clarion- Ledger^ for permission to examine his files ; to General F. C. Ainswortb of the War Department for special courtesies ; and to his wife for faithful and conscientious service in the preparation of the manuscript for the printer and in reading and correcting the proof.

The author desires to make special acknowledgments to his teacher, Professor W. A. Dunning of Columbia University, who in the midst of his academic duties found time to read the manuscript of this book and make many valuable suggestions.

JAMES WILFORD GARNER.

MoRNiNGSiDE Heights, New York, May 25, 1901.

CHAPTER FIFTH Congressional Reconstruction

I. The Kational Inquest 147

II. The Reconstruction Acts 156

III. Military Government under Gniernl Ord ..... 161

xi xu

CONTENTS

IV. The Registration of the New Electorate

VI. Military CiDvunmieiit under General GiUeni

VII. The Reconstruction Convention of IbOb

VIII. Party l\.iltics in I8C8 . . ...

IX. The Removal of Governor Humphreys and the

General Ames .....

X. The Rejection of the Constitution

XI. The Mi.'^sissippi Question in Congress

XII. Military Government under General Ames

XIII. I'arty Politics in 1809. The Constitution ratified

Appointment of

171 176

182 186 205

213 216 222 228 237

CHAPTER SEVENTH The REi-;sTAULisnMENT of Civil Government

I. The Final Act of Reconstructiou ....

II. Readmission to the Union

III. The Inauguration of a Civil Governor

IV. Reorganization under the Reconstruction Constitution

269 272 277 281

CHAPTER EIGHTH The "Carpet-Bag" Regimi

I. The Election of General Ames as Civil Governor

II. The Inauguration of the Ames Administration

III. Local Government under Republican Rule

IV. State Expenditures

V. Unpopular Legislation ....

VI. The Vicksburg Troubles ....

290 294 306 314 324 328

CHAPTER TENTH Educational Reconstruction CONTENTS

Xlll

I. The Election Campaign of 1875 .

II. Riots and Disturbances during 1875

III. Preparations for War .

IV. The Triumph of the Democracy .

V. The Impeachment of State Officials

VI. The Completion of the Revolution

PAGE

372 375 382 389 401 410

CHAPTER FIRST Secession and Civil War

i. the rupture with the united states

It is necessary to a correct understanding of the history of the period wliich it is proposed to cover in tliis chapter to review briefly the steps leading up to the beginning of hostilities with the United States.

The perpetuation and extension of the S3"stem of negro slavery, the real cause of the Civil War, was declared by the Supreme Court of Mississippi in 1837 to be a part of the public policy of the state. ^ Three years before this decision was made, the people of the state repudiated unequivocally the doctrine of nullification and secession. On the 9th of June, 1834, the Democratic state convention, presided over by General Thomas Hinds, unanimously resolved that " a constitutional right of secession from the Union, on the part of a single state as asserted by the nullifying leaders of South Carolina, is utterly unsanctioned by the Constitution, which was framed to establish, not to destroy, the Union." 2 Secession in Mississippi was nothing more than an abstract question until the adoption by Congress of the policy of excluding slavery from the territories. What is believed to have been the first organized opposition to this policy was made bj^ a state convention at Jackson in October, 1849. A number of resolutions was passed b}' this body, one of which declared that in certain contingencies their separate welfare might be consulted by the " formation

1 Mitchell vs. Wells, 37 Miss. 254.

2 Speech of J. A. Wilcox, Union ilember of Congress from Mississippi, 1852, Globe, 32d Cong. 1st Ses. App. 284.

B 1

2 RECONSTRUCTLON IN MISSISSIPPI

of a compact of union that would afford protection to tht-.- rights and liberties."^ Hero was a fijrnial declaration ^ favor of secession as a "last resort." The convention i - all its deliberations followed the advice of Mv. Calhou who in the previous July had sketched, in a letter to Colone' Tarpley of the Supreme Court,^ a plan of operations. Mississippi took a prominent part in the Nashville conventiou being represented by eight members, one of whom, Chi . Justice Sharkey, presided over the deliberations.

