Page:History of American Journalism.djvu/373

 Carolina.

But The Charleston Mercury, which before the war had been the chief organ of the secession press of South Carolina, sus- pended publication in November, 1868. Its suspension was the more remarkable because The Mercury as late as August, 1868, had the largest circulation of any newspaper in the State. The reason given by its editor, R. B. Rhett, Jr., was that he desired to "take his place among the ruined children of the South bet- ter so than to be the proudest and most honored of her success- ful enemies and to wait, hoping, praying, expecting the bright coming of a final deliverance, the independence and prosperity of the South."

CAEPET-BAGGERS AND THEIR ORGANS

To offset the political influence of the older Democratic sheets, numerous papers were started in the South as Republican organs to promote political schemes of Northern carpet-baggers. Again, South Carolina may be taken by way of illustration. Most of its new papers were published in the interest of what the old Southern press called "Thad Stevens's Ring-streaked Rule and Negro Misrule." The South Carolina Ledger, edited by Allen Coffin at Charleston, had as its motto, "Free Labor and General Reforms." The local press revised this motto to read, "Free Lunch and General Graft." Lieutenant-Governor A. J. Ransier, of South Carolina, had his special organ to which he gave the rather sanctimonious name of The Missionary Record, but which the regular established press of Charleston looked upon as an incendiary newspaper, as it appealed to the passions of the negro. The South Carolina Republican was an- other carpet-bag newspaper printed in the interest of Northern political control. The Columbia Union was also a radical paper edited by a carpet-bagger afterwards convicted of forgery.

The various methods resorted to by Congress to reconstruct the South brought about many unfortunate evils which were continually placed before the people by the press. Naturally, the Force Bill of 1870-71, by which the Federal judges tried those indicted for depriving a man of his privileges under the Constitution, were criticized by the press of the South, especially where Federal arms were used to enforce the law.