University of Mississippi eGrove
Honors College (Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors Theses Honors College)
2009
Reconciling Southern Identity: Revising the Public Memory of Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar
James Matthew Hopper
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Recommended Citation Hopper, James Matthew, "Reconciling Southern Identity: Revising the Public Memory of Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar" (2009). Honors Theses. 2031. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/2031
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I RECONCILING SOUTHERN IDENTITY: REVISING HISTORICAL INTERPRETATIONS OF LUCIUS QUINTUS CINCINNATUS LAMAR
by James Matthew Hopper
A thesis submitted to the faculty of The University of Mississippi in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College.
Oxford May 2009
Approved by
Advisor: Profesfor John R. Neff
Reader: Professor TecTOwnby
ro/es Justin Nystrom ABSTRACT JAMES MATTHEW HOPPER: Reconciling Southern Identity: Revising Historical Interpretations of Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar [Under the direction of John R. Neff]
This project explores the accepted historical narrative of white male
Southern identity based upon L.Q.C. Lamar's public memory. My objective is to
reinterpret some long held beliefs about Lamar s life, career, and politics, while
analyzing the effect of those interpretations in fostering and challenging white male
Southern identity. I found that Lamar was never fully reconstructed from his
Confederate views and many of his pre-war principles made him popular and
garnered loyalty among his constituency. In reinventing himself as a reconstructed
politician, he used the death of Charles Sumner to offer a reconciliatory version of
Southern masculinity in an attempt to appease Northern aggression toward the
south while upholding and creating the Southern ideals of honor and white
manhood. In order to maintain popularity and power, Lamar understood the
importance of balancing national power with loyalty to Southern, and most
importantly Mississippi, interests. Lamar served dual interests and eventually this
caused his popularity to wane in Washington as well as in Mississippi. Lamar could
no longer use reconciliation as a platform for popularity and progress, and he
adopted other issues like money and agriculture to maintain his political acumen.
Thus Lamar was more of an adept politician than the hero that he was remembered as through historical accounts.
in TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT III
INTRODUCTION 1
CHAPTER I: CONSTRUCTING THE HONOR OF RECONCILIATION 6
CHAPTER II: THE EULOGY OF A NATION 29
CHAPTER III: THE PRICE OF RECONCILIATION 44
CHAPTER IV: FOUNDATIONS FOR A NEW SOUTH 61
CHAPTER V: REIMAGINING SOUTHERN IDENTITY 70
BIBLIOGRAPHY 87
IV Introduction
Prior research discussing Lamar is mostly laudatory, complimentary, and
sympathetic. Even when probing the controversies surrounding Lamar, researchers
have framed his words and actions in the context of what was considered socially
and politically acceptable during the period. Several contemporary articles give a
biographical sketch of Lamar, and provide interesting insight into his life and
decisions.! Lamar's son-in-law, Edward Mayes's, wrote the first book-length
biography in 1896 and it remains the most extensive and arguably the most
sympathetic work on Lamar. More importantly, it contains many letters and
newspaper accounts that no longer exist.^ Despite the attempt to present Lamar
against a broader national background using newly discovered related primary
sources, Wirt Cate's 1935 biography relied mostly on Mayes's research and was
altogether sympathetic, and revealed little new insight into Lamar's life.^ In the late
1940s, Willie Halsell's extensive research and numerous published articles were
helpful in considering certain phases of Lamar's career and helped the researcher
‘ Harry Pratt Judson,"American Politics; A Study of Four Careers." The Review of Reviews 7 CMarch 1893): 159-72; Walter B. Hill, "L. Q. C. Lamar," The Green Bag 5, no. 4 (April 1893): 153-165; George ]. Leftwich, "Lucius Q. C. Lamar." The Methodist Review 44 or 78(September-October 1896), 65-73. Bartels, Bartels, R. Lee."L. Q. C. Lamar, Lawyer and judge." The American Lawyer 12,(1904): 349-352; J.G. de Roulhac Hamilton,"Lamar of Mississippi," Virginia Quarterly Review? (January 1932): 77-89. 2 Edward Mayes, Lucius Q.C. Lamar: His Life, Times, and Speeches,(Nashville, Tennessee: Publishing House of Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1896). ^ Wirt Armistead Cate, Lucius Q.C. Lamar: Secession and Reunion.(Chapel Hill, North Carolina; University of North Carolina Press, 1935).
1 understand Lamar in the context of the current historical work.^ Donald Streeter’s
Ph.D. dissertation gives an exemplary rhetorical criticism of Lamar's post-Civil War
congressional speeches, but largely ignores his activities in "hustings" of Mississippi
state politics in the 1870s.^ Bennie Reeves’s 1973 Ph.D. dissertation is certainly
more objective in its claim that Lamar should be viewed in the context of southern
politics and his role in "leading the south and the federal government toward a
policy of legal racial segregation and the disfranchisement of blacks.’’^ But Reeves is
anxious to preserve Lamar’s praiseworthy image in "leaving the south in a respected
position in the nation allowing cooperation in moving toward economic growth
through industrial development."^ The same year, James Murphy published the
third book-length biography of Lamar; this work was a "realistic account of an
understandable human being rather than a romanticized hero.’’^ Murphy's
biography is to be respected in its interpretation of Lamar as a calculated.
pragmatic" politician who worked "to gain home rule founded upon renewed
Willie D. Halsell,"Democratic Dissensions in Mississippi, 1878-1882." yoi/rna/ of Mississippi History 2, no. 3 duly 1940): 123-135;"The Appointment of L. Q. C. Lamar to the Supreme Court." The Mississippi Valley Historical Review 28, no. 3(December 1941): 399-412;"A Mississippi Habeas Corpus Case and Justice L.Q.C. Lamar."Journal of Mississippi History 4, no. 1 (Jan. 1942): 31-33; "L. Q. C. Lamar's Taylor Farm: An Experiment in Diversified Farming." yourno/ of Mississippi History 5, no. 3 (October 1943): 185-196;"The Friendship of L.Q.C. Lamar and Jefferson Davis." yourna/ of Mississippi History; "Prelude to a Career: L. Q. C. Lamar Tries Politics." yourna/ of Mississippi History 7, no. 2 (April 1945): 75-90;"The Bourbon Period in Mississippi Politics, 1875-1890."yourna/o/5out/ier/7 History 11, no. 4(November 1945): 519-537;"Note on a Phase of L. Q. C. Lamar’s Career."journal of Mississippi History 9, no. 1 (January 1947): 21-29. ^ Donald Clint Streeter,"A Rhetorical Criticism of the Major Public Addresses of Lucius Q. C. Lamar, 1874-1890,"(Ph.D diss.. State University of Iowa, 1948). ^ Bennie L. Reeves,"Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar: Reluctant Secessionist and Spokesman for the South, 1860-1885,"(Ph.D. diss.. University of North Carolina, 1973), 138. ’Ibid., 139. ® Allen Going, [untitled]: Reviewed works: L.Q.C. Lamar: Pragmatic Patriot, by James B. Murphy, The Journal ofSouthern History 39, No. 4 (November 1973), 604.
2 confidence in the South's integrity."^ However, Murphy is less willing to hold Lamar
accountable for his racial views, and relieves Lamar of his role in the willful
deception of northern public sentiment during his campaign of reconciliation. Daniel
Meador^o and Michael Hoffheimer^^ provide expert legal commentary concerning
Lamar as a lawyer, professor, and judge. They also venture into Lamar's political
career, but their legal background is apparent in their treatment of Lamar in the
context of Reconstruction historiography. Two recent authors, historian Bradley
Bond^2 and journalist Nicholas Lemann,^^ have given the most useful interpretation
of Lamar concerning post-revisionist historiography of the Reconstruction era. Even
though their works are not biographical, they are essential in constructing a more
accurate, less sympathetic, and less critical version of the Reconstruction-era
political culture in Mississippi. They provide clear evidence to prove their forthright
claims that Lamar was directly involved in the political violence that restored the
Democrats to power and led the way to black disfranchisement and legal
segregation.
These are certainly not the only researchers to have studied Lamar. But their
research and publications seem to be the most extensive, well-researched works
^ lames B. Murphy, LQ.C. Lamar: Pragmatic Patriot,(Baton Rouge; Louisiana State University Press 1973] 133. Daniel J. Meador "Lamar and the Law at the University of Mississippi." Mississippi Law Journal 34, no. 3 (May 1963): 227-256;"Lamar to the Court: Last Step to National Reunion." Supreme Court Historical Society Yearbook (1986): pp. 27-47;"Lamar to Posterity - A Centennial Memoir." Mississippi Law Journal 63. no. 1 (1993]: 107-127. Michael Hoffheimer,"Dedication" Mississippi Law Journal 63, no.l (1993]; 1-4; "L.Q.C. Lamar 1825- 1893." Mississippi Law Journal 63, no.l (1993]: 5-106; "Holmes, L.Q.C. Lamar, and Natural Law." Mississippi Law Journal 58 (1988]: 71-85. 12 Bradley Bond, Political Culture in the Nineteenth Century South,(Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1995]. 13 Nicolas Lemann, Redemption: the Last Battle of the Civil War,(New York; Farrar, Straus and Giroux 2006].
3 concerning Lamar; they have been heavily relied upon as sources for Lamar
scholarship. The interpretations of Lamar have developed as methods and practices
of researching and writing history have progressed. Historians have used the
evidence available to prove that Lamar was an effective and popular politician, and
listed reasons why he is deserving of praise and a positive historical reputation.
Unfortunately, some evidence has been ignored or mishandled leaving readers to
rely on the sympathetic treatment of Lamar. Also, the lack of attention shown to
Lamar in recent post-revisionist historiography has allowed Lamar's reputation and
public memory as the "Great Pacificator" to live on.
My vision of L.Q.C. is much different than previous historical interpretations.
It has grown and changed continuously while poring over these secondary sources,
but it was essentially shaped by the primary sources that I found. Lamar's speeches,
letters, and newspaper clippings allowed me to gain a powerful insight into his
political ambition and personal ideals. The secondary material sparked my interest
in Lamar as a successful, Southern politician. But the archival primary sources gave
me a fuller understanding of Lamar as a Southern white male and inspired me to
provide a more grounded, and hopefully more accurate, historical interpretation of
Lamar.
The purpose of this thesis is to counterbalance the mostly positive historical
interpretations and to provide up-to-date historiographical analysis of Lamar's contribution to Southern identity. In doing so 1 examine five different tenets of
Lamar’s life: his re-entry into politics, his Charles Sumner eulogy, his activity in the
VI iolent Redemption of Mississippi Democrats, his policies and actions concerning
4 African Americans, and his judicial decisions as a Supreme Court Associate Justice.
Basically, my vision of Lamar juxtapositions his heroic achievements with the
political maneuverings that involved violence and the disenfranchisement of African
Americans to provide a deeper and more thorough interpretation of who Lamar really was and how he shaped Southern white male identity.
5 Chapter 1
Constructing the Honor of Reconciliation
After the war, Lamar was never fully disengaged from politics despite his
seclusion from the public service arena. Despite the repudiation of Confederate
leaders by the Federal government, Lamar maintained his popularity, power, and
loyalty among the people of his district and state. His activities during the
immediate post-war and his later election to Congress showed a vested interest in
rejoining the political scene. After being elected to Congress a second time in 1873,
Lamar seized the opportunity to become a national figure in order to further his
personal interests and political agenda. His intentions were clear: rid the state of the threat of carpetbag and black rule while restoring white Democrats to power and returning the South to prominence within national politics. Through these intentions, Lamar gained the reputation of a reconstructed rebel. But in examining the tactics he used to fulfill an agenda, his clear, calculated efforts produced this reputation. He appeared reconstructed nationally, even while he opposed
Reconstruction policies locally. Through an established power in local politics,
Lamar influenced public sentiment, regained popularity, and established the policies of the Democratic Party in Mississippi.
6 In order to comprehend Lamar's post-bellum actions, the reader must
understand his antebellum background. Before the war, he was politically active and
served in the Georgia State Legislature and as a U.S. Representative from
Mississippi. Southern advocacy dominated his antebellum career because of his
southern background, his education, and the building sectional conflict over slavery
and states' rights.^ Lamar had proclaimed,"The promotion of Southern interests is
second in importance only to the preservation of southern honor.”^ In order to join
the Mississippi Secession convention, Lamar resigned from the U.S. House in 1861
and eventually drafted the Ordinance of Secession for Mississippi. He served as a
Confederate foreign emissary to Russia, a Lieutenant Colonel, and Judge Advocate in
Longstreet's Corps of the Army of Virginia. He became a trusted friend of Jefferson
Davis, and he enjoyed the rank and popularity that war had brought him.^ But after
Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse, Lamar faced a defeated Southern nation
where rank and popularity no longer mattered in terms of survival. His loyalty to the South held strong, and his doting son-in-law claimed Lamar devoted himself to the future of the South when he said, "I shall stay with my people, and share their fate. I feel it to be my duty to devote my life to the alleviation, so far as in my power lies, of the sufferings this day's disaster will entail upon them."^ Lamar manifested
^ lames B. Murphy, LQ.C. Lamar: Pragmatic Patriot (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press 1973). 38. 2 Congressional Globe, 35‘‘’ Cong., 1*' sess., 1858, 27, pt.l: 279. ^ lennifer Ford, ed.. The Hour of Our Nation's Agony: The Civil War Letters ofLt William Cowper Nelson of Mississippi (Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2007). “ Edward Mayes, Lucius Q.C. Lamar: His Life, Times, and Speeches 1825-1893 (Nashville: Publishing House of Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1896) 115. Mayes does not provide a source for Lamar’s claim. Mayes wrote the first, and most comprehensive biography, of Lamar.
7 his devotion to the South and its people through his antebellum career, wartime
service and immediate post-war actions.
Following the war, Lamar faced many of the same hardships that other
Southerners faced. His financial future was uncertain and his political career was
assumed to be over. Unable to make payments on his property, he defaulted on his
land deed and could no longer depend upon the land to provide for his family.
Lamar realized a law practice was the only alternative means of sustaining his
family. In late 1865, he and close friend General Edward C. Walthall formed a
partnership in Coffeeville, a small town about thirty miles south of his Oxford home.
But under great financial stress and pressures of overwork, the partnership
dissolved. Fortunately for Lamar, about the same time Chancellor John Waddell at
Oxford's University of Mississippi asked Lamar to fill the open position of professor
of ethics and metaphysics. In January 1867, the board elected him the sole professor
of governmental science and law and, in effect, he became the law department. The
same year he was hired as a director of the Mississippi Central Railroad Company,
but records indicate the job did not generate a salary until late 1870.^ In spring of
1868 Lamar decided to combine teaching and private practice to supplement his
university salary. Later that year he joined a new practice with young Oxford
lawyer, E. D. Clark. These positions, while later dwarfed by the prominence of his
national career, were crucial in the formation of Lamar's post-war policies and
5 Annual Report of the President and Directors of the Mississippi Central Railroad Conwanv f 1 R7n^ 1 (MDAH). ^
8 views concerning federal authority, states' rights, corporate interests, and African
American rightsA
Daniel Meador, a law professor at the University of Virginia, termed Lamar's
time as a law professor as a "gestation period"^ which enabled him to adjust to new
social conditions, provided him with time to read and think about the fundamentals
of the legal system, and encouraged him to simplify basic legal principles within
Reconstruction legislation while explaining them to his students and the general
population^ Lamar was a popular figure at the University and his students found
him fascinating and stimulating. Though Lamar regularly rejected the standard
guidelines of teaching law, he taught effectively because, according to Daniel
Meador,"character, personality, and learning are more important than method or
technique or the imposition of formal requirements on students."^ This explained
Lamar's success as a professor, and how he came to influence many of his students.
It is important to note that Lamar's interests had been mainly political, and his style
of teaching demonstrated that emphasis as he focused mainly on public issues
rather than private law problems. Lamar used this 'gestation period' to enhance the
personal characteristics that later made him a wildly successful politician: his deep
legal knowledge, his unique speaking ability, and continued engagement with
popular opinion.
^ This information is drawn from Mayes, Lamar and Murphy, Lamar. 7 Daniel J. Meador,"Lamar and the Law at the University of Mississippi," Mississippi Law Journal 34 no. 3(May 1963); 254. ®Ibid. ^ Daniel Meador,"Lamar and the Law," 241.