The enactment of the Compromise measures of 18." ' gave additional impetus to the secession movement. Ther measures were opposed by all the Mississippi delegation . Congress, with the solitary exception of Senator Foot. . Jefferson Davis, his colh ague, declared that every prominei.' man in the state was opposed to the measures.^ Souther.. Rights Associations sprang up in nearly every communit;, and the Compromise measures were universally denounce ' from the stump. Foote says the press was well-nigh unani - raous in favor of secession.* Upon the adjournment of Congress the delegation from Mississippi returned to the state to give an account of their cause, and, with the exceptic • of Foote, to urge resistance to the action of Congress,. Al])ert Gallatin Brown said, in a speech at Jackson, " So help me God I am for resistance ; and my advice to you i-; that of Cromwell to his colleagues, "pray to God and kee your powder dry.'"^ Davis, McWillie, Featherston, an. Thompson spoke in a similar strain, while Foote bestirre himself to vindicate his course before the people. Th legislature had already passed resolutions of censure again:^.. him, declaring that the interests of the state were not saf in his hands. "^ He then stumped the state, making in al' forty or fifty speeches, and urged the people to send delegates to a convention which he had presumed to call. Governor Quitman, the leader of the secession party, called thlegislature together in extraordinary session, and recoro • mended measures, looking to the secession of the state i. case certain demands were not complied with.' The da\ on which this message was read to the legislature, Foote''- convention assembled at Jackson. It adopted resolutiom

1 For the resolutions of the Convention, see speech of Senator R. B. Ehett. Globe. .'32(1 Cong. Ist Sos. A pp. 03.

'^ For the letter, see Globe, Ihii(. p. 52. ■• Casket of Reminiscences, p. 355. ' Memoirs of J. Davis, I. p. 4H.3. 5 Globe, ibi<l. p. -jSQ.

8 The resolutions are printed in the Globe, ibid. pp. 55, 56. ^ Claiborne's Life of Quitman, 11. p. 125.

THE RUPTURE WITH THE UNITED STATES 3

indorsing his course, advocated acquiescence in the Compromise measures, warmly denounced the secession movement, and organized the Union party in INlississippi. The legislature, undisturbed by this "growl of whiggery" so near its doors, took up the governor's recommendation, and passed an act for a convention a year hence to " consider the state of Federal relations and the remedies to be applied."

The people of the state were now shar})ly divided into two political parties. One was the party of secession, organized in November, 1850, under the name of tlie Southern Rights Party, and which assumed the name of the Democratic State-rights Party in June, 1851. By some they were called "Resisters." It was composed of the bulk of the old Democratic party and a small element of State-rights Whigs. The Union party was organized on the day on which Foote's convention met; namely, the 18th of November, 1850. It was composed of old line Whigs and Union Democrats. The secession party had in its ranks a preponderance of the wealth and talent of the state, but lacked the concert of action and the audacity of the Union party. In the campaign that followed, the precise question involved, says Foote, was, " Will Mississippi join South Carolina in the act of secession from the Union ? " The question was to be settled by the election of a governor and delegates to the state convention. Quitman, the most rabid of the " Resisters," was nominated by the Democrats for governor over Jetferson Davis, while Foote w^as chosen to be the standard bearer of the Union party. The election of delegates occurred a month earlier than the gubernatorial election. In the first election the Union party won by a majority of seven thousand votes. Quitman, mortified at this unequivocal condemnation of his policy, and almost certain that the convention wdiich Ik; had fathered would declare against him, retired from the race after issuing an address to the people. 1 This left the secession party without a leader, and the state election was but a month off. Jefferson Davis, who many felt should have received the nomination in the first instance, was persuaded to resign his seat in the Senate to lead their forlorn hope. Foote was elected governor, but the Union majority of seven thousand in September was reduced to less than one thousand in October. ^ The Union party elected a majority of the legislature, and three mem-

