. In addition they repealed black codes and removed restrictions on African American workers.Economic Development. Republicans focused much of their effort on improving economic conditions. Some argued that lasting change could not come tot he region without land redistribution. In other words, African Americans would never gain equal rights or independence until they owned property. Most white republicans, however, were unwilling to take such a step, which would have involved taking the land of planters and giving it to people who had been enslaved. This would have violated southerners’ constitutional right to security of private property. Instead, most white republicans concentrated on economic development. Advocating “the gospel of prosperity,” they contended that the key to better times was more railroads, banks, and businesses. Southern governments aided in this development with grants, paid for out of higher taxes. But while thousands of miles of railroad tracks were laid, government aid did little to improve general economic conditions. Most African Americans, and not a few whites, remained mired in poverty.Voter Anger. Republican rule alienated many white voters. Taxes and state debts increased because of expenses such as grants to railroads. As in the North, state officials sometimes accepted bribes, leading to charges of corruption. In addition, the policies seemed to do little to improve economic conditions, though in fact, few policies would have made much difference in the war scarred southern economy. Moreover, worldwide demand for cotton was falling. The 1875 cotton crop equaled that of 1859 in terms of size but not in profits.Changes in southern agriculture. Devastated by the Civil War, southern planters never recovered the dominance that they had enjoyed before the war. Some sought to re-create the past by finding ways to preserve slavery in a new form. As the economic journal De Bow’s review arg...