9 Lamar followed local politics and popular opinion through his invited guest
lecturers to his classes; they were usually politically active and most were Lamar's
friends and former colleagues. Mississippi lawyers and judges like Wiley P. Harris,
Alexander Clayton, and William Yerger offered their views of the political situation
seen from legal and constitutional frameworks. Oxford native and former Secretary
of the Interior Jacob Thompson was a popular guest in Lamar's class. Undoubtedly
these men had an effect upon Lamar's own political views. And though he might not
have agreed with every speaker, being exposed to a local politician's outcry that
"urged preparations for a war of the races" expanded Lamar's political discourse.^o
Lamar benefited from his friendships with politically active and influential
people. His relationship with his colleague and friend E.D. Clark was important in his
development as a lawyer. Lamar had once claimed, I have less confidence in myself,
where in the Law, than 1 have in any other department of knowledge and though in
which I have bestowed my attention."^ He recognized Clark's intellect and talent;
Lamar told Clark,"You would ensure me all the success 1 am capable of achieving in
my profession." Clark's personal and political advice contributed to Lamar's
development during the post-war years. Lamar also provided influence in Clark’s reputation. The local paper claimed,"The fact that Mr. Clark is associated with Col.
Lamar is a sufficient guarantee of his ability and integrity.^^ Lamar also offered guidance for other political figures and speakers. After Chancellor Waddell sent
Lamar a speech he had written, Lamar bestowed praise and denounced his own
Oxford Falcon, November, 1869. Name of guest lecturer not given. ” Lamar to E.D. Clark, July 16, 1868, L.Q.C. Lamar Collection, University of Mississippi Library.fHerafter cited as Lamar Collection, j.D. Williams Library, UM]. Oxford Falcon, August 8,1868.
10 influence, "I see almost nothing in it, in which I can see the trace of my suggestions
or even influence; except the antithesis towards the close - which is a mere
adoption of my form of expressing a very obvious thought."^^ Lamar, like most
politically adept citizens, understood a person's talents and utilized those
capabilities and influence, but coupled that understanding with a careful humility
while considering his own personal improvement and gain.
Lamar's life and work during the immediate postwar years was "conducive to
the kind of thought needed in groping for an adjustment within the constitutional
framework."i4 This time is important because Lamar's own teachings, his students,
and guest lecturers certainly kept Lamar politically engaged in and aware of the
political situations and culture of Mississippi and the Union.
Given his level of political engagement, awareness, and development.
Lamar's time as a professor can hardly be labeled as quiet, as Meador suggests.^^ His
popularity among the citizens had not been lost during the Civil War. Lamar enjoyed
many opportunities to give speeches. He focused mostly on non-political issues,
given that he was uneasy about reactions to a former confederate's political activity;
"Many of the old knights are disposed to enter the lists again, but I have made no
sign 'although often thereunto requested'."^^ He tempered these requests with the
reality that many southerners "found politicians who had led the cause of secession
Lamar to )ohn Waddell, n.d. quoted in Daniel Meador,"Lamar and the Law,” 254. Meador,"Lamar and the Law," 254. Ibid., 246. Lamar to Burton Harrison, August 13,1867, B. Harrison Papers (Library of Congress] quoted im Meador,"Lamar and the Law," 246.
11 as the most vulnerable creatures deserving censure."!^ Thus, he interacted with the
ladies literary societies, county fair-goers, and Confederate veteran's reunions to
gauge and preserve his public status.^® Regardless of his ostensible apolitical
rhetoric, Lamar maintained his political popularity among the public. He also
enjoyed favor from the local newspapers, which largely swa}'ed public sentiment in
rural Mississippi and elsewhere.!^ Though he later claimed he "abstained from any
participation in political matters''^® during this "gestation period," Lamar
maintained his political popularity and effectively sharpened his political skill and
oratory.
Lamar's first post-war oratorical opportunity came as early as June 1866 in
the commencement address at the university. According to the Daily Clarion of
Jackson, Lamar made "no hopeful comments about the condition of the country and future prospects.'21 He clearly stated his views about the political situation facing the North and the South. Lamar said, he could "see no liberty when a political line is drawn with right on the one side and on the other powe/'."22 Facing Northern oppression, Lamar claimed, "I, at this time, look on without hope and without passion.”23 The presence of Federal authorities overruling civil government undercut his most fundamental ideals of constitutional government. He did not hide
Bertram Wyatt-Brown, The Shaping ofSouthern Culture: Honor. Grace, and War. 1760s-1880s (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001) 246. ’8 Oxford Falcon, June 8, 1867; September 7, 1867; October 19, 1867; May 16, 1868; July 11,1868; September 1868. 19 Oxford Falcon, May 1, 1869. The editor commends Lamar for his heartfelt speech given upon the return of former Interior Secretary Jacob Thompson to Oxford. 20 Mayes, Lomar, 121. 21 Mayes, Lamar, 157. 22 Ibid., 158. 23 Lamar to Burton Harrsion, August 13, 1867, in the B. Harrison papers (Library of Congress) quoted in Meador,"Lamar and the Law," 246.
12 his emotional reaction to federal occupation in Oxford. A local citizen witnessed,
"His whole demeanor was distinguished by utter dejection and inconsolable
gloom.'24 By publicly expressing these ideas, Lamar proved his political awareness
and engagement. He claimed to have abstained from immediate post-war politics.
but he clearly remained emotionally and mentall}^ aware, and sometimes involv^ed.
in politics.
Lamar soon applied his oratorical skill during the debates concerning the
1868 Mississippi Constitution. He spoke at public meetings with popular Governor
Benjamin Humphreys and other Democrats.^s i„ an extremely politicized issue, he
took a public stand against the Radical Republican party and their proposed
constitution, labeled the "Mongrel Constitution" because of the rights and provisions
it allowed black Mississippians.^^ The new constitution provided the opportunity for
readmission into the Union, but included provisions that freedmen would have the
right of suffrage and former Confederate leaders would be prohibited from political
participation. Lamar’s position echoed the Democratic opposition to the ratification.
Lamar preferred the continuance of Federal military supervision in his state [which
he very much opposed, personally and constitutionally), than to adopt the
constitution that provided blacks with certain political participation and excluded
Lamar and other Southern white men based upon Confederate activities. This
challenged his adherence to constitutional authority, and highlighted his complete
devotion to the maintenance of white rule. Through these public activities Lamar
24 George J. Leftwich,"Lucius Q. C. Lamar." The Methodist Review 44 [September-October 1896) 71 25 Oxford Falcon. May 16,1868. 25 ibid.
13 improved his political oratory skills, and gave declarative opinions and statements
concerning the political situation in post Civil War Mississippi.
Lamar's public political engagement continued with his opinions about how
federal politics affected Mississippi politics. Lamar supported the nomination of
Democrats Horatio Seymour and Francis Blair for President and Vice President for
the 1868 Presidential election. Lamar stated that Seymour was "prudent, sagacious,
"27 conscientiously devoted to principle," while Blair was "a different sort of man.
Lamar later referred to Blair as the "original Black Republican - the first to
volunteer against the South."-® Lamar's support for Blair seemed peculiar given
Blair's outright opposition to the institution of slavery. However, like Lamar, Blair
opposed Congressional Reconstruction. Additionally, Blair had rallied the Southern
Democrats at the Democratic National Convention by "demanding the unconditional
restoration of the Governments which Congress abolished, and the revival of the
white supremacy which Congress abrogated."^^ Indeed, Lamar expressed "hope that
they will be elected so that if Seymour dies he [Blair] may burn the North as he
certainly will if he gets the chance."®® Publicly, Lamar's support of the Northern
ticket seemed conciliatory, but he expressed his true opinions of Northern rule in
his private letters. Lamar believed these two men would restore the white
governments in the southern states, and ultimately secure their readmission into
Union. Lamar's support for this ticket showed the extent of his early political
2’ Lamar to E.D. Clark, n.d., folder 2, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM 28Jbid. 2^ New York Times, July 24, 1868. Lamar to Clark, n.d., folder 2, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM.Lamar did not hope for Seymour’s death. This most likely was a reference to Seymour’s ill health which was the cause of much of his Democratic opposition.
14 compromises in order to restore home rule to the South. A far cry of the
reconciliation mantra he would later adopt, Lamar supported any method that
would restore white Democratic rule.
By the time of the 1869 Mississippi governor's election, Lamar still hoped for
Federal withdrawal as long as it did not threaten social order of white supremacy.
Mississippi Democrats were suspicious and fearful of newly elected President Grant,
but supported the nomination of Grant's brother-in-law, the conservative Louis
Dent, as the Republican Union Party candidate in the gubernatorial election. Lamar
later recalled he was willing to support the Centrist Dent "for the sake of obtaining
restitution of civil power and federal relations and freedom from military
interference."31 Despite heavy Democratic opposition, voters elected Dent's
opponent James Alcorn, signaling the pinnacle of Centrist achievement in
Mississippi politics.32 Voters also approved the 1868 Mississippi constitution and
ratified the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments, which soon brought Federal
withdrawal. This did not appease Lamar who "was uncompromisingly opposed to
reaching such a result through the intervention of negro and carpet-bagger
government headed by Alcorn."^^ Lamar's support for Dent and opposition to Alcorn
showed a desperate willingness to do whatever necessary to restore Mississippi to
the Union, but only under the condition of restoring white Democratic rule in order
to preserve their social order.
Lamar to Clark, October 14, 1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Librarj', UM. Bradley G. Bond, Political Culture in the Nineteenth-Century South: Mississippi: 1830-1900(Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. 1995), 168. 33 Lamar to E.D. Calrk, October 14, 1873, Lamar Collection, j.D. Williams Librarj', UM.
15 Alcorn's election represented radical and black rule and aggravated a
heightened uneasiness in Lamar and the Democrats. In June 1870, after Alcorn
appointed a new board of trustees for the University, Lamar resigned his position as
professor. Historians have offered several reasons interpreting Lamar’s resignation.
Mayes argued that "the establishment in power by this election of the radicals,"
forced Lamar to "feel that his own self-respect demanded" his resignation.^^ Meador
suggested Lamar had gained independence after his private practice received an
unexpected influx of business, enough to support his family without his University
salary.35 Murphy called his resignation "partisan and predictable" because Lamar
believed Alcorn might radicalize the university by admitting blacks.^^ David Sansing
suggested Lamar hoped to become a martyr for the Democratic Party and Lamar,
disappointed in the board’s refusal to fire him, decided to resign.^^ A combination of
these reasons offer an understanding in the context of Lamar's decision. Lamar's
commitment in opposing radical rule played a significant role in his decision.
Despite the diversity of the suggested reasons for Lamar's resignation, these authors
all agree on Lamar’s quick and subsequent reentry into the public political scene.
By late 1870, Lamar had sketched an outline of a speech anticipating that "he
would be forced to enter the political discussion.''^^ In this outline, Lamar asserted
that as a former secessionist he must "quietly acquiesce in the result of the wager of
34 Mayes, Lamar, 164,127. Meador,"Lamar and the Law," 249. 36 Murphy, Lamar, 98. David G. Sansing, Making Haste Slowly: The Troubled History ofHigher Education in Mississippi (Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 1990), 58. 38-- Mayes, Lamar, 120.
16 battle.''-^9 acquiescence was abated by offering political solutions for a "nation
emerged from the throes of a great civil warfare."^® Lamar offered a plan for
Southern restoration, but his Confederate status legally prohibited his political
legitimacy. By advocating the "proper acceptance''^! of reconstruction, Lamar might
eventually and peacefully reenter the political discussion. This was a key moment in
Lamar's political development. He had declared his opposition and problems with
reconstruction laws and policies, but he realized that in order to serve his Southern
citizens and regain his political status, he must accept, if only for a while. Northern
rule. This indicated a pattern of divergent, compromising behavior that came to
characterize his political activity.
Lamar realized Southern acquiescence to Northern rule did not translate to
the complete elimination of Southern principles. His 1871 speech at the Agricultural
and Mechanical Association of Carroll and Choctaw counties offered valuable insight
into Lamar's developing political discourse during his transition from academia into
politics. He stressed the importance of diversifying farming and agriculture in the
South in order for planters and farmers to be independent of the Northern Federal
government. Lamar explained that Northern class-based legislation, excessive
taxation, and unnecessary tariffs caused the South to suffer.'!^ He argued that by
preserving the continuity of the "honorable practices and principles of your
fathers,"43 southern farmers chose honor instead of profit. In choosing profit, like
"Mbid., 121. Ibid. Ibid. Mayes, Lamar, 130. « Ibid.
17 the North, Southerners must "give up their character for virtue, intellectual and
’44 moral dignity. By directly linking honor to southern agriculture, he reinforced the
Jeffersonian ideal of civic duty to one's section. His audience accepted the criticisms
of the North and Federal government. This endeared Lamar to poor white farmers
who desperately looked to the past to foster and maintain their identity founded in
Old South ideals. Similar speeches would garner public loyalty to Lamar and result
in wider following of constituents while simultaneously allowing Lamar to gauge the
reception of his balance between Northern criticism and Southern principles.
Even his letters to the public secured his loyalty and recognition. In
December 1870, Lamar penned a public letter declining an invitation to speak at a
ceremony celebrating the birthday of recently deceased Robert E. Lee.^^ Citing
scheduling conflicts, he delayed his final decision to decline due to "anxiety at
relinquishing such an opportunity of giving voice to the emotions which fill my soul
when contemplating the life that has just closed amid the tears of a nation's
sorrow."46 Lamar felt that Lee was the "perfect representative of the mighty
struggle" the South had endured. Lamar compared Lee to George Washington; he
stated,"They shared qualities which ennoble and invigorate the Southern character;
and both were inspired by a heroic devotion to liberty and right."^^ This
characterization offered unity between Washington's heroism of American
nationalism and Lee's inspiration of Southern nationalism. But Lamar also offered
fbid. Lamar to Col. William H. McCardle, December 5,1870, quoted in Oxford Falcon, March 4, 1871. Also quoted in Mayes, Lamar,656-658, fAppendix No. 8). 'K'lbid. ^ Ibid.
18 substantial contrasts. Lamar used this comparison as a metaphor to highlight the
differences betw^een the North and the South; Washington represented the pure
and cold" North and Lee symbolized the "limpid and warm" South. Lamar's
deliberate subtlety was important in delivery. He understood his calculated
criticisms were more easily accepted than bitter diatribes against the North. Lamar
would eventually gain Southern loyalty, much like Lee, by adhering to Southern
principles.
Robert E. Lee's example helped Lamar understand the importance of
Southerners' loyalty in achievingsuccess as a Southern statesman. Southern public
sentiment guided Lamar's decisions in regards to Southern politics. Lamar
recognized Mississippians' despair with the political chaos. The South and its
citizens wanted "men who will throw politics to the dogs, and devote themselves to
making the South what nature designed her: the most prosperous and productive
section in the world."^® Though his speeches focused on political reform, voters
recognized Lamar's ability to transcend politics by declaring heartfelt devotion to
Southern prosperity. Lamar's local paper, the Oxford Falcon, stressed the
"omnipotent power" that local voters had over their politicians. The editor claimed,
"The Democratic people can make and unmake [politicians] with their breath."'^^
Essentially, Lamar's career and agenda rested in the hands of Mississippians. White
voters recognized the turmoil in the Democratic Party, and called for "more live, earnest, active good men" to restore its political power. Writing under the alias
Oxford Falcon, November 1870. Oxford Falcon, June 16, 1871.
19 substantial contrasts. Lamar used this comparison as a metaphor to highlight the
differences betvv^een the North and the South; Washington represented the pure
and cold" North and Lee symbolized the "limpid and warm" South. Lamar's
deliberate subtlety was important in delivery. He understood his calculated
criticisms were more easily accepted than bitter diatribes against the North. Lamar
would eventually gain Southern loyalty, much like Lee, by adhering to Southern
principles.
Robert E. Lee’s example helped Lamar understand the importance of
Southerners' loyalty in achieving success as a Southern statesman. Southern public
sentiment guided Lamar's decisions in regards to Southern politics. Lamar
recognized Mississippians' despair with the political chaos. The South and its
citizens wanted "men who will throw politics to the dogs, and devote themselves to
making the South what nature designed her: the most prosperous and productive
section in the world.''^^ Though his speeches focused on political reform, voters
recognized Lamar's ability to transcend politics by declaring heartfelt devotion to
Southern prosperity. Lamar's local paper, the Oxford Falcon, stressed the
"omnipotent power" that local voters had over their politicians. The editor claimed,
"The Democratic people can make and unmake [politicians] with their breath.’49
Essentially, Lamar's career and agenda rested in the hands of Mississippians. White
voters recognized the turmoil in the Democratic Party, and called for "more live, earnest, active good men" to restore its political power. Writing under the alias
48 Oxford Falcon, November 1870. Oxford Falcon, June 16, 1871.
19 Jeffersonian Democrat', a local citizen suggested loyal leadership could be found in
common citizens, "The best place to look for faithful leaders is in the ranks,'50 Lamar
responded to the political restlessness, and garnered loyalty by using his speeches
to transcend politics to appeal to the common desire of a common leader.