1 Claiborne's Quitiuiin, II. p. 146.

2 Lalor, Cyclop. Pol. ScL, II. 860.

bers of Congress, and a Union Democrat was chosen to succeed Foote in the United States Senate. The convention met at Jackson Nov^ember 10, 1851. It was composed of ninety-three delegates and was, without question, the most distinguished of the ante-bellum assemblages.^ The purpose of the convention, as stated by those who called it, was to " demand a redress for past grievances, and a guarantee against future assaults upon the rights of the people." No such action as this, however, was taken ; but instead the convention resolved that the people would acquiesce in the Compromise measures as a permanent adjustment of the sectional controversy. The convention furthermore resolved that it held the Union second in importance only to the rights and principles which it was designed to perpetuate, and that the asserted right of secession was utterly unsanctioned by the Constitution.^ Foote was sanguine enough to believe that this put at rest forever the question of secession in Mississippi, and he publicly declared in the Senate that no man with secession sentiments could be elected to the most insignificant office.^ The secession movement really seemed to be dead, but during the next ten years many events occurred to reduce the numerical strength of the strong Union party which Foote had built up in 1851. The infractions of the fugitive slave law, the Kansas struggle, the publication of " Uncle Tom's Cabin," the John Brown raid, and the election of Lincoln intensified the feeling of hostility toward the North. It was well illustrated in the John Brown affair, on account of which the legislature, without referring the bill to a committee, and almost without a dissenting vote, appropriated "$150,000 to purchase arms. Reuben Davis, a member of Congress from Mississippi, declared that wlien the news of Lincoln's election reached Washington, members from the South purchased long-range ritles to take home with them, and some rejoiced that the end was near.'* Shortly after the election, the legislature was called together in extraordinary session, and a state convention ordered to meet on the 7th of January following to "consider the existing relations between the government of the United States and the government of the people of Mississippi, and to adopt

1 Some of the prominent members were William L. Sharkey, J. W. C. Watson, Jason Niles, J. L. Alcorn, Wiley P. Harris, William Barlcidale, Charles Clark, and Amos K. Johnston.

^ The resolutions are printed in Claiborne's Quitman, II. ch. xii.

' Globe, op. cit. p. 6!).

* Recollections, p. 389,

THE RUPTURE WITH THE UNITED STATES 5

such measures for vindicating the government of the state and the protection of its institutions as shall appear to be derrianded." The governor was authorized to appoint commissioners to visit the other slave states, and inform them of the action of Mississippi, and to invite their cooperation in the adoption of efficient measures for their defence and safety. The commissioners at once bestirred themselves at the various Southern capitals, at all of which they were received in truly diplomatic style as ambassadors from foreign republics. Governors were formally notified of their arrival, audiences were granted, and their credentials submitted in the most formal manner. Committees of the legislature were appointed to wait upon them and extend the courtesies of the chambers, and their addresses were delivered before the joint session of the two houses. Complimentary resolutions were sometimes passed, and the proceedings in the reception of the commissioner enrolled on parchment, the great seal affixed, and the signatures of the officers of both houses attached. The instrument was then presented as the " response of a sister state to the friendly greeting of Mississippi." Their missions in most cases were successful.^

In the meantime the canvass for the election of delegates to the convention was proceeding. In a good many counties mass meetings were held, and resolutions adopted declaratory of the sense of the community on the all-absorbing question. Most of these, but by no means all, were in favor of secession, A very respectable minority were strongly opposed to secession. They bestirred themselves to secure the return of Union delegates, and were successful to the extent that about one-fourth of those chosen were Whigs, most of whom were opposed to secession, and some of whom had positive instructions to vote against an ordinance of secession. The secession contingent were divided among themselves as to the expediency of secession without the joint cooperation of a certain number of other slave states. They were designated as " cooperationists " and " immediate secessionists," the latter party constituting about two-thirds of the convention. The ultimate object of both was the same. As against the North, they were all united ; they were all for resistance, the difference of opinion being only as to time and manner of procedure. The recognized leader of the " immediate secessionists " was Mr. L. Q. C. Lamar, who, on January 9,

1 The addresses and reports of the Mississippi commissioners are printed in the Appendix to the Jomnial of the secession convention.

brought forward the ordinance of secession. Within an hour's time it was adopted by a vote of 84 to 15.^ An effort to make the ordinance operative only upon the secession of four other states was defeated by a vote of 75 to 25. An effort to have it submitted to the people for ratification or rejection was defeated by a vote of 70 to 29. ^ An amendment to secure further constitutional guarantees in the Union was voted down by a majority of 78 to 21.