A common fear among white Mississippians was the intrusion of the federal
government. Not all white Democrats were willing to move to the middle ground of
Centrism. Even after Alcorn's election led to the removal of most federal troops,
many whites still believed the social order doomed under moderate rule. Lamar,
although never publicly, justified those attacks because he feared the radical
government would "be fraught with more enduring and irreparable injury to the
people than any which the military had wrought or could thereafter entail. Many
whites shared Lamar's fear of radical, carpetbag, and black rule. With that fear, the
attacks on reconstruction turned to violence to ensure that their rhetoric was
regarded with seriousness."Defense of traditional visions of a good republic
through attacks on black equality and federal authority, the twin demons of the
unreconstructed, continued unabated."^^ yhe Ku Klux Klan used violence and
intimidation to preserve the social ethic of white domination.^s Bradley Bond
suggests that the Klan, like Lamar, appealed to a cross-section of rural southerners
including middling folk and yeomanry.^^ Again, by recognizing popular opinion,
Lamar understood the importance of following the will of the people.
Ibid.
Lamar to Clark, October 14,1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. ‘Bond, Political Culture 170 Ibid. S'* Ibid., 171.
20 Thus, Bradley Bond implicated Lamar in the appeal of the Klan and its
mission. Bond argues that even though Lamar and his Democratic colleagues
publicly denounced Klan depredations as excessive and detrimental to their goal of
allaying federal apprehension about the success of Reconstruction, they abetted
violence by constantly decrying 'black rule' and by defending accused members in
court."55 During this contentious period, Lamar certainly used the cry of"black
rule."56 But, proving Lamar defended the accused perpetrators of violence
connected to the Klan is complicated. Lamar was directly associated with the highly
contentious Ku-Klux trial that took place in Oxford during June 1871. Allen
Trelease's interpretation of the hearings conducted by the U.S. Congressional
Committee of Affairs on the Insurrectionary States suggests witnesses testified that
Lamar was in fact lead counsel for the 22 white men indicted for violating the Ku
Klux Act.57 However, the full report of the trial never mentions or lists Lamar as
counsel to the defendants.^s The uncertainty lies in one section of the report titled
the "writ of habeas corpus of William D. Walton." The members of the defense
counsel are listed followed by "others;"^^ Lamar might have been one of the 'others',
but documentary evidence provides no concrete proof.
Lamar was certainly peripherally involved in the trial: attending the
hearings, associating with the defense counsel, and offering his public opinion of the
Ibid. Lamar to Clark, October 14,1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, IJM. House Reports, 42d Congress. 2d sess.. No. 22 (serial 1529-41). Testimony Taken by the Joint Select Committee to Inquire inot the Condition ofAffairs in the Late Insurrectionary States, 13 vols. (Washington, D.C., 1872) KKKreport, Mississippi, pp. 936-87. ■5“ Full Report of the Great Ku-Klux Trial in the U.S. District Court at Oxford, Miss. Evidence of Witnesses. Arguments of Counsel, Decision and Rulings of judge Hill, Incidents. Full Report of the Great Ku-Klux Trial in the U.S. District Court at Oxford, Miss. Evidence of Witnesses, Arguments of Counsel, Decision and Rulings of judge Hill, Incidents.
21 case. Lamar garnered much attention when an altercation erupted between him and
the Federal Marshall in the courtroom during the proceedings. This proves he was
present at the trial, yet the accounts of the event provide little clarity. Because
Lamar was temporarily disbarred but later reinstated, it explains the absence of
Lamar's name in the report, if Lamar did actually serve as defense counsel. It was
certainly natural for Lamar to have been connected to a case of this magnitude,
publicity and precedent, especially since it was in his judicial district. Additionally,
some years earlier Lamar had offered his legal services to one of the case's
prosecuting attorneys, good friend H.W. Walters.^^ And Lamar later appointed H. L.
Muldrow, defending counsel to Ku KIux members in Starkville, to be Assistant
Secretary of the Interior.^i The ambiguity of Lamar's role in the legal proceedings
and hearings hinders any solid interpretation of Lamar's interaction with the Ku
Klux Klan. This incident haunted Lamar in later in his life during Senate and Judicial
confirmations, but especially while he was strongly advocating for reconciliation for
the North and the South. And the "reconciliation that the country ultimately reached
ironically emerged through avoidance and denunciation of the mountain of ugly
truths recorded in those hearings."62
Much debate was centered on the recent violence. In October 1871, Lamar
happened to be in Holly Springs, Mississippi, on business connected with his
Lamar to H.W. Walters. Oxford, Mississippi, August 8,1867, in "L.Q.C. Lamar Offers His Voice for a Friend," ed. Enoch L. Mitchell,/ourno/o/M/ss/ss/ppf///story 26[May 1964): 150-151. Allen W. Trelease, Terror: The Ku Klux Klan Conspiracy and Southern Reconstruction [New York: Harper and Row, 1971), 400. David W. Blight. Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory,[Cambridge, MA: Belknap ress of Harvard University Press, 2001), 117. See also Trelease. White Terror, 389-410.
22 profession.‘'3 And because of the sudden illness of Robert Lowety, a leading
Democrat, and the "instrumentality" of E.D. Clark, Lamar represented Loweiy in a
debate against then Republican Governor Alcorn. He blasted Alcorn on the recent
alleged Ku-Klux confrontations. Lamar claimed, in regards to the recent violence,
The people of Mississippi acted in perfect and good faith in the observance of their
relations with the general government and no example of open hostility to the laws
of the United States could be pointed at."^^ Lamar was pleased with his reception. He
later wrote to Clark, "1 had good reason to flatter myself, while I did not meet the
natural anticipations of what the occasion required, my speech answered more to
the hidden thought and to the hearts of my audience, Newspaper accounts reveal
the distress felt by local citizens concerning the violence, the Enforcement Acts, and
the Investigative Committee. Jacob Thompson, an affluent Oxford native, "denied the
organization of the Ku Klux in Mississippi, but the existence of that body is due to
the fact that the Southern people have been grossly outraged by villainous, bad men
who migrated to the South after the close of the war."66 In effect, Lamar publicly
accepted and justified the violence against African Americans.
The public seemed pleased with Lamar's measured, deliberate "return" to
public politics. An editorial in the Oxford fa/con expressed hope that "his great light
in "67 statesmanship be no longer hid in retired seclusion. The Memphis Appeal
praised Lamar's effort "told with SO much effect upon the Governor [Alcorn] it was
63 Mayes, Lamar, 135. 64 65 Oxford Falcon, October 13,1871 Mayes. Z.o/77ar, 135. Oxford Falcon, August 18,1871. Oxford Falcon, October 13,1871.
23 pitiable to see the miserable subterfuges and shifts adopted by the gentleman.'68
Perhaps Lamar's 'return' to the stump and a positive public response stirred his
memories and renewed his desire for political action."He is a man of the times, alive
to the progress of the age, and is destined soon to take the lead in Southern
politics."^'^ Lamar recognized his influence and hoped changing conditions would
eventually provide opportunity for a role in politics.
Though he did initially abstain from elected politics, Lamar was engaged, and
anything but silent, in the political atmosphere. By late 1871, Lamar no longer
adhered to the belief he proclaimed in late 1870,"It is that for five or six years past I
have deemed every duty to which man is subject-duty to himself, duty to his family,
"70 duty to his country-to dictate to such men silence, He claimed to believe silence
or abstinence from political matters was an honorable concession for a former
Confederate leader. This honorable silence "could salve the painful reality of
defeat"7i caused by the war.Lamar made clear that his declared absence from public
life "has been the effect not of any disgust for such a career, but of a conviction of
duty."72 But by late 1871, the "despair and concern about how to survive an
antebellum zeal"73 had disappeared from Lamar's attitude. The changing conditions
and positive public reaction supported Lamar's return to politics.
68 69 Memphis Daily Appeal, October 11,1871. 70 Oxford Falcon, October 21, 1871 Mayes, Lamar, 121. Wyatt-Brown,Southern Culture. 236. ibid. 73 Wyatt-Brown,Southern Culture, 236.
24 In 1872 the Republican state legislature reapportioned the congressional
districts in Mississippi to secure all but one district to the Republicans/^ The heavily
white counties of northeast Mississippi made up Lamar's district and it was
effectively conceded to the Democrats. Given the white majority, the election of a
white Democrat was basically secured. This development presented Lamar with the
possibility of a public career, and he could not ignore it.
It seemed the only thing holding Lamar back were his political disabilities
outlined in the section three of the Fourteenth Amendment stating that unless
otherwise pardoned, prewar Confederate leaders were forbidden to "hold any office,
civil or military under the United States, or under any state. He humbly denied the
possibility that he could be a candidate. In a letter to John Stone, future governor
3nd a local Democratic Party leader, Lamar stated that he was not a candidate, and
he would support Stone himself if he were nominated.^^ Lamar subsequently
explained that his hesitancy was the "impropriety of nominating a man under
disabilities"^^ and refused to canvass for election if it would do any harm to the
state’s reputation. These disabilities were conferred upon former confederate
leaders and impeded their service in any public political position. The possibility of
universal removal of disabilities from men such as Lamar would not be realized any
Ninth Census ofthe United States. 1870,1, 42-43, gives figures for 1860 and 1870. The 1860 population of the first district (Tishomingo, Tippah, Marshall, Desoto, Tunica, Coahoma, Panola, and Lafayette counties) was 72,720 whites and 67,029 blacks. The 1870 redistricting gave the first district(now Alcorn, Benton, Calhoun, Itawamba, Lafayette, Lee, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Tippah, Tishomingo, Union, and Yalobusha counties) shifted to 90,523 whites and 36, 242 blacks. ” U.S. Constitution, amend.14, sec. 3. Lamar to J.M. Stone, July 5, 1872, in Governor Stone Papers, MDAH. Ibid.
25 time soon owing to continued troubles in the South."78 Lamar was aware of the
implications of electing a former confederate leader under disabilities.
Yet, public support and private encouragementseemed to provide Lamar
with ample confidence. Lamar told a friend, "The people would have me to
represent them in spite of the disabilities."^^ This elevated the situation to a point
where Lamar would accept the nomination with the assurance that he would be
seated without embarrassment or political backlash. Lamar later compromised his
disabilities position upon further "examination that the precedents established by
our national legislature are directly the reverse of the rule in this state"s° concerning
the actions taken if a person with disabilities was elected and Congress refused to
seat him. Most basically, within Mississippi, if Lamar was elected but not seated to a
state congressional seat, the election would go to the candidate with the next
highest vote; however, im a national election a candidate receiving a minority of the
vote could not be seated and a new election would be held.®i With prophetic
understanding of the situation and an acute concern that a Radical should not be
seated, Lamar showed little distress for the reputation of the state in case he was
refused a seat. He claimed, "If there is a genuine and general desire of our people to
have me go, I shall hardly know how to decline. Lamar's political ambition
overshadowed his professed humble hesitancy.
78
79 Oxford Falcon March 31,1871. 80 Letter to Reemelin, November 4,1872, cited in Mayes, Lamar, 175. ibid.Letter to A.Y. Donaldson, August 12, 1872, in Z/2214.000/F; Lamar (L. Q. C.) Letter, MDAH 82 Lamar to Charles Reemelin, July 15,1872 quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 170-172.
26 Notwithstanding the advantageous developments, Lamar still expressed
hesitancy in a commitment to seek public office. He was not listed as a candidate as
late as July 11,1872,^3 and days later Lamar denied interest in a congressional
nomination: "I give it no encouragement. My aversion to public life increases."84
Lamar reached out to newspaper editors, party leaders and private citizens. The
Jackson Clarion and the Memphis/lppen/put Lamar's concerns about the political
disabilities to rest.^s The Democratic convention in Tupelo slated Lamar as their
nominee. In this case, nomination was the same as election and Lamar emerged as
an important, legitimate political figure. Lamar began his canvassing of the state. He
won the election by a two-to-one majority, and only lost his home county of
Lafayette. Lafayette had an influential Republican minority along with the largest
black population of any county in the district^^ The US. House approved his petition
to be seated on December 9,1872, and the Senate followed suit two days later.8"
L.Q.C. Lamar’s career.and effectively his reputation, as a local unreconstructed rebel
were officially closed.
Lamar never fully disengaged himself from politics. His profession, by
default, kept him aware and involved with the political scene of Reconstruction,
Many of the issues were of a legal or constitutional nature. The memory of Lamar as
a secluded professor coming to grips with the political situation and forming this
83 jackson 14/ee/c/y C/ar/on, July 11,1872. Lamar to Charles Reemelin, July 15,1872, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 171.
86 Jackson Weeidy Clarion, August 1, ik 1872; Memphis Daily Appeal. August 4, 5,15,1872. Warren A. Ellem, “Who Were theMississioDi ScaJawagsT journal ofSouthern History 38(May 1972), 225, 229. 87 House Journal, 42"'' Cong., 3'''' Sess., 39, 53-54; Congressional Globe, 42"'' Cong., 3''' Sess., 91, 129, 260]journal ofthe Senate ofthe United States, 42"'' Cong., 3'''' Sess., 48, 50-51.
27 idea or mantra of reconstructed rebel for reconciliation was easily accepted. But
upon further inspection, we find he adapted himself to ideas that secured loyalty
and popularity among his constituents, often the first step in getting elected.
Inasmuch it is easy to interpret his ambition or agenda as insincere and
disingenuous despite its success, or it can be interpreted as heartfelt, selfless and
patriotic because of its success. Often the latter interpretation was prominent. But, this pattern of his adaptation of principles persisted as Lamar gained national recognition and power as a skilled politician.
28 Chapter 2
The Eulogy of a Nation
The shift in principles that represented Lamar's return to public life was a
development of social and political forces caused by the defeat of war and approach
of Reconstruction. Bertram Wyatt-Brown explores the ways in which Southerners
struggled and coped with defeat: denial of the obvious, political action, acceptance
or denial of God, and declaration ofhonorJ Lamar exhibits each of these
characteristics throughout his postwar career, most especially by political action. To
better serve the South through his political action, James Murphy suggests, that in
order to achieve reconciliation, Lamar believed "A statesman should above all
profess devotion to the Union. Patriotism, therefore, became the basis of a
pragmatic political policy, and Lamar made the achievement of that policy his life's
work."2 Lamar understood the political realities of the era. The cooperation of the
powerful North was essential. But, the complexities of submission to the North
while maintaining southern home rule plagued Lamar's career. The attitude of the
North toward the South and Reconstruction was shifting; Eric Foner explains,"As
evidence multiplied of a growing spirit of sectional reconciliation. Reconstruction's
^ Bertram Wyatt-Brown, The Shaping ofSouthern Culture: Honor, Grace, and War, 1760s-1880s (ChapeJ Hi/J: University of North Carolina Press, 2001 j 233-254. ^ Murphy, LQ.C Lamar: Pragmatic Patriot(Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, j y /3 j, 113>
29 defenders found themselves on the losing side in what one Southern Democrat
called 'the war of words which has followed the battles of rebellion.’"^ It is under
these conditions that Lamar garnered support for election to Congress. He had
rebuilt his loyal following, reestablished his political views and made clear his plan
of action. If there ever was a perfect time to capture the American attention and
imagination, it was in Lamar's first few months of Congress.
Lamar made a spectacular entrance to the House."Bound to each other by a
common constitution, destined to live together under a common government,
forming unitedly but a single member of the great family of nations, shall we not
now at last endeavor to grow toward each other once more in heart, as we are
indissolubly linked to each other in fortunes?'"^ Edward Mayes believed that with
this passage Lamar attempted to "thoroughly embody the loftiest Southern
sentiment.''^ He did just that with his careful word choice and elevated language.
This passage, delivered in April 1874, is from Lamar's eulogy of the abolitionist and
ally of Reconstruction, Charles Sumner. Many of Lamar's constituents and colleagues
felt that it was of"questionable taste"^ for Lamar to give a eulogy honoring a man
who had so aggressively fought against Southern values. But Lamar seized this
opportunity to make it a "vehicle of his own message."^ Lamar effectively used
Sumner's political reputation and recent death to inform the North that the South,
despite its disdain for Reconstruction, supported reconciliation on Southern terms.
! Reconstruction America’s Unfinished Revolution: 1863-1877(New York: Harper and Row 1988j:524. Cong. Rec.. 43^
30 Lamar received endless praises for his "full glory of generous Southern manhood
while displaying his progressive views of reconciliation.®
Most importantly he simultaneously secured favor with Republicans in
Washington and the North enabling himself to further advance the Democratic
political agenda.^ Lamar was aware of the post-war political culture of Washington.
He had witnessed the great political change and realized "the great revolution which
has been wrought, both in the political institutions of the country and in the
thoughts and phraseology of those who direct its affairs."^® He described the new
conditions and standards held to politicians, and claimed, "It is fortunate for most of
our Southern leaders that they are excluded from their former positions in
government, they could hardly sustain the high reputation acquired in the old
arena. He recognized the sectional bitterness of Southerners would get him
nowhere and in order to be successful he must join the men of politics who were up
to its passions, its questions, its demands and resources."12
The spirit of defeat held by southerners and the political exile of
Confederates forced Lamar to "look upon reconciliation as the only corrective for
the South's plight."i3ln obtaining success and stability for himself and his section,
Lamar understood that "conciliation has become indispensable to the security and
From the /Vew York Commercial Advertiser, cited in Mayes, Lamar, 190. ^ Murphy. Lamar, 115. '"Ibid., 131. ” Ibid. '2 Ibid. Murphy, Lamar, 113. Murphy believes "Lamar's notions of sectional accommodation may have een fed by personal contact with like-minded individuals during this period." (supra note 32, pi 13) James Longstreet visited him at least once and may have made this suggestion. See Oxford Falcon, August 30,1866; and Thomas R. Hay and Donald b. Sanger,/owes Longstreet: Soldier and Politician (Baton Rouge, 1952), 334. Edward Mayes, Lamar’s son-in-law, also believed in the necessity for reconciliation and may have been influential.
31 tranquility of Southern society."i^ The North and the South were "estranged simpl}^
because each is ignorant of the inner mind of the other," and Lamar was ready to
commend [and eventually become) the "patriot and benefactor who could awake
them from their profound egotism."^^ Lamar recognized the opportunity at hand;
the South needed a leader to employ sectional reconciliation as a tool to restore the
South.
Lamar demonstrated a cunning political instinct in choosing this 'occasion' to
propose his solution of reconciliation.^^ Sumner's death provided a perfect
opportunity for Lamar to amplify his message. As a respected Northern statesman,
many northerners would be susceptible to his final tributes, especially those made
by a Southerner. Lamar admitted,"Every word said about him, on the occasion of his
funeral, would be read allover the North, especially among those classes who have
never given us hearing And since Sumner had changed and "was very strongly in
sympathy with our people,"i® Lamar hoped Sumner would provide an example of
conciliation for Northerners, while justifying a Southerner's eulogy. Lamar
understood the importance of reconciliation but needed an occasion to supply his
message to the nation. He knew "the death of Sumner was such an occasion."19
14 Lamar to Charles Reemelin, July 15,1872, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 182. Ibid. 16 James G. Blaine, Twenty Years in Congress (Norwich, Conn., 1884), II, 546, wrote: It was a mark of positive genius in a Southern representative to pronounce a fervid and discriminating eulogy upon Mr. Sumner." 17 Lamar to C.C. Clay, Oxford, Mississippi, September 5, 1874, in "Why Lamar Eulogized Sumner," ed. Mattie RusseW.Journal ofSouthern History 21 (August 1955): 376. The italics are Lamar's. Ibid., 377. ’Mbid.,376.
32 just as his tribute was read all over the North, Lamar knew that eulogizing
the abolitionist Sumner would raise quite a stir in the South. "I felt it that the time
had come for me to stake my political life,"20 he explained to a friend. The Southern
press reacted negatively and accused him of"surrendering Southern principle and
honor."2i Even his close friends expressed hesitation and distress with Lamar's
decisions.^2 gy understanding the implications of such a speech, Lamar deliberately
employed the death of a man to advance his career, while advancing the South.
Gaining a full understanding of the deliberate contradictions Lamar
expressed necessitates quoting at length:
It mattered not that the slave might be contented with his lot; that his actual condition might be immeasurably more desirable than that from which it had transplanted him; that it gave him physical comfort, mental and moral elevation, and religious culture not possessed by his race in any other condition; that his bonds had not been placed upon his hands by the living generation; that the mixed social system of which he formed an element had been regarded by the fathers of the Republic, and by the ablest statesmen who had risen up after them, as too complicated to be broken up without danger to society, itself, or even to civilization; or, finally, that the actual state of things had been recognized and explicitly sanctioned by the very organic law of the Republic. Weighty as these considerations might be, formidable as were the difficulties in the way of practical enforcement of his great principle, he held none the less that it must sooner or later be enforced, though institutions and constitutions should have to give way alike before it.23
This protracted defense of slavery disrupts the balance of nationalism and
sectionalism that Lamar proposed. In fact, given that a former Confederate slave
20 Ibid., 378. Mayes, Lamar, 191. 22 Lamar s letter to Clay answered Clay's criticism. James Z. George wrote Lamar twice in two days on t IS subject, first expressing "some apprehension" and then "wonder at the complete success attained y you. And still George did "not agree with you entirely in all you said of him." See j.Z. George to Lamar, May 3, 1874, in Lamar-MayL Papers Cong. Rec.. 43'-‘J Cong., 1 sess., 3410-11.
33 owner was eulogizing an ardent abolitionist, it is difficult to understand how this
inconsistency and apparent defiance of this passage so easily escaped the Northern
public consciousness. Lamar goes further with his bold conclusions; he managed to
charge Sumner's crusades for abolition and equal rights as unconstitutional. The
institutions and constitutions" faltered, as they no longer preserved institutions
and conditions that Lamar deemed constitutional. By advocating abolition, Lamar
suggested Sumner opposed an institution "explicitly sanctioned by the very organic
law of the Republic."^^
Lamar struck a "feeling ofsympothy"^^ in the North so they would listen. He
called for reconciliation between the sections to honor the life and death of Sumner.
Shall we not, over the honored remains of this great champion of human liberty, this feeling sympathizer with human sorrow, this earnest pleader for the exercise of human tenderness and charity, lay aside the concealments which serve only to perpetuate misunderstandings and distrust, and frankly confess that on both sides we most earnestly desire to be one?^^ This portion of the speech continues to justify its conventional interpretations.
Certainly by this time his sincerity should have been at least suspect. Yet, his
insincerity remained unquestioned and even Lamar justified the speech. Lamar
believed,"True patriotism and statesmanship only require consistency as to aim and end. It allows and requires changes of means His aim was clear: reconciliation between the sections, and his end was in sight: a restored South. Lamar utilized the opportunity of Sumner's death merely as a means to a desired end.
2'^ Ibid., 3411, Lamar to C.C. Clay, Oxford, Mississippi, September 5,1874, in "Why Lamar Eulogized Sumner," ed. Mattie Russell,yoi/rnu/ ofSouthern History 21 (August 1955): 376. Cong. Rec., 43rd cong.. sess., 3410. 27 Lamar to Clark, Oxford, Mississippi, October 14,1873.
34 The Sumner eulogy signifies the early stages of Lamar's balancing act of
reconciliation: pacifying the North and appeasing the South. One student termed the
speech a "masterpiece of wirewalking. A few days after the speech, Lamar and
Senator A.G. Thurman attended a circus show. Thurman compared Lamar to a
trapeze swinger after she faked a falling act to startle the spectators."Lamar that
reminds me of you," Thurman told him."How so?" asked Lamar."About your speech
you know. You caught all right; but if you had missed you'd have broken your
neck."^'’ These comparisons should not be taken lightly; they provide quite effective
visualizations of the risk and danger in giving the Sumner eulogy. Lamar's speech
chartered the narrow course between nationalism and sectionalism, a course he
would follow throughout his career. Lamar disrupted the balance of looking forward
to reconciliation.
Lamar stressed that the South could learn so much from Sumner s values and
inspiration. He encouraged that "all citizens should study the lives of national heroes
and attempt to emulate their values and to profit from their mistakes. This
particular part of the speech was not well received. The southern men found no
honor or integrity in Sumner's fight against their section. But Lamar's eulogy asked
the south to recognize the "courage, fortitude, integrity and the leading southern
value - honor - in the life"^^ of Sumner.
28 John A. Mayne,“Graduate Student Essay: L Q. C. Lamar's "Eulogy" of Charles Sumner: A Reinterpretation." The Historian 22, no. 3 (August 1960): 304. 2^ Mayes, Lamar,191. Mayes claims Lamar relished this anecdote with pleasure. 3“ Walter Stuart Towns "Ceremonial Speaking and the Reinforcing of American Nationalism in the South, 1875-1890"(Ph.D. diss.. University of Florida, 1972) 40. Ibid.
35 In relating the facts of Southern contribution and acceptance, the idea of
reunion became desirable. The speech itself, when analyzed as a eulogy, was a
vehicle for a common message. The eulogies of fallen Civil War veterans echoed the
theme of one nation, reunited and proved that sectionalism was dead; in effect the
South as a separate nation was dead. By the power of repetition this belief was
intensified, but the speakers failed to really make this assertion come alive by clear
and vivid examples of where these acts of reunion had occurred.^^ Lamar was able,
in essence, to use the medium of death to assert reconciliation more forcefully and
poignantly than others.
His talent was evident in his carefully and thoughtfully chosen words. Lamar,
using his oratorical skills, according to Stuart Towns, like many reconciliation
orators, set the “sentimental language of reunion against the political rhetoric of
Reconstruction."33 The softer language of reconciliation produced sympathy in
listeners. Paul Buck suggests Lamar "perfected the phraseology, seeking especially
words that would not cause offense;"34 this added to the perceived sincerity of the tone of reconciliation. Traces of the Sumner eulogy appeared as early as 1872. In a letter to his Northern confidante, Charles Reemelin, Lamar describes the North as if under some malign spell, speaking only words of bitterness, hate, and threatenings; 35 these confrontational words might have angered those Lamar hoped to reach. In the eulogy he carefully substituted select words,"As if mastered by some mysterious spell, silencing her better impulses, her words and acts are the
^2 Towns. Ceremonial Speaking, 41 3^ Ibid. 3^^ Paul H. Buck, The Road to Reunion. 1865-1900(Boston: Little, Brown, 1937) 128. 3-'’ Lamar to Charles Reemelin, July 15, 1872, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 182.
36 words and acts of suspicion and distrust."^^ He mastered his true feelings toward
the North through careful preparation, and he made the eulogy seem sincere.
During the speech, Lamar compromised his sincerity in advocating two
distinct, often opposing, messages for two differentaudiences. His consciousness of
this double advocacy showcased the power of his intent. He assured a close friend
that his eulogy "was dictated by no pseudo 'magnanimity,' but by a concern for the
Southern people, a love for them with their helpless families.''^^ Lamar
simultaneously served two causes and two loyalties. The nationalistic intent of
reconciliation temporarily corresponded with a practical southern sectionalism.
Lamar realized his sense of duty: by glorifying the union, he better served the
advancement of the South. But the idealistic coupling of nationalism and
sectionalism did not last. Just a day after the eulogy, Lamar basically admitted his
diverging objectives: "I never in all my life opened my lips with a purpose more
"38 single to the interests of our Southern people than when I made this speech.
In his December 1871 eulogy of Robert E. Lee, Lamar had also proposed
divergent messages of reconciliation as a solution to the problems of reconstruction.
Lamar assigned the North responsibility for reconciliation. Northern oppression
prevented true harmony and genuine sectional reconciliation. He claimed:
If the victorious North would afford to the defeated people of the South the benefits of the Union and constitution, in whose name the desolations of war were visited upon them, and permit them to enjoy, in the Union, real union, concord amity, and security from oppression.
36 .37 Cong. Rec.. 43'-‘< Cong., I'tsess., 3410-11. Lamar to C.C. Clay, Oxford, Mississippi, September 5, 1874, in "Why Lamar Eulogized Sumner," ed. Mattie Russell,/ourno/ ofSouthern History 21 (August 1955): 375. amar to Mrs. Lamar, April 28, 1874, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 188.
37 the Southern people would be prompt to bury all the animosities of the war, to remember only its glories, and to regard the glories won by each people as common property of the American nation.39 This oppression forced in the South "a supreme necessity of getting into harmonious
as relations with the federal government""^® Both eulogies proposed reconciliation
the best interest of the South. Lamar used this approach tactically to "juxtapose a
spirit of reconciliation with an aura of vindication.""^! The degree of sincerity and
assignment of responsibility differs in the Lee eulogy from the Sumner eulogy.
Because the Lee eulog}' reached a smaller audience, Lamar included more phrases of
Southern vindication, and fewer pleas to Northern appeasement than the Sumner
eulogy, which would eventually reach a much wider audience. Lamar consciously
decided the content of these eulogies; and the chose that content based on the
distribution to, the origin of, and the response from his audiences.
Lamar also drew subtle comparisons between himself and Lee. As former
Confederates, both Lee and Lamar were "branded as rebels and proscribed as
traitors to America.""!^ Lamar and Lee shared similar origins and comparable post-
war fates. Like Lamar, Lee was prescribed from the higher employments of
America, and [after the war] compelled to earn his living in the seclusion of a
Southern college."43 Lamar recognized the similarities between himself and Lee, and
Lamar to Col. William H. McCardle, Decembers, 1870, quoted in Oxford Falcon, March 4, 1871. Also quoted in Mayes, Lamar,656-658, [Appendix No. 8J. Lamar to Charles Reemelin, july 15,1872, quoted in Mayes, Lomar, 170-172. Towns, Ceremonial Speakinq, 48 Ibid. Ibid.
38 hoped to eventually match Lee's "highest order of statesmanship known to
America.
The comparisons between L.Q.C. Lamar and Robert E. Lee invite analysis of
Lamar’s contribution to the tenets of the Lost Cause and ultimately Southern
identity. David Blight suggests Lee provided an embodiment for the formation of the
Lost Cause: "a public memory, a cult of the fallen soldier, a righteous political cause
defeated only by superior industrial might, a heritage community awaiting its
exodus, and a people forming collective identity as victims and survivors.’"^^ As Lee
provided a cause "in helping shape national reunion, Lamar, in his crusade for
national reconciliation, presented similar tenets: "The South - prostrate, exhausted,
drained of her lifeblood, as well as her material resources, yet still honorable and
true - accepts the bitter award of the bloody arbitrament without reservation,
resolutely determined to abide the result with chivalrous fidelity.'"^^ Lamar's South
offered its citizens a white collective identity as survivors while clinging to a
righteous cause - reconciliation. Blight explains,"Reconciliation not only reunited
North and South, but it also welcomed a victimized South back to full honor.""^® By advocating for reconciliation, Lamar helped southerners maintain their honor.
Wyatt-Brown agrees,"When coupled with the notion of'redemption'from allegedly evil Republican and black rule, this means of interpreting the late war offered the
Ibid. David W. Blight, Race and Reunion: The Civil War in American Memory,(Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2001), 38. 46 Blight, Race and Reunion, 258. 47 Cong. Rec., 43'''' Cong., l^tsess., 3412. Blight, Race and Reunion, 358.
39 concept of victimization."*’^ Reconciliation, while bringing the regions together,
provided an exodus from oppression, and the formation of a distinctive Southern
community. Lamar's speeches and their widespread public reception contributed to
the development of the ideas of the Lost Cause.
Lamar's careful use of words and their contextualization for Northern and/or
Southern audiences displayed his effectiveness in garnering popularity. Lamar
"depoliticized the ideas and notions of reunion, suggesting that it was a concept so
sacred and abstract that it could not be dirtied by the mundane specificities of
politics."^® Reconstruction highly politicized the idea of reconciliation. Lamar suggested that reconciliation was not just a political issue, but reunion touched northerners and southerners "in feeling and heart."5i
Lamar did not compromise the South's honor in the eulogy; he defended the
South's honor in war and reconstruction. In fact, Lamar embodied the ideals of
Southern honor as viewed by Northerners. The Boston Advertiser, a Northern paper, claimed,"There is no sentence in Mr. Lamar's speech that breathes of any motive other inconsistent with chivalrous honor. San Francisco Examiner claimed,
"His every utterance has been in behalf of the permanent pacification and prosperity of the whole country."53
The explanation is important in understanding Lamar's eulogy and subsequent speeches on the South. The "Souths" that politicians created and
49 Wyatt-Brown, Culture. 282. 50 Murphy, Lamar, 143. 51 Cong. Rec. 43'-‘‘ Cong., 1"' sess., 3410-11. Boston Advertiser, n.d., from Walthall Papers, UM Library. San Francisco Examiner, n.d., from Walthall Papers, UM Library.