On the 12th of January Jefferson Davis delivered to crowded sfalleries his farewell address, and then took formal leave of the United States Senate. He was followed on the 14th by his colleague, Senator A. G. Brown, who announced his withdrawal in a few words without any attempt to be dramatic or sensational.-^ On the day of Davis's final leavetaking, the Mississippi delegation in the lower house informed the speaker, by a written communication, of their unqualified approval of the action of the Mississippi convention, and announced their withdrawal from the United States Congress.* Mr. Gholson, the United States district judge, at once forwarded his resignation to the President. The Mississippi cadets at West Point withdrew, and the native Mississippians in the regular army threw up their commissions and returned home to enter the service of the Confederacy.^ The United States marshals were requested by the convention to continue in the performance of their duties, so far as they related to the completion of the census, and no further. Postmasters and other officers and agents connected with the mail service were " authorized " to continue in the discharge of their duties until otherwise ordered by the convention.^

2 One of the delegates, Mr. Flourney of Pontotoc County, remembered chiefly for his radicalism after the war, says he voted for the ordinance upon the promise of a number of the prominent secessionists that provision should be made for submission to the people. Testimony before Kuldux Committee, 1871, p. 95.

3 Globe, 36th Cong. 2d Ses. pt. i. p. 352. < Ibid. p. 485.

^ It appears from the report of the adjutant general that there were only two cadets from Mississippi at West Point at the time of the passage of the ordinance of secession. One resigned February 14 and the other December 23. The convention instructed the senators and representatives in the Confenlerate Congress to use their influence to iiave established in the South a military school similar to that at West Point for the cadets of the seceding states. Two hundred and forty-live oilicers of all grades resigned from the I'nited States army in 1801 to join the Confederacy. Of those credited to Mississippi two became brigadier generals in tlie Confederate army. See G. W. CuUum's 13iog. IlegisUa- of tlio (Jraduates of West Point.

•^ Journal, p. I'J.

THE RUPTURE WITH THE UNITED STATES 7

The United States land officers were authorized to continue in their offices and perform their duties according to the laws of the United States. ^ All citizens of the United States domiciled in Mississippi were declared to be citizens of the state, and the federal naturalization laws were reenacted and applied to the state. At a second session of the convention, held in May, the Confederate Constitution was ratified by a vote of 78 to 7, after the rejection of several resolutions which had in view the taking of the sense of the people on the question. A number of ordinances was passed, the chief purpose of which was to place the state on a war footing.

Although the electorate was not directly consulted in the proceedings by which relations with the United States were l3roken off and a great war inaugurated, the work of the convention seems to have been thoroughly acceptable, if a judgment may be formed from the hearty response to the call of the governor for troops and from other popular manifestations of approval. On the night after the passage of the ordinance, the state Capital was brilliantly illuminated, and the " Bonnie Blue Flag " was sung for the first time in a local theatre by its author, who had witnessed the drama of secession. Reuben Davis relates that upon his return from Washington he found the rejoicing so great that he was rarely out of the sound of cannon from the time he entered the state until he reached his home at Aberdeen. The women of the state were almost unanimous for resistance, and the encouragement which they gave to the soldiers in the field and their sacrifices for the cause of the Confederacy were the subject of frequent acknowledgment by the legislature during the dark days of the war.

The responses to the governor's call were so ready, that, as early as the middle of May, he was compelled to announce that a sufficient number of troops to fill any probable requisition by the Confederate government had been tendered, and he was, therefore, under the " painful necessity " of informing those who were anxious to enlist, that no more companies would be received for the present.^ " The call to arms," he said, " has been responded to in a manner unknown to modern times, and the call for means to support the volunteers is being answered in a way to gratify the heart of every patriot." The several railroads within the state tendered the free use of their cars for transporting troops and supplies, and prominent citizens in various portions of the state drew

1 Journal, p. 134, ^ Appleton's Ann. Cyclop. 1801, p. 475, their personal checks for sums to be used in the purchase of arms. Senator Brown sent a draft for -$500, while Jefferson Davis and Jacob Thompson guaranteed the payment in May of $24,000. A number of prominent citizens subscribed one hundred bales of cotton ; one subscribed fifty hogsheads of sugar; another, one hundred kegs of powder. A gentleman of Vicksburg offered $1000 to aid in the equipment of every volunteer company raised in that city.^ To what extent these demonstrations were made for the purpose of uniting the people, and possibly of frightening the North into an acceptance of the demands of the South, it is impossible to say. It is certain tliat as late as July the belief was widespread that there would be no war.^