40 defended were “multidimensional, overlapping, and intertwined."^'’ The power of
repetition was a key factor in fostering these Souths; they found their way into
popular vocabulary and were accepted as fact by historians, journalists, novelists,
and literary critics.^^ This repetition was the most powerful aspect of such speeches.
Because they offered a narrow purview, speakers "resorted to stylistic flourishes,
commonality in tone, and expansive delivery.'’^^ Listeners and audiences accepted
these speeches and engaged in "euphoria of a romantic past."^^ Similar dimensions
and overlaps occurred throughout Lamar's public career. By examining the public
response to and public memory of Lamar, one can determine whether Lamar s
words directly impacted the fostering and developing of these Souths, or were his
words just "spread-eagle or high flown oratory.'58 The uniqueness is that Lamar
used his words to reach a means to an end, indirectly approaching these
interpretations while simultaneously revising and repositioning them.
Whatever the interpretation of its oratorical value or style, the power and
popularity it garnered for Lamar is certain. Even though Lamar did not close the
chasm between the sections, both the North and the South appreciated the
nationalistic grandeur of the speech. The real significance is that the eulogy gave
Lamar national status as a reconciler vaulting him into the public spotlight, in
essence providing the political maneuverability and power to accomplish his
Waldo W. Braden, ed. Oratory in the New South,[Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1979), 35. Ibid. Ibid., 36. Ibid. 58 Ibid.
41 agenda.^'’ It made him a "far more significant enemy" to Radical Republican rule
than he would have been without giving the eulogy.^® And though radicalism and
nationalism certainly did not go hand in hand, the earliest supporters of
Reconstruction, who fought for reconciliation and nationalism, were Radical
Republicans from the North. Thus the eulogy empowered Lamar's eventual battle
against federal intervention, which many initially believed was a fundamental step
in reconciling the broken union. The impact and response is far too complex to
simplify it into a cause-effect method: such as the eulogy negated Lamar's presented
nationalism. In fact, it has been argued that the speech gave voice to the
reconciliation of the sections. Also, by the time of the speech the means of
reconciliation were changing.
Lamar’s "national reputation as a southern statesman had continued to grow
because of his eloquence in public, his canny dealings in private, and his constant
striking of the note of national reconciliation rather than Southern defiance."^^ This
enabled Lamar to effectively balance his participation in state politics and national
politics. Early on, he admitted that in his initial role, "there would be very little
"62 opportunity for me to say anything that will strike my own people impressively.
He focused his attention to securing favor among his congressional colleagues, and
boasted of their "desire to secure my cooperation rather than to provoke
Buck, Road to Reunion, 129. Nicholas Lemann, Redemption: The Last Battle ofthe Civil War[New York; Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006) 70. Lemann, Redemption, 104. ^2 Lamar to T.J. Wharton, Wa.shington, D.C., December 25,1873, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 179.
42 antagonisms."^’^ He provided assurance to the citizens of Mississippi that
reconciliation was the best way to restore the South, but either avoided or resolved
sectional antagonisms that resulted from those assurances. The balance of power
and politics that he achieved at the state and national levels proved his
consciousness of the political equivocation involved in his often-divergent
messages.
Lamar transformed to this idea of what was expected from a southern
reconstructed statesman. In this transformation, Lamar clung to the ideals and
demands of the sectional interests of his Old South. Even his oratorical talent
contributed to Southern identity; to Southerners "eloquence was the beau ideal of
the southern way of life."^'^ In an attempt to promote those sectional interests,
Lamar offered a role for patriotism, reunion, and reconciliation. His ideas of honor
were concurrent with contemporary standards; in fact he helped foster some of
those honorable ideals. He was reassured by the increasing popularity of reunion.
But in advocating national reconciliation while preserving southern sectionalism,
his local stature was disillusioned and degenerated among his constituents and his
personal interests in advancing the South focused strictly on a resurgent New South,
And even though Lamar had never met Charles Sumner, the deep feeling of Lamar s
Sumner eulogy effectively transformed Lamar, in the public mind, from Southern diehard to national statesman.
« [bid. 64 Braden, The Oral Tradition in the South,(Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1983], ix.
43
I Chapter 3
The Price of Reconciliation
The great political struggle over Reconstruction reached its culmination
during Lamar's first years in the House. Lamar carefully balanced the Sumner eulogy
conciliatory plea with a focus on regaining Democratic power in both southern and
national politics. He was deeply involved in the Democratic struggle to reverse the
achievements of the Republicans in Mississippi and the rest of the country. As the
lone Democratic Representative for Republican-controlled Mississippi, he had a
limited constituency and no real authority to speak for the state. Ultimately, the
overthrow of the Republican state organization became the revolutionary object of
the Mississippi Democrats.
Another claim concerning Lamar's neglect by New South historians concerns
a reluctance to confront his race politics."^ The complexities lie in Lamar's personal
views and opinions regarding racial politics. Traditional and sympathetic treatments of Lamar either ignore these difficulties or justify his antebellum views on race. Certainly, Lamar's relationship with blacks in Mississippi was quite complex. But to better understand Lamar and his political agenda and power, a thorough and contextual revision is needed. Lamar's actions and words allowed
Michael Hoffheimer,"LQ.C. Lamar 1825-1893 106. The Mississippi Law Journal 63, no. 1 (Fall 1993) 5-
44 dual interpretations of his complex racial policies. By reexamining Lamar's role in
the "Redemption" of the Mississippi Democrats, we can better understand the
implications of his actions concerning the formation a "color line" in Mississippi
politics.
It is true that most scholarship on Lamar concerning race downplays the
injustice, violence and white supremacy. This historical literature perpetuated
Lamar's positive public memory. But another interpretation of Lamar's private
letters and public declarations will provide clarity in understanding the social and
political implications of Lamar's race politics. Lamar avidly defended slavery and supported the constitutionality of secession; these two actions were traditionally
regarded as a strictly legal protection of inherent rights regardless of the purpose or reason that those rights were invoked. In order to preserve those rights, Lamar drafted the Ordinance of Secession for the state of Mississippi and the Declaration clearly stated the reason for secession: "Our position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery - the greatest material interest in the world."^ Lamar emphasized slavery's importance to the economy of the South; he wrote "A blow at slavery was a blow at commerce and civilization."^ If direct involvement in this secession ordinance does not provide a clear conveyance of Lamar's views then his own words certainly do. Lamar considered slaves 'an institution of property, of
^ Mississippi Constitutional Convention, An Address Setting Forth the Declaration ofthe Immediate Causes which Induce and justify the Secession of Mississippifrom the Federal Union and the Ordinance ofSecession. (Jackson, MS: Mississippi Book and Job Printing Office, 1861),(New Haven, CT; Research Publications, 1974), Microfilm, 1. ^journal of the State Convention (Jackson, Miss.: E. Barksdale, State Printer. 1861), 86-88.
45 society, and of government, in the constitution."'^ Lamar owned slaves and abolition
threatened personal financial hardship. The emancipation of slaves did not change
his view' of the African American as inherently inferior, but emancipation introduced
the situation of incorporating free black men into white-dominated society and
eventually into the white-dominated political arena.
Lamar understood the issues of black freedom, integration, and suffrage in
Mississippi. The use of the word integration is less focused on the contemporary
connotation of social and political integration in the post-Civil Rights era, but refers
more to the sheer revolutionary aspect of integrating newly freed blacks into a
paternalistic society, providing a labor force to replace the freed slaves, and insuring
of black access to basic civil rights. White Mississippians responded to the inclusion
of free blacks into white society with the implementation of the Black Code;
designed to preserve the social ethic and maintain traditional planter-labor
relations, the code dealt mostly with issues of vagrancy and employment.^ The
newspapers in Mississippi give an extensive insight into white sentiment. These
Democratic organs, many of which supported Lamar, mostly proclaimed their
unalterable opposition to blacks exercising their right to vote, but supported their
"civil rights and encouraged them in habits of industry, temperance, honesty and
virtue."^ The Vicksburg Times, along with most newspapers and white citizens,
considered Mississippi to be "white man's country.”7
^ Harpers Weekly, February 2,1861, biographies of seceding MS delegation. Bond, Political Culture, 140. 6 Vicksburg Times. January 7.1868. ’Vicksburg Times, January 1.1868.
46 In the 1873 gubernatorial election, the state decided whether it would forge
ahead toward equality with Radical Republican rule under General Adelbert Ames,
or whether the people would continue its centrist rule in electing moderate
Republican James Alcorn.® The Democratic Party found it inexpedient to nominate a
state ticket, and mostly threw their support behind Alcorn in order to thwart the
resurgent Radicalism. Lamar understood the importance of this election, the most
racially charged election since the 1868 ratification vote.^ He privately endorsed
Alcorn because of"his efforts for expulsion (of the radical party} and his assumed
leadership of the conservatives."^®
Lamar believed that if Ames was elected "the white people of the State shall
be four years longer practically denied the privilege of self government."^i Lamar’s
powerful words relay his disgust with Radical Republican rule. Lamar wrote to a
friend, the question "is not how to restore the constitutional faith of our fathers but
how to get rid of these creatures, defiled by blood, gorged with spoil, cruel,
cowardly, faithless, who are now ruling the South for no purposes except those of
oppression and plunder."^^ -phe Mississippi Democrats claimed bad government,
mischievous legislation, ruinous taxation, and official corruption to be at the root of
General Ames's "party of Northern men and enfranchised negroes, 13 The
importance lies with his direct correlation between Radical rule and black
government; the two were synonymous, inseparable.
^ Bond, Political Culture, 172. ’Ibid. 10 Lamar to E.D. Clark, October 14.1873, LamarCoIlection.J.D. Williams Library, UM. 11 Lamar to E.D. Clark, October 16,1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. Lamar to Charles Reemelin, July 15,1872 quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 171. i:i Lamar to Clark, October 16,1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM.
47 Lamar blamed the violence in Southern Republican controlled states on their
Republican governments. Lamar suggested,"Such are the Governments that have
converted free, virtuous and enlightened communities into a pandemonium."!'^
Similarly, Lamar feared with the current government Mississippi would suffer the
same fate: "What is there to save us?"!^ He stated,"The men in whose veins flows
the blood of the ruling races of the world, should rise and with one unanimous voice
protest against the domination about to be fixed upon them, the present is that
time."!^ Lamar's words, although seemingly confined to his and Clark's
correspondence, rang throughout Mississippi during the Vicksburg riots of 1864.
Although no direct connection can be made between Lamar’s ideas of protest and
the actual violent events that occurred, he supported the same spirit of protest and
violence in Mississippi that he feared in other states.
The Vicksburg violence represented an important moment in Democratic
redemption. The racial violence originated with the 1873 election of freedman Peter
Crosby as sheriff. Soon after his election, taxpayers' unions and a white league
formed to identify mismanagement and fraud in local government and to unseat
black officials. These groups used threats of violence to manipulate the elections of
November 1874 and to expel Crosby as a "corrupt" black official. The mob appointed
a new sheriff, but a number of Republicans remained in office to resist the emerging
mob rule. Attacks occurred throughout all parts of Vicksburg, and vigilantes killed many blacks.
Ibid. ’5 Ibid. Ibid.
48 If Lamar had no direct association with the riots before, he certainly made a
point to become involved afterward. Lamar blamed Governor Ames for the riots in
Vicksburg, not the white men who initiated them.^^ So confident that the white
citizens of Vicksburg were not at fault, Lamar encouraged Congress to adopt a
resolution investigating the riots. “They do not shrink from the investigation; they court it and are only anxious that all the facts connected with that transaction as well as the causes which produced it shall be fully exposed to the country."^® Yet, by tapping into his political network of influence, Lamar must have worried about the outcome the committee's investigation. He instructed his close friend, Speaker of the
House James Blaine, to appoint James Speer and William O'Brien to serve as the
Democratic minority on the committee because they were sympathetic to the
South.i^
With his legal and legislative experience, Lamar coached his former law partner, Edward Clark, on how to best structure his argument to successfully defend the violent actions of Vicksburg's white citizens to an investigative federal committee. Lamar instructed Clark to prove “the negroes were resorting to
Vicksburg with hostile intent.''20 With his knowledge of the law and practiced manipulation of words, Lamar helped Clark make a case for the legality of white supremacy and racial violence in Vicksburg, and essentially throughout Mississippi by increasing boldness in violent white citizens. Lamar advised for "the citizens of
Lamar to Clark, December 21,1874, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. 18 Congressional Record, 43''‘* Cong., 2"'' Sess., December 14,1874, 77. Lamar to Clark, December 21,1874, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. Ibid.
49 V^icksburg to employ the best legal counsel in this investigation.''^^ If local white
citizens were absolved of their crimes and the “impression" was "solidity, earnest
purpose, integrity, and deep concern for the public welfare, then Lamar might
win favor locally and nationally. It would prove his loyalty to the local white citizens
in their political, racially motivated endeavors, and simultaneously advance his
national position that the violence in the South was not politically or racially
motivated. Lamar's aid in this matter only justified the white violence in Vicksburg
and provided a direct link betw'een white supremacy and Democratic restoration, if
one had not already been made.
Lamar understood and endorsed the popular Southern sentiment of
opposition to federally enforced military occupation. As historian Bradley Bond in suggested,"Politically astute whites knew that preventing federal intervention
Mississippi dictated the use of legitimate means once the opposition had been suppressed."23 Bond suggests that the ruling of the investigative committee was so important because Democrats knew the means by which they reached an end would be compromised by federal intervention. The cessation of federal occupation in
Mississippi and the South was perhaps the most important, and certainly the most immediate, goal in Lamar's agenda of Democratic restoration. He considered the federal power and occupation as threats to the "protection of persons, property, and liberty in every state,"^^ and as a limitless invasion of home rule. He assured Clark that the people of Vicksburg would be vindicated in their violence, because federally
Ibid. "2 Lamar to E.D. Clark, February 1,1875, Lamar Collection,).D. Williams Library, UM, 2’ Bond, Political Culture. 176-177. 24 Mayes, Lamar, 180.
50 (jo more to wake up the Nortli than parks of artillery enforced submission will came and the South no longer suffered Federal can.’’-5 Once that vindication nieans could be employed to restore the Mississippi oppression, the necessary
Democrats to power.
The intersection of federal intervention and violence at Vicksburg spurred ’leagues and the white liners movement.^^ In the joint identity of the taxpayers
January 1875. a statewide taxpayers' convention met at Jackson. The convention
address focused on tax reduction, farmers' economic distress, land, low cotton
prices, and withdrawal of the federal government from Mississippi's affairs. Lamar
openly denied and denounced the color line, and argued that he knew of no
Democrats or Conservatives that endorsed the color line. But a number of sources
contradict his public denunciations. The Oxford Falcon claimed that it has not seen
any democrats or conservatives who oppose the color line as Lamar claims."27 in
private correspondence with Clark, Lamar described, quite literally, a line that
represented the possible horror of black voting rescinding white political control:
"Draw a line one side of which you see property, intelligence, virtue, religion, self-
respect, enlightened public opinion and exclusion from all political control; and on
the other the absolute unchecked political supremacy of brute members, and there
you will behold not one attribute of free government, but the saddest and blackest tyranny that ever cursed this earth."^® Even the former Mississippi Governor
Benjamin Humphreys informed Lamar, There is in Miss what is known as the 'color
Lamar to E.D. Clark, December 23,1874, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. Bond, Political Culture. 176. Oxford Falcon, December 19, 1874. Ibid.
51 Although Lamar was completely aware of the color line in Mississippi, his
national political status and position required attention to racially motivated voting
intimidation or violence.
Lamar could no longer ignore the blatant color line. He knew that federal
intervention was a possibility, and the decision of congressional committee
investigating the Vicksburg riots could pack a devastating blow. On January 9,1875,
he replied in the New York Herald to an inquiry on the social and political results of
Federal withdrawal. Lamar claimed the Federal government had alienated blacks
from whites, and this created the mutual tensions and disturbances. To Lamar this
seemed the only viable option: "Withdraw the disturbing force, leave our population
to the responsibility of local self-government and to the natural operations of social
and industrial forces and all that is now deranged and disorderly will certainly and
permanently arrange itself."^® Lamar decried protecting blacks with federal power
that would in turn empower them. In fact he argued that the federal intervention
not only invented the color line but also perpetuated it.^^ His political rationale
helped him formulate and recognize a political opportunity to prevent the federal
intervention, which he believed would allow and perpetuate black rule and social
disorder.
29 Benjamin G. Humphreys to Lamar, Vicksburg, Mississippi, January 1875. Lamar-Mayes Papers, MDAH. New York Herald, Jan 9, 1875, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 216. L.Q.C. Lamar, June 8,1874."Speech on Misrule in the Southern States," quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 659-669.
52 Upon the federal removal, he stated, "Brains, intelligence, and moral strength
will ultimately rule."^- Since Lamar believed black citizens possessed "no moral or
salutary restraint."33 He argued, among the white people there existed "no color line
organization in the sense usually attached to that term.”^'^ However, no matter what sense attached to the term newspapers across the state were reporting the
momentum of the color line.^s Lamar's hometown paper, though opposed to mob violence, suggested to the majority black counties and districts the success of the
"little experiment in Vicksburg."36
Democrats were divided about the actual implementation of the color line in elections. In fact, man}^ believed that a conciliatory policy could have the same effect as the color line but produce it with less difficulty and expense.^^ Lamar understood the power of the color line - black enfranchisement threatens white power. He agreed that Democrats "could, by forming the 'color line' and bringing to bear those agencies which intellect, pluck and will always give, overcome the stolid, inert, and illiterate majority; but such a victory will bring about conflicts and race passions and collisions with Federal power.''38 So, his intent was clearly to extend the representation of peace and harmony between the races, while ensuring that whites were restored to power.
New York Herald, Jan 9,1875, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 216. Ibid. Ibid. William Charles Sallis,"The Color Line in Mississippi Politics, 1865-1915,"(PhD diss.. University of Kentucky, 1967), 186. Oxford Falcon, December 19,1874. M Natchez Daily Democrat, April 24,1875. Letter to Charles Reemelin, August 23,1875, quoted in Mayes, Lamar. 258-259.
53 Democratic leaders hosted a convention for all On August 3, 1875, the
conserv'atives and antirairadicals to address the problems of Republican rule. Lamar realized the excessive and open denouncements of 3nd the reorganized Democrats
Republican rule when couplod with plainly racist rhetoric could not overthrow the address stressed the two main points of the radicals."39 Lamar's convention
Democrat,c-Conser-vatives: denouncing the Republicans for their southern policy,
while promising the goodwill and nationalism of Mississippi whites. One historian the "bugle call" for the redemption of 1875.4° characterized this speech as
Democratic leaders formed a new strategy focused on taxes, and they laid the
foundation for reform and redemption.^! They did not openly insist on White Line
policies "like black disenfranchisement, black exclusion from the Democratic Party,
”42 and resistance to the post-Civil War constitutional amendments about civil rights.
In fact, they attacked the Republicans for creating the color line, and warned that
Steps had to be taken to reduce racial tensions.43 Eveiy clause in the convention
address did, however, attempted to preserve the antebellum social ethic by
defending against attacks on the perceived ethic. With Lamar’s help in authoring the convention address and with careful language and word choice, the convention implied that cutting the excessive and careless policies of Reconstruction meant retracting the liberty provided to blacks. General Ames later recalled the true intention of the convention,"The true sentiment of the assembly was 'color line'
Bond, Political Culture, 174. 40 Rowland, History of Mississippi, II, 195; Jackson Weekly Clarion, August 4 11 1875 Ibid. ' ' 42 Lemann, Redemption, 105. < Saliis, "Color Line," 181; Lamar to E.D. Clark, October 14,1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM.
54 though the platform says nothing about it. The understanding evidently is that each locality can act as it chooses, but the state convention shall put forth a platform for
Northern consumption.""^ Although Lamar and his colleagues denied the existence and use of the "color line" tactics in Mississippi, it eventually became the leading
Democratic policy.
The viability of blacks in elected offices was the foundation of the political struggle between common citizens during the late 1874 and 1875 campaigns. White public sentiment recognized the political necessity of the inclusion of blacks in voting, but hated blacks holding office. This prevailing recourse provided Lamar with a chance to popularize the Democratic ideal, without directly provoking actual violent incidents. As with the Vicksburg riots, Lamar understood the importance of making every violent incident seem local, personal and even spontaneous rather than like part of a planned campaign. Thus, while Lamar had aligned the Democratic ideal to reconciliation, the color line transformed the ideal into a plan to restore
Democratic political power and reinforce white superiority, supporting only white men for office.
But how were Democrats going to regain power with a Republican government in place and a voting majority of blacks and carpetbaggers? Lamar stressed the significance of these black majority districts and the role of black enfranchisement. He knew that the blacks, which held the majority of every district but one, hindered the Democratic restoration to power; they were essentially maintaining Republican rule. Lamar also acknowledged the role white Republicans
Adelbert Ames to Blanche Butler Ames, August 4,1875, in Ames, Chronicles. 2:124.
55 in Democratic restoration. He once again sold racial superiority; he said whites are
"the only class in which reside the elements of dignity and virtue and the welfare of
society."*’^’ If Lamar never spoke an}^hing clearer, he expressed his support of white
restoration to power and deprecations of black rule. This inspired many white
Republicans and Democrats, who otherwise might have been apathetic, to take
action against the black vote.
The convergence of the white line and taxpayers’ policies in the reorganized
Democratic-Conservative party represented the willingness of white Mississippians
to carry the election by any means necessary. The scheme boiled down keeping
blacks away from the polls, stuffing ballot boxes, destroying or altering Republican
ballots and the willingness to use any other means necessary to take and retain
power. They also planned to use economic pressure and intimidation at the polls to
reduce black voting. All of these strategies were utilized because most whites
believed that the election should be carried at all costs. Governor Ames was very suspicious of the Democrats and stated,"the language they use is not of itself
violent, but the conclusions they reach are that this election must be carried, even if
violence be resorted to."'^^ And whites did resort to violence to stop thousands of
blacks from voting and forced many others to vote for Democrats.
The Democrats effectively executed their plan and won majorities in both
houses of the legislature and elected most county officials. Although he evaded the actual aggravation of violence, Lamar stated "it cannot be denied that there does
Lamar to Clark, October 16,1873, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. Adelbert Ames to Blanche Ames, quoted in Murphy, Lamar 154.
56 exist in some of the Southern States in connection with their political afifeirs, a
tendency to turbulence and outbreaks of bloody character."'^^ He was aware of the
volatile situation facing all communities and knew white men were ready to defend
themselves - often against mere rumors of threats of black violence.^® Lamar’s
awareness of the white Democrats' intimidation, harassment and violence shown at
the polls proved that voter fraud was essential to the agenda. And despite what was
claimed in the investigations, Congress, and newspapers, Lamar was the accepted
leader of the Democratic Party and as a group they were responsible for the mass
violence. Nicholas Lemann argues,"The Democratic party, functionally, though not
officially, had become as much a military as a political organization: one wing was
evidently an armed force; the other, headed by Lucius Lamar, was a conventional
political organization, though increasingly prone to extreme rhetoric; but the link
'49 between the two was not quite provable.
The intra-political culture of Democrats had transformed from factions of unreconstructed centrists to the dominating use of violence and intimidation prompted by the color line.^° The Democratic policies and national Republican acquiescence secured the state's political power to the hands of white men, most of them elite. Despite Lamar's argument that disenfranchising black voters was not a
"political possibility,"51 the Redemption achieved de facto disfranchisement.
Lamar to E.D. Clark, February 1,1875, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. Benjamin G. Humphreys to Lamar, Vicksburg. Mississippi, January 3,1875. Lamar-Mayes Papers, MDAH. Lemann, Redemption, 119-120. Bond, Political Culture. 180. L.Q.C. Lamar, et ai,"Ought the Negro to be Disfranchised." A symposium. North American Review 128,(March 1879): 225-83.
57 Lamar did publicly reject the color line, and he did not endorse mass
organized violence, but the interpretations offer varying reasons. Earlier
researchers cite his morals and values and humanity of protecting black rights.
Murphy contends that it was a concession of the inevitable and an attempt to make
the best of the situation. By acknowledging that the violent racial controversies and
historical debates of Reconstruction era cannot be resolved, scholars, in effect,
secured Lamar’s honor and valor in public memory.52 Some even argue that his
“rhetorical defense of black rights helped create the conditions for a national
compromise."53 previous interpretations cannot be argued as incorrect, but
they can be argued as incomplete. Lamar's was a calculated effort, to balance local
views against national anxieties.
Lamar's divergent messages were not always heeded as sincere or true.
Ames attacked Lamar and the Democrats for their conflicting actions. Ames claimed,
"They support or oppose men, advocate or denounce policies, flatter or murder,just
as such action will help them as far as possible to recover their old power over the
"54 negro. Local Democratic papers noticed Lamar's inconsistencies and accused that
he "endorsed every action of the Republican Party."55 Lamar faced opposition from both sides, risking disloyalty and dishonor by submission to Federal policies like black suffrage and attacked "as a two-faced fraud whose dignified self-presentation outside of Mississippi was nothing but a convenient pose."^^ Lamar's awareness of
52 Meador,"Posterity," 122. 53 Hoffheimer, Lamar, 24. New York Times, May 2, 1876. 55 Oxford Falcon, December 19, 1874. Lemann, Redemption, 165.
58 these criticisms no doubt caused him great anguish.^^ But his awareness and
response to them provides the proof that he did understand the contrasting nature
of his messages and the reputation he proposed for himself.
Lamar’s displayed ideals often contrasted based on his present location:
Washington or Oxford. James Murphy treats this contrast as a result of two
important goals."The duality employed by Lamar inevitably resulted from this
contradiction between idealistic rhetorical adherence to constitutional amendments
and the practical necessity of defeating the Republican Party."^® Hoffheimer argues
that a medical condition, conversion disorder, caused him anxiety and an antipathy to conflict, which was a "deep ground for his conscious political concern with
reconciliation and conflict avoidance."^^ He even argues that this disorder provided
a mechanism for Lamar to subconsciously ignore the plight and struggle of black
Mississippians.^o But with the evidence given, the interpretation must stand that
Lamar, politically astute and ever conscious of his agenda, employed the duality as a
means to achieve white, local rule. Realistically, Lamar was in the typical politician's
position of "fighting for what he believed to be just with the belief reinforced by its fitting so well and completely with his personal interest. Previous memory of
Lamar preserves the idealist and good-natured intentions that he had for
Mississippi, and sometimes rightly so. But this cannot absolve him from direct
Lamar to Clark, December 23,1874; Lamar to Clark, December 24,1874, Lamar Collection, ].D. Williams Library, UM. SH Murphy, Lamar, 155. 59 Hoffheimer,"Lamar," 32. Ibid. Lemann, Redemption, 108.
59 activity in securing Democratic power using white supremacy, no matter what the means or cause served.
David Blight succinctly relates the significance of the effect of Lamar's methods and usage of code words or conciliatory language."These code words had become so common in American writing that in national memory, the Civil War was now the glorious fated event in which slavery and racial division were 'removed, banished from the national story."*^^ Lamar often referred to the unwise policies of reconstruction and suggested resolution through reconciliation and rhetoric,
Reconstruction "became the heroic crisis survived, a source of pride that Americans solve their problems and redeem themselves in unity."63
Blight, Race and Reunion, 383. Ibid.
60 Chapter 4
Foundations for a New South
Driven by economic discontent, the appeal of white home rule, and the use of violence, Southern Redeemers enacted a counterrevolution that, by 1876, had restored white Democratic power to every Southern state but three [South Carolina,
Louisiana, and Florida). During the years of Southern redemption and the steady
Northern retreat from reconstruction. Republicans paid dearly for their recent
history of support for black liberty and equality. Anxious whites who feared racial equality, economic depression and political turmoil effectively diminished the efforts of Reconstruction.
Lamar helped successfully overthrow Republican rule, and upon election to the Senate in 1876, he focused his attention back to being a spokesman and diplomat for the South. Throughout this period in his life, Lamar submerged the race question and made it less complicated to work toward cooperation between the
North and the South on economic growth through industrial development.^ This reputation provided him a spot in the national Democratic leadership and leveraged
his power to broker deals with Republicans and northern Democrats. He continued
his defense of the South, and echoed his earlier calls for national reconciliation. The
’ Bennie L. Reeves,"Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar: Reluctant Secessionist and Spokesman for the South, 1860-1885"[PhD diss.. University of North Carolina, 1973) 89.
61 Presidential Election of 1876 presented Southern politicians with an opportunity to
apply reconciliation to action, but sectional interests proved the fluidity and
transparency of Lamar's reunion efforts. Lamar's working relationship with Blanche
K. Bruce, the African American Senator from Mississippi, tested his inherent views
of superiority and provided insight into Lamar's mental and political framework.
Also, Lamar maintained the tone of reconciliation by promoting a "divided
sovereignty,"^ or a healthy balance between state and federal power. Along with
black disfranchisement and economic difficulties, the silver issue shifted the focus of
politics in Mississippi from race to class. The condition of the South still disrupted
the Democrats' attempt at power in national politics. From these problems, a New
South Creed developed and Lamar's reactions to these issues helped reinforce and
complicate many of the ideas that proponents of the creed utilized and hence, later,
his historical interpretations.
In December 1875, the Democratic Congressional Caucus selected Lamar as
its chairman. The recent Congressional elections secured a Democratic House
majority and hopes of electing a Democrat to the presidency. Although he was chosen unanimously, Lamar had entertained the rumor that Kerr offered the chairmanship in order to remove Lamar from the floor and make it easier for Kerr to get elected as House Speaker.^ His election was a testament to Lamar's reputation and power inside the Democratic Party - if true: it meant that Lamar was powerful enough to influence the Speaker election. These party stalwarts also recognized the
William H. Hatcher,"Some Mississippi Views on American Federalism, 1817-1900," Southern Quarterly 6, no. 1 (October 1967} 165. ^ Lamar to E.D. Clark, December 28,1875, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Libraiy, UM.
62 symbolism of placing Lamar in such a position. His speech at the convention
prompted the public response that the "era of a genuine reconciliation between the
North and the South is at hand.""^ This alliance could have very well served as a
foundation for Lamar's cooperation with Northern Democrats on a number of future
issues. His position as caucus chairman afforded an increasing political status and
contributed to his symbolism as a cooperative nationalist rather than a sectionalisL
Lamar soon benefited from the "fruits of the great political revolution"^ that
took place in the South. In 1876, the Mississippi legislature elected Lamar to the
United States Senate, but it was not an easy campaign. Although state opposition
formed quickly, Lamar's allies warned that his defeat would be "regarded in that
section [the North) as the repudiation by us of those sentiments of fraternity and
conciliation of which he has been the most conspicuous advocate."® Many influential
southerners felt this way, and Northern newspapers and politicians sustained
Lamar as a symbol of reconciliation. The rhetoric vaulted Lamar’s reputation and it
"showered honor on him."^
But that reconciliation was soon threatened. After electing Lamar, the new
Democratic Mississippi legislature made the impeachment of Governor Ames’their
second goal. After a legislative committee presented a thirteen-count bill of
impeachment against Ames, his father-in-law Ben Butler, who was Lamar's former
colleague, contacted Lamar to intervene. After talking with Lamar, Butler was under
San Francisco Chronicle, December 5,1875 quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 278. ^ Democratic Caucus Convention Speech, Mayes, Lamar, 265. Article written in Clarion Ledger by Judge Harris, Mayes, Lamar, 270. ^ Vicksburg Herald, quoted in Maye.s, Lamar, 273.