II. WAGING WAR

Secession having been accomplished, the state proceeded to assert its sovereignty. On the 12th of January the Quitman batteiy hastened to Vicksburg, planted a number of cannon on the bluff, and a few days later, as the steamer A. 0. Tyler from Cincinnati passed down the river, fired a shot athwart her bows and brought her to. This was done at the instance of the governor, who feared tliat a hostile expedition from the North was planning to seize the arsenal at Baton Rouge and certain forts in Louisiana. Upon receiving assurances that they were well garrisoned, the governor allowed the steamer to proceed, and steps were taken to make known to the people of the northwestern states that peaceful commerce on the Mississippi would not be interrupted. " This policy," said the governor, " will materially aid in preserving the peace between the southern and northwestern states." The convention ado})ted an ordinance recognizing the riglit of the riparian states to navigate the river for commercial purposes in time of peace, and declared its willingness to enter into "negotiations" with them for the enjoyment of that right. The hope was entertained that, by holding out commercial inducements to certidn of

^ See Vicksbxirg Whig of March 12, 1801, for names of these subscribers.

2 Reuben Davis says Governor Peltuis refu.s.d to purcliaso p.t a bargain certain improved ordnance machinery, for the alio;j;cd reason tliat there would be no war and that the military committees of the legislature were strongly in favor of disbanding certain of the troops after the battle of Bull Run, assigning as a reason that the last battle of the war had been fought. Recollections, pp. 404, 411.

the northwestern states, they might be detached from the Union. The hope, however, proved to be delusive.

So far as the possession of Federal property was concerned, Mississippi was less fortunate than some of her sister states. There was not a Federal arsenal in the state, and no fort except a small one at Ship Island, which had been neglected, and was, at the time of secession, unprepared for defence. There were some lighthouses, one or two marine hospitals, and possibly a small custom house on the coast. After the organization of the Confederate government, the title to this property, as well as that of waste and unappropriated land belonging to the United States, was vested by the state in that government. As soon as the governor was informed of the seizure of the arsenal at Baton Rouge, he sent a messenger to request the governor of Louisiana to divide the spoils. The latter responded by sending eight thousand muskets, one thousand rifles, six 24-pound guns, and a considerable amount of ammunition.^ The post offices, with their funds and other property, were transferred to the service of the Confederacy. In some instances the funds were retained by the postmasters, but upon the establishment of the power of the United States in Mississippi, in 1865, they were compelled to account for all moneys appropriated to their own personal uses, or turned over to the Confederate government. ^

The secession convention created the office of postmaster general, and provided for a postal system by reenacting all laws, contracts, and regulations of the United States for carrying the mail.^ It does not appear, however, that a postmaster general for the state was ever appointed. The United States postal service was withdrawn on the 4th of February, it being impossible to continue it longer.

During the first year of the war Mississippi was free from the presence of the Union army, but with the beginning of 1862 the scene of the conflict shifted to the northern part of the state. From first to last forty-seven engagements were fought on Mississippi soil. The most noteworthy military operation was of course the siege of A^icksburg, which lasted for a period of forty -seven days. During these memorable days both citizens and soldiers were reduced to the most desperate straits for food. Mule meat was a delicacy, and was in great demand at a dollar per pound.*

1 Message to the legislature, January 15, 1861.

2 Report of Postuiaster General, 1865-1866, p. 107. 8 Convention Journal, p. 140.

* The Vicksburg Citizen of July 2, 1863, a tiny sheet printed on wall

There was scarcely a building that was not struck byshells, and many were completely demolished. To avoid death under such circumstances the inhabitants burrowed into the hillsides and lived in caves. Subjected to the burning sun, and to fogs and rains, thousands fell sick, so that one-third of Pemberton's array were in the hospitals at the time of the surrender. By the first of July the army was on the verge of mutiny for want of food,^ and on the fourth Peml^erton surrendered the city, and with it one of the largest armies of the war. There were at least thirty thousand men, over a hundred siege guns, and about four thousand small-arms lost to the Confederacy. The loss of higher officers was especially heavy, among the surrendered being one lieutenant general, three major generals, nine brigadier generals, and over a hundred colonels. Grant's first demand, that of unconditional and immediate surrender, was modified so that the men were allowed to march out with their sidearms and to retain their horses and other personal property. They were then released on parole and allowed to return to their homes. The importance of the surrender was not so much in the number of men or military supplies captured, but in the strategic value of the place. A few hours after the surrender, the river was lined with steamers along the levees. Less than a week later Port Hudson fell, and the Confederacy was cut in twain. On the 16th of July a St. Louis steamer reached New Orleans, and in the suggestive language of President Lincoln " the father of waters rolled un vexed to the sea."