63 the impression that he was disappointed in the legislature and would do everything
he could do prevent Ames’s impeachment.® But in a private letter to E.C. Walthall,
Lamar had the impression that Butler would encourage Ames to resign and try to
block the Senate investigation into the election troubles in Mississippi.^ When
Lamar failed to immediately stop the impeachment proceedings, Butler lost faith
and sent a Washington lawyer. Ames's wife did not quite revere Lamar as a
purveyor of peace and harmony, but as a "double dealer upon whom no dependence
can be placed, as it is well known that in all matters political he does not hesitate to
be false."io Of course her tone was passionate and hostile, but almost rightly so
because Lamar believed that Ames could not be charged with anything resulting in
impeachment. This worried Lamar because Ames's removal without irrefutable
proof would certainly arouse the Republicans and be damaging to the South s
redeemed Democracy. Also, Ames was responsible for certifying Lamar s election to
the Senate, so Lamar had vested personal interest. Lamar compromised himself and
did not ‘call off the dogs [of impeachment]- which he can easily do."^^ Although
Lamar's public memory traces an adherence to constitutional legalism in all
matters,i2 he was willing to let an innocent man be impeached. Fortunately, his
reputation was preserved when became "perfectly confident that we can get all we
Benjamin Butler to Ames, February 25, 1876 in Chroniclesfrom the Nineteenth Century: Family Letters ofBlanche Butler and Adelbert Ames, Blanche Butler Ames, ed., 2 vols.[Clinton, Mass: Colonial Press. 1957): 304-305. ^Lamar to E.C. Walthall, February 23,1876 quoted in McNeily. J.S. "Climax and Collapse of Reconstruction in Mississippi." Publications ofthe Mississippi Historical Society 12: 297-409. ni ^“*^*^'* to Sarah Butler, March 14,1876, Ames, Chronicles, 344. ,2 Butler Ames to mother. March 14,1876, Ames, Chronicles, 344. (1 Ssh 11 Posterity - A Centennial Memoir." Mississippi Law Journal 63, no. 1
64 witliout an impeachment."^-'^ Lamar showed impeccable political rationale and
quietly assuring his seat in the Senate and ridding the state of its Radical
^^publican governor, but without threatening his reputation for conciliation or
niaking the state vulnerable to federal counteraction.
During the political chaos in Mississippi, Lamar was simultaneously
protecting and perpetuating his nationalistic reputation. Lamar spoke in favor of the
hotly debated Centennial Bill, which most southerners opposed. It allocated over
one million dollars for a Centennial celebration. Lamar argued that it was “an image
of the feelings of our people which demand that the alienation hitherto existing
between the two sections of the Union shall no longer disturb the peace and
^sppiness of the American Republic, nor obstruct their prosperity and greatness
^nd glory.”i4 xhis was important because it showed Lamar truly, in some ways,
supported national reconciliation. He openly supported a national celebration
without the opportunity of sectional payoff.
Lamar's August 2, 1876 speech on the Republican Party and the condition of
the South provides complex and extensive evidence explaining Lamar's and the
Democrats transforming rhetoric. The people, regardless of section or party, viewed
public affairs with "decided dissatisfaction and despondency. The state of the
South is the “unfortunate but natural result of a sudden and unparalleled social and
political revolution,'' and, Lamar explained, these problems were aggravated by the
Republican-made color line "which is now represented as the work of Southern
’^ Lamar to E.C. Walthail, February 23, 1876, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 263. Congressional Record. Mayes, Lamar, 286. Ibid.
65 malignity. 16 He argued that the Federal administration, not the South, created the
color line and the poor political conditions in the South. Lamar suggested the only
course of action was "to leave the Southern states to settle the problems for
themselves. By doing so, Southerners would restore the ideals of the old order,
while creating a racial harmony that produced prosperity and opportunity for all
men. This was a key development in the New South Creed.
Yet as racial tensions rose and violence heightened, the "wisdom of both
federal retreat from Reconstruction and the transfer of northern industrial capital to
the South might well be called into question.''18 Lamar once again took ambiguous
roles in the Presidential election controversy. Lamar strongly advised Tilden to
agree on an honorable resolution, and when Tilden refused Lamar backed the
formation of the election commission to ensure the votes were legally counted.^^ But
at the same time, Lamar noted the impossibility of Tilden's inauguration. Lamar
worked vigorously toward peace, reunion, and reconciliation in the electoral commission bill. Some historians argue that the Southern Democrats offered Hayes a deal he could not refuse. The newspapers gave accounts of Democratic failures, including Lamar’s alleged instance of arranging election results.^® But Michael Les
Benedict claims that it was the inactivity of the Northern Democrats that broke the
Ibid. Ibid., 288. )ames C. Cobb, Away Down South: A History ofSouthern Identity [Oxford: University Press, 2005): 87. Murphy, Lamar, 177. New York Herald, December 27,1876 quoted in Dee Brown, The Year of the Century: 1876(New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1966): 145.
66 deal for Tllden’s presidency.-^ So, Lamar, it seemed, was powerless - losing the
presidency to a Republican and gaining no influence with that Republican president
In an attempt to assert their authority, the Southern Democrats opposed the electoral commission. Lamar voted against the findings of the commission he had
helped create, displaying a sectional alliance. Lamar was an active participant in the
Southern Democratic rebellion that took place in the House in an outright attempt to
pressure Hayes into acquiescing to their demands.^^
Later, Lamar faced one of the most complicated roles of his career, and possibly the most complicated for researchers to interpret. There was a stir about seating Lamar to the Senate, mostly because of the Hayes-Tilden committee investigation. Several senators wanted to challenge his credentials, and Senator
Morton called for not seating him. But in an act that some argue was planned,some say manipulated, his Senior Senator from Mississippi, Blanche K. Bruce voted to seat
Lamar. Together they mutually benefited from a working relationship that provided important federal jobs to blacks with the assurance from Bruce that blacks would vote Democrat in local elections. Lamar's cooperation with black politicians seemed in the same measure to the advantages they could provide him. Only then did he accept blacks in elected positions.
The complications persist when considering Hayes's methods of providing political patronage; he looked to neither Lamar nor Bruce, but local white
21 Benedict, Michael Les. "Southern Democrats in the Crisis of 1876-1877: A Reconsideration of Reunion and Reaction."Journal ofSouthern History A6 [1980). 2^ Ibid.
67 Republicans when considering political patronage. Lamar confided in Bruce “true
patriotism and statesmanship would aim to prevent conflict and seek to bring about
harmonious cooperation and development of these social forces."^^ Later he was
well aware of the president's policy and increasingly worked with Bruce to ensure
that Lamar’s political appointments could be fulfilled.^^ This provides important
insight into Lamar's devotion to his personal political agenda.
The Texas Pacific Railroad bill was Lamar's next line of focus. Approval of
this proposal would provide more time and bonds for the completion of this
transcontinental railroad. Even though he served on the Railroad Committees in the
House and Senate, Lamar only occasionally encouraged the industrial expansion of
the South. However, he used his talent of defending and glorifying the south by
declaring,"The South has every condition of soil, climate, and raw material for the
development of a great industrial community."25 He employed his nationalistic
rhetoric and applied it to the building of the road. The irony in Lamar's arguments
was that he emphasized nationalistic endeavors to promote and serve sectional
interests. The irony faded as the feasibility of this argument applied itself in the New
South rhetoric.
Lamar's continued rise in national stature did not, initially, detract from his
political involvement at the state level. However, the personal conflicts and struggles at the State Democratic convention were signs of Lamar's power decreasing in Mississippi. Lamar supported close friend and former law partner, E.C.
Lamar to Clark, April 4,1879, Lamar Collection, ).D. Williams Library, UM. Ibid. 2S Congressional Record, 4 5^'' Cong., Se,ss„ 3653-59.
68 Walthall for the nomination to governor. But Stone became the nominee mostly in
part to anti-Lamar sentiments. Newspaper accounts chronicle the intra-party
struggle. Lamar’s own misgivings about continuing in politics could have certainly
played a part. This strain of power is important in considering and offering the
cause of Lamar's eventual decline of power among Democrats in Mississippi. These
early signs of struggle suggest that future economic and agrarian issues might have
been only agitators to an on-going situation rather than primary reasons. Thomas
Bocshert claims, Lamar "was primarily a person in which his following and loyalty
could not be effectively transferred to another individual."^^
Lamar and the New South Democrats wanted "the regional equivalent of
white supremacist'home rule’ in both social and political relations, the former
through institutionalized racial separation and the latter through institutionalized
denial of the vote to blacks."-^ One of the geniuses of Lamar and other New South
architects was their "ability to present it as different things to different people, and
they attracted a variety of followers with disparate and sometimes conflicting
interpretations of their goals.’’^^
Thomas Neville Boschert,"A Family Affair: Mississippi Politics, 1882-1932,"(PhD diss., University of Mississippi, 1995) 45. Cobb, Away Down South, 89. ibid., 71.
69 Chapter 5
Reimagining Southern Identity
L.Q.C. Lamar has traditional^ been viewed as a distinctive, loyal southern statesman that often acted as an "other" in comparison to southern politicians of his time. Historians have interpreted Lamar as a Bourbon leader, absolving his
Redeemer elitism. His critics blasted Lamar's seeming alliance with Northern industrialists on issues of money and railroads. Yet, he has been lauded as the champion of agrarian interests and preserver of Jeffersonian idealism. His indirect, reactionary role in violence and white supremacy allows for conflicting interpretations. This idea of distinctive otherness is often applied to the South as a region and is arguably the reason that Lamar so quickly and forcefully became its leading spokesman Csoutherners clung to the idea of his preservation of the past, while reconciling with the North only to regain stature). A new look at Lamar provides a context in which he did advocate and fight for issues in which he believed, and demonstrates that those ideals were often parallel with the idea of the
New South Creed. Lamar's goal was "sectional reconciliation, racial peace and a new economic and social order based on industry and scientific, diversified agriculture.''^
While his commitment to industrialization can be questioned, he was certainly often
’ Paul M. Gaston, The New South Creed: A Study in Southern Mythmaking,[New York: Knopf, 1970) 7.
70 aligned with northern interests on money issues, which often affected industry.
There is no doubt that Lamar employed new techniques and science in his later
attempts at agricultural profit. It was Lamar's great struggle to incorporate and
preserve the romantic, idealized legend of the Old South in his rhetoric, thus gaining
the confidence and loyalty of his constituents while presenting the New South to the
North in order to garner support and power.
While Lamar’s racial politics seem to be the most complicated personal issue
in researching Lamar, his early role in the economic, agrarian, and populist struggles
troubled many historians' interpretations. This is especially true when placing
Lamar inside the framework of post-revisionist historiography and the complexities,
contradictions, and inconsistencies that are involved in understanding the political culture in which Lamar participated. The questions of race transformed slightly from post-war, through reconstruction and then to the Jim Crow Era. But most white southerners accepted and agreed upon the idea of their racial superiority. White southerners disagreed mostly on economic issues.
Although he represented an agrarian state, Lamar’s economic policies paralleled the Eastern and hard-money faction of the Democratic Party, and he opposed the radical agricultural reform proposed by the Northwest silver politicos.
Lamar maintained the confidence of Mississippi's farmers by offering the agrarian myth,"as he opposed high protective tariffs for northern manufacturing interests."
Just as the political New Departure failed to accommodate itself fully to the democratic revolution at the heart of Reconstruction, proponents of an economic
71 New South clung to hopes for labor control and racial subordination that belied
their rhetorical commitment to far-reaching social change.^
The best example of this, in Lamar's case, is the Bland-Allison Silver Bill.
Lamar gave his speech on the issue of silver on january 24,1878, declaring
opposition to both silver and gold requirements for paying bonds. He argued that it
would hurt every class of the south including the laborers, debtors, and farmers. Not
only would wages lag behind those of the North, but the farmers' expenses would
also increase. This issue fiercely pitted the capitalist class versus the laboring class,
especially in Mississippi.
Debate continues about the stance Lamar took and with which section it aligned him. Woodward states that Lamar's actions were indicative of the Bourbon
Democrats who built alliances on economic issues in order to advance capitalism and industrialism.^ This was an important concept that presented itself later in the fusion of the New South Creed. But Carl Harris argues that these Redeemers formed political alliances with western Democrats and western Republicans on issues of money, tariffs, and appropriations.^ Lamar seemed to vote on a national platform concerning economic issues but was devotedly sectional on social issues and states’ rights issues.
Foner, Reconstruction, 420. C. Vann Woodward, Reunion and Reaction: The Compromise of1877 and the End of Reconstruction, (Boston: Little, Brown, 1951), 148. Carl V Harris, "Right Fork or Left Fork? The Section-Party Alignments of Southern Democrats in Congress, \ Q73-1897Journal ofSouthern History 42, no. 4(November 1976), 493-498.
72 He claimed he would have rather "quit politics forever"^ than to vote against
his conscience. This admission certainly calls to question his previous and future
votes; given Lamar’s scrupulous personality, he considered every consequence and
reaction to every vote. Additionally every bill or policy he supported could not have
countered his deep sense of morality and sense of conscience. Ho\vever, certain
situations provide different reasoning to Lamar's support of the Silver Bill. Moore
argues that Lamar and fellow Redeemers maintained their electoral power.^ Thus,
standing alone on his local power Lamar could use his votes to build alliances and
gain more power in D.C. His previously held corporate interests support this claim.
And his public alliances provided him with a vehicle to advance his agenda.
Of course Lamar received intense criticism from newspapers, constituents,
and the state government. The Aberdeen Examiner condemned his action, but
revered his principle and integrity in making the decision. The Oxford Falcon
respected his decision while disagreeing entirely with the principle of the policy.
And S.A. Jonas discussed in depth his disagreements with the policy, but lauded
Lamar's character and statesmanship.^ The Memphis Ladies Memorial Club lectured
Lamar on his liberality, not only with this specific decision, but also with other decisions concerning economic and industrial matters.^
Lamar to Clark, july 15, 1881, Lamar Collection,|.D. Williams Library, UM. ^ lames Tice Moore,"Origins of the Solid South: Redeemer Democrats and the Popular Will, 1870- 1900:'Journal of Southern Studies 32 [1983}: 285-290. ’Aberdeen Examiner, Oxford Falcon, letter by SA ]onas, n.d., S.A. Jonas Papers, MDAH. Memphis Appeal, June 9, 1881.
73 Lamar understood the criticisms of his constituents, but he stated, “I would
rather deserve [estrangement] than to have their approval."^ He was also aware of
the positive consequences of his actions. Close mentor, F.A.P. Barnard, encouraged
Lamar that even in going against your constituents' wishes,"You will have
immortalized yourself as surely as if you had won a hundred battles."^® To Lamar,
Barnard's statement probably seemed exaggerated, but revisiting that statement
provides sharp clarity in understanding Lamar's public memory and legacy. Despite
the continuous opposition, Lamar positioned himself, knowingly or not, to be
remembered for these actions later deemed to be heroic.
The local public sentiment regarding the silver issue requires a broader
inspection into the then current political atmosphere of Mississippi. Lamar had been
instructed by the Mississippi legislature to support the Bland-AIlison Act. Since U.S.
Senators from Mississippi were directly elected by the state legislature, instruction
was a key political issue for many Senators. Several political leaders viewed Lamar's
vote as a direct violation of this respected, however unlawful, political mandate. The
majority white, Democratic legislators were so angry that they proposed a
resolution condemning Lamar's actions and praising Senator Blanche K. Bruce for
his compliance.il Lamar full well understood the consequences of his actions, and faced a heavy opposition.
The editor of the Clarion Ledger, Ethelbert Barksdale, was a leading member of the political opposition to Lamar. He had been highly influential and active in the
^ Lamar to )ames Gordon, February 8,1878, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 332. F.A.P. Barnard to Lamar, February 12,1878, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 333. Mayes, Lamar, 343.
74 Democratic takeover of 1875 and used his newspaper as a Democratic political
tooI.^“ Although Barksdale was a privileged businessman, he represented the
popular political dissension that many farmers and poor folks felt towards Lamar’s
economic policies. This is not the first example of class dissension, but it is a
prominent one in the insight it provides for Lamar's reinterpretation. These citizens
were becoming increasingly aware of their class distinctions, especially regarding
the differences between themselves and their representatives. This played a role in
the policies they supported. And as biracial cooperation had proved unsuccessful,
the class dissensions and anxieties often transformed into the usage of the color line
in disenfranchising blacks.^3
Lamar was successful in providing hope that a New South could improve its
business and industry without abandoning its Old South principles. But his
continued alliance with Northern capitalists and defiance of agrarian principles
formulated a complex relationship with Mississippians and paralleled the early
development of agrarian dissent. Lamar has often been categorized into the
"Bourbon Triumvirate" of Mississippi, including Walthall and George. As such, he
acknowledged his political debt to farmers and courted the free landholder, but his course in Congress aligned with the interests of capitalists and corporations. He invited eastern capital to the South, painting a glowing picture of the region's advantages in soil, climate, raw materials, and labor supply. Many of his citizens
12 Willie D. Halsell, "Democratic Dissensions in Mississippi, 1878-1882,"/ourna/ of Mississippi History 2, no. 3 (July 1940) 127. Bond, Political Culture, 176.
75 14 opposed the "northern industry because it threatened their farms and way of life.'
This context displays Lamar's diminishing ability to maintain sectional appeasement
by recognizing and manipulating popular will, while building national alliances
providing him with power and influence.
Lamar’s national alliances allowed for a further note of reconciliation. In
1878, as the yellow fever epidemic struck the nation, the South looked to the North
to provide proper damage control and further prevention. Lamar authored a
resolution to form a commission of congressmen to explore "the history and the
means of prevention and arrest of yellow fever."i^ This commission would later lead
to the formation of a national health bureau. Ironically, many southerners saw the
government's involvement with the disease as an extension of federal powers, while
northern whites hoped the justification southerners held for their rebellion was
illegitimate and outdated. By extending a Southern hand, Lamar provided an
appeasement to the northerners and a relief to southerners. Edward Blum argues,
"The massive and traumatic epidemic that riveted the attention of the entire nation
was a moment when northern and southern whites began to reconcile."^^ Certainly,
Lamar maximized his opportunity to take part in the reconciliatory nature of the
epidemic.
Oxford Falcon, June 9,1881. IS U.S. Senate,[untitled]. Appointment of Commission to Inquire into History and Prevention of Yellow Fever. December 2,1878. Lucius Quintus Cincinnatues Lamar.(S.misdoc.5) Text from: Congressional Record. Available from: LexisNexis® Congressional [Online Sendee). Bethesda, MD: Congressional Information Service. 16 Edward ). Blum,"The Crucible of Disease: Trauma, Memory,and National Reconciliation during the Yellow Fever Epidemic on878"Journal ofSouthern History 69, no.4 (November 2003)819.
76
A As Lamar’s health faded so did his activity in the Senate, decreasing much of
his power in local and national politics. This power was severely threatened by the
1880 senatorial election to replace Blanche Bruce. Lamar had been well aware of the
political opportunity that this election would provide for him and his friends. As
early as February 1878, he had advised Wright not to support political foe James
Chalmers"if he wanted to uphold his purposes of preserving the Democratic
organization in Mississippi. 17 Lamar had also been politically and privately advising
former law partner and close friend, Edward Walthall, for some time in hopes of
preparing him to take the Bruce's Senate seat.^® Lamar had already given political
patronage to Walthall in providing a judgeship.^^ And Lamar felt so strongly about
Walthall's election he told Clark that "if! knew Walthall’s election would mean my
defeat I would be willing to meet that result,"^® and that any man who supports
"21 Walthall holds "title to my friendship.
While Walthall certainly appreciated Lamar's guidance, this election came at a time when association with Lamar proposed more harm than good. Of course the opposition was well aware of the close friendship and used it against electing
Walthall. When Lamar decided to attend the nominating convention, his opponents blasted him for his intrusiveness. The convention splits into Barksdale and Lamar factions and j.Z. George was elected. George was certainly a direct representative of the agrarian class from a poor family. Lamar was not satisfied with George's
Lamar to Clark, February 20.1878, Lamar Collection, }.D. Williams Library, UM. Lamar to Walthall. Lamar to |ohn Stone. '0 Lamar to Clark, February 18,1879, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM. Lamar to Clark, June 18, 1879, Lamar Collection, J.D. Williams Library, UM.
77 election. Barksdale considered it a "signal punishment.''22 This election is important
in understanding the fading extent of Lamar's influence and provides insight into his
personal struggles in maintaining his optimism for Mississippi. He seemed ready to
give in and claimed, "1 have done about all in my power for the south and am ready
to close my stewardship."^^ His declining influence was paralleled by his declining
health and consistent absenteeism in the Senate. His discontent with political life
was clear. Regardless of motivation, Lamar continued his work in the Senate. He
even maintained much of his national influence, and demanded Mississippians'
respect through their dislike.
One way to examine Lamar's role in the New South creed is through the lens
of the distinctiveness of southern identity and regionalism and the continuity of the
Old South.^'^ But as Cobb argues, the Old South legend, despite its perceived
"otherness", may have appealed to the population because of its quintessential
Americanness, or "at least its capacity to convey a sense of what it would be like to achieve the ultimate and complete fulfillment of the American dream."2s Lamar situated himself delicately between those two ideas. Historians have used his example as other in arguing their points. They highlight his agrarian interests to redeem his Bourbon or industrial status, and to prove that not all Southern
Democrats advocated this idea of New South progress and development that threatened the old ideals. More often than not, however, his capitalistic. Northern
Lamar to Clark, January 28,1880, Lamar Collection, ).D. Williams Library, UM. Ibid. 24 Numan V. Bartley,"In Search of the New South: Southern Politics after Reconstruction," Reviews' American History 10, no. 4, The Promise of American History: Progress and Prospects (Dec. 1982) Cobb, Away Down South, 78.
78 appeasement helped provide a foundation for the fusion upon which Grady later
stood.
Even though his actions sometimes countered the creed of the New South,
Lamar often saw himself as a symbol of the NewSouth.^^ His power and influence
positioned Lamar as a leading spokesman of the South and his policies and actions
in the Senate forced politicians and newspapers to regard his say on an issue as a
final authority on southern questions.-" But the inaccuracies and inconsistencies are
too blatant to ignore.
In the months leading up to his Supreme Court nomination, Lamar's
disposition became decidedly melancholy. His wife's ill health and his own aging
condition gave him a sense of detachment from politics. Lamar was constantly, as he
wrote to his wife,"anxious to get home."^^ But he depended upon his salary, and he
complained,"How I deplore not having saved up my money."^^ Had he done so,
Lamar claimed he would have left politics. He also understood the transformation
and transition of power in Washington, D.C.. As younger and newer politicians were
elected, older and established politicians were being pushed out. Lamar concluded,
"A new generation of public men is coming here & I feel myself almost a superfluous
veteran on the stage.''^^ Lamar made a clear assessment of the political situation and
understood that his time in politics was limited. Lamar needed a position that
Reeves, Lamar, 138. [bid. ^8 Lamar to Virginia Lamar, April 30,1884, Lamar Family Papers, University of Mississippi Law School. Lamar to Augusta Lamar Heiskell, November 27,1883, Lamar Family Papers, UM Law School. :u) Lamar to Virginia Lamar, April 30,1884, Lamar Family Papers, Lamar Family Papers, UM Law School.
79 provided security for himself and his family. When rumors emerged that he might
be nominated to the Supreme Court, he could not help but entertain them.
Lamar had doubts about his ability to maintain a Judgeship. He questioned
his qualifications for the Supreme Court, "1 don't regard myself as qualified for it
However his favorable national position and reputation afforded him \vith
legitimate consideration from the president for the appointment After talking \vith
President Grover Cleveland, an Alabama Congressman told newspapers,"I feel quite
certain that if Secretary Lamar desired the position he could get it The President, I
know, has the very highest opinion of Lamar. He told me so himself. 1 heard him say
that Secretary Lamar had the clearest and most comprehensive intellect that he had
ever known."^- After a summer of similar reports, Lamar wrote to a friend "the
President’s mind has been pretty well made up to offer me the place."^^ Even though
Lamar had serious misgivings about accepting the "duty of any position to which
[one] is not consciously equal,” he understood "the position was too exalted for me
to resist the temptation to accept it."^'^ There is deep irony in this situation for
Lamar had never bent or compromised his principles to attract favor among his
electors, but easily sacrificed his misgivings for a position that required no canvass
or popularity.
Initially, Lamar's appointment gained satisfaction from the Senate and
Republican newspapers: they believed it fitting that a southern reconciliator would
Lamar to Augusta Lamar Heiskell, july 5,1887, Lamar Family Papers, UM Law School. r..' Mayes, Lamar. 518-519. :v! Lamar to E. C. Walthall, luly 30,1887, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 521. Lamar to Edward Mayes, December 13,1887, quoted in Mayes, Lamar, 541.
80 be honored. But before Cleveland formally submitted his nomination, a fight against
Lamar's confirmation took hold. The opposition listed several reasons for objection:
an incident concerning female patronage, the 1871 disbarment incident, his
advanced age, lack of judicial experience, or concerns rooted in secession, w^ar, and
the race problem.
Lamar’s appointment was part of a larger political trend. Lamar’s
appointment confirmed that justices between 1870 and 1893 were "selected by
presidents and confirmed by senators who carefully noted both their devotion to
party principles and 'soundness' on the major economic questions of the day,
especially their attitude toward regulation of interstate commerce by the individual states."35 So was this an effort at sectional reconciliation? The ensuing confirmation fight broke sharply along party lines.^^ Lamar was considered the most conspicuous
Southern advocate of reconciliation, but this provided no northern Republican votes. Was Lamar’s symbolism as reconstructed ex-rebel strong enough to provide the end of sectional tensions? No, in fact statistics prove that Lamar's confirmation fight was the last based solely on party politics, and economic and social groups gained more power in influencing confirmations and rejections to the Court. While his symbolism was founded by his previous actions of reconciliation, the larger political trend shows that economic and social forces split the government along party lines, and not along sections.
Richard Franklin Bensel. The Political Economy ofAmerican Industrialization, 1877-1900. (Cambridge; Cambridge University Press, 2000) 7. <6 Moore, Redeemers, 498.
81 With the vote from fellow southerner William Riddlebarger of Virginia,
Lamar was confirmed. Lamar was sworn in as an associate justice of the Supreme
Court on january 18, 1888. His time on the court came during a period of great
change in constitutional doctrines. Lamar participated fully with the majority of the
Court in an era distinguished by “a marked disposition to enhance the powers of the
National Government by a liberal construction of the Constitution, and to widen the scope of jurisdiction and powers of the national judiciary.’'^^
Lamar's background was influential in the decisions he made as a justice. He continued the principle of economic expansion and the national government supported this. In 1886 the Court had basically declared that states could not regulate the rates concerning interstate transportation. In the Kidd v. Pearson case,
Lamar classified the relationship between state and federal commerce and emphasized his commitment to centralized economic responsibility.^s Lamar's opinions fostered an economic system largely outside the control of state legislatures. These opinions did not coincide with the Court's similar approach in areas of social and political systems. He strongly advocated for state responsibility for social rights, criminal proceedings and local elections. The divided trajectory that had distinguished his political career was maintained throughout his judicial career. Murphy suggests that he "successfully fused the justification of a federally stimulated economy with an unalterable commitment to political states' rights.'39
Warren, The Supreme Court in United States History, 624-25. Murphy, l.amar, 266. -14 Murphy, Lamar, 267.
82 Lamar often diverged from his earlier political ideals with his decisions on
the Supreme Court. Hoffheimer suggests that Lamar "recognized limits on federal
power, but his judicial record suggests that he was more concerned with the
substantive power at issue and the rights adversely affected than by the distinction
bePA^een the express or implied source of such powers."^® For example, Lamar did
not object to the decision to allow federal exclusion of Chinese persons from social
and political rights based solely on their race."*^ But he dissented to a decision that
upheld various anti-Mormon statutes on the theory of virtually unlimited federal
authority over the territories.'^^ These two examples suggest that Lamar was
concerned with the power and rights affected by his decisions, more so than
consistently supporting or opposing the expansion of federal authority. His
decisions, and therefore his legacy, often rested conditionally upon the nature of
each case.
Lamar disagreed with the extension of federal authority that pitted federal
power in direct conflict with local power. Lamar's dissension in the decision of In re
Neagle displayed his continued support of state authority in criminal matters. The
Court held a federal marshal acting pursuant to federal law to be immune to state
criminal prosecution. He objected to the federal judicial immunity regardless of
Hoffheimer, Lamar, 33-34. 41 Chinese Exclusion Case. 130 LI.S. at 581. Warren (the supreme court in united states history) says that Lamar did not dissent from what Warren identified as the "first great case sustaining the National power" after Lamar joined the Court.(695 citing the Chinese exclusion case, Chae Chan Ping V. United States, 130 US 581 (1889) upholding unlimited sovereign powerof federal government to exclude foreigners). Lamar concurred in a dissenting opinion of the Chief Justice, who observed,"absolute power should never be conceded as belonging under our system of government to any one of its departments." The Late Corp. of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States, 136 U.S. 1, 67 (1890)(Fuller, C.J., dissenting).
83 previous state legislative action. Additionally, he was more broadly concerned that the decision divested states "of what was once regarded as their exclusive jurisdiction over crimes committed within their own territory, against their own laws, and to deprive a State of its power to maintain its own public order, or to protect the security of society and the lives of its own citizens."'^^ His protection of states' rights did not negate his views upon federal authority. In his dissent he stated, "[1 do not question] the general proposition, that the federal government established by the Constitution is absolutely sovereign over every foot of soil, and over every person, within the national territory, within the sphere of action assigned to it. ■44
Lamar’s complicated racial views were clarified with his decision in the 1890 case Louisville, New Orleans and Texas Railway Company v. Mississippi.*^ Lamar voted with the majority in ruling that Congress had no right to interfere with the racial segregation of public transportation for interstate rail travel in Mississippi. Lamar was certainly protecting states’ rights in all aspects of regulating interstate commerce. An article in the Journal of Black Higher Education suggests that Lamar's involvement in this case "was a key precedent on the road to establishing the separate but equal doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson."*^ Lamar did not write the opinion of the Louisville case, and he died three years before the Plessy case in 1896. His
In re Neagle, 135 ll.S. at 99. '»'» In re Neagle, 135 ll.S. 77. 133 U.S. .587. 46 Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar: The College Professor Who Steered the Supreme Court toward Racial Segregation," The Journal of Black Higher Education, No. 49 (Autumn, 2005), 45.
84 influence is clear and his decisions and influence on the Court "moved decidedly to
the right on issues of great concern to blacks."'*"
Similar to his days in politics, Lamar used his judicial career to carefully
navigate issues that agitated sectional tensions. Also, the type of issue still dictated
Lamar's particular stance. For social, criminal or racial decisions Lamar maintained
a decidedly sectional or states’ rights perception. With economic or corporate cases,
Lamar tapped into his national rhetoric of federal authority. Political Science
professor, William Hatcher, claims that it is unfair to assign Lamar with duplicitous
or prejudiced judicial behavior. He terms Lamar's position between nationalism and
states' rights as "divided sovereignty."'*® Divided sovereignty is certainly an
applicable term to Lamar's judicial behavior. However, it should be termed decided sovereignty, because Lamar made each decision, supporting or opposing either states’ rights or national authority, based upon his desire to affect nationalism.
Although his appointment and term as Supreme Court justice has been recognized as an end to sectionalism, his opinions highlighted and complicated issues of states' rights and social rights, trademarks of sectional tensions. Lamar’s reputations, actions, and declarations have coexisted in spite of their contradictions.
His efforts at nationalism did not nullify his loyalty to sectionalism. These terms shifted and transformed quite often and dramatically throughout Lamar's career. So through this coexistence, issues like states' rights, black rights, public education, and agrarian reform took on a more sectional tone and followed popular will, while
Ibid. Hatcher,"Some Mis.sissippi Views of American Federalism," 141.
85 money, corporntc interests, and reunion or reconciliation swayed his congressional
cai eer to create a front of nationalism.
Ironically, the major issues that shaped the public memory and legacy of
Lamar were often in contention with contemporary Southern sentiment. He was
uniquely talented in balancing the reaction and regard to his public declarations.
Although he often disregarded or conflicted with popular Southern sentiment, he
became the authority on Southern questions and the North quite often accepted his
stance as indicative of Southern sentiment. As such they were sometimes
disregarded by the North as disingenuous and insincere. The South often rejected
them as condescending. He was more successful than many other Southern
statesman because he “made the transition from antebellum states' rights to a
postwar position that was probably more in the mainstream of American thinking in
the last decades of the nineteenth century - neither a position of extreme
nationalism nor a position of extreme sectionalism.’"^^ But his position of
reconciliation is the most important theme to consider, because the methods and
means that Lamar and other white male Southerners used to preserve and create their collective identities created far issues that the South still struggles to reconcile today.
44 Hatcher,"Some Mississippi Views on American Federalism," 141.
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n , .r,, -A Lamilv Affair: Mississippi Politics, 1882-1932."PhD Boschert, Thomas Neville. A i diss., Universitv. Qf Mis^iissippi. 1995.
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103 t Towns, Walter Stuart."Ceremonial Speaking and the Reinforcing of American Nationalism in the South, 1875-1890." Ph.D. diss., University of Florida, 1972.
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104