The Sun.
London, England, 1864-12-05 00:00:00

THE CIVIL WAR IN AMERICA.

(From the Times Correspondent.)
NEW YORK, Nov. 22.

Prior, during, and for a few days subsequent to
the meeting of the Chicago Convention the popular
desire for peace was so violent as almost to constitute
a mania. The war was represented not only as a
failure in the past, but as bound to be a failure in the
future. Such was the discouragement consequent
upon the tardy discovery that the unparalleled
sacrifices of the struggle had been incurred in vain,
and that if the war were to last another year de-
mands more enormous than ever would have to be
made upon the by no means inexhaustible fountains
of the blood and treasure of the people, that a spon-
taneous conviction seemed to take possession of
men's minds that the time had come when, by means
of an armistice and a national convention it might
be ascertained whether, by mutual concession, the
Union might not be reconstructed without further
bloodshed. The tendency towards peace was so
marked that every body believed that the story of
the war, like a good ❑ovel or romance, was about to
end happily, and that, all their troubles over, the
North and South would live happily for the re.
minder of their lives. It looked as if the voice of
passion had been silenced, and that reason had re.
sumed her sway. And when the convention so-
lemnly adopted a peace platform an impartial ob-
server might have been well warranted in believing
that the better half of the Americans wero really
deserving of the Democratic liberty of which they
proclaimed themselves champions and apostles, and
were about to verify the confident predictions of the
Sewarde, the G reelings, the Ereretts, and all the
philosophers except those of the petticoat and the
pulpit, by settling their differences in calm delibe-
ration and sober second thought. But it was all a
mistake and a misconception. The appearances
were illusory. Time was ono swal'ow, but no sum-
mer. The passion of the people for Union a tout prix
was as engrossing as ever. The peace mania, so pre•
valent, was nothing but a freak of petulance. It
was born of impatience and disappointment, and had
no dwelling-place in the heart, or hold upon the
conscience of the multitude. The capture of Atlanta
by Gen. Sherman rendered the Chicago platform
unpopular, robbed it of its main plank, and induced
its candidate to commit an act of political and pro.
fessional suicide. The whisper of peace was over-
powered by shouts for the more vigorous prosecus
Lion of the war, The appetite for victory was sti.
mulated, not sated, by the morsel which Sherman
had thrown, and all the brutal instincts of the crowd
were excited into madness. Not that the people
really desired war, or took any delight in the horrors
of the battle-field, or the sanguinary "glory" which
their Generals, with Grant and Sherman at their
head, were promising to acquire for them ; but that
once more they saw in military success a better hope
than in negotiation for the restoration of that be-
layed Union, for the sake of which they are and
always have been perfectly ready to sacrifice their
credit, their happiness, and their liberty. The
triumphant re-election of Mr Lincoln, the great
things eNpected of the armies in the field, and the
supposed discouragement of the South, consequent
upon its alleged want of men end money, have
again turned the thoughts of the Northern people
towards peace. This time, however, the wind does
not blow from the old quarter. It is not discourage-
ment but hope which breaths gentle airs and words of
forgiveness. The people do not fear as before that the
South is to be the conqueror, but looking upon victory
as already within their grasp, they desire to prove
that their quarrel is a quarrel of friends and rela.
lives with which the outer world has no concern—
and that the North at the proper time can be as gene.
rous as she has shown herself to be valiant. Gene-
ral Butler—who loves to create a sensation as dearly
as if he were a novelist—led the way ; and the great
crowd followed, with as much momentum of eager-
ness as the smaller crowd displayed at Chicago.
The assumption upon which this new born hope is
founded is that the North is on the point of final
conquest; that the South, in American parlance,
must speedily " cave in," and that it would be a
great, noble, and magnanimous act on the part of
Mr. Lincoln to offer not alone peace, but brother.
hood, amity, and complete forgiveness to the
Southern leaders and people on the sole condition
of " Union. The idea was too flittering to Northern
pride not to become popular. For more than a
week, a very long time in America, it has had pos-
session of the newspapers, the exchange, and the
bar-room ; affected the price of gold and food ; in.
terfered with the calculations of commerce, and
pleased the imagination of the multitude with
visions of reduced taxation, cheapened necessaries
of life, the disbanding of armies and the relinquish-
ment, now and for all time to come, of such exits.
perating projects as forced conscriptions. if any
one of cooler temperament ventures to hint a doubt
that, after all, the South may not be in the despe-
rate plight supposed, and may, consequently, hav-
ing quite as much pride as the North, reject all
overtures and all offers which do not include the
recognition of its independence, the reply is more
apt to assume the form of vituperation than of argu-
ment, If the obj,_ctor be an American, he is a
"traitor" and a" copperhead." Mho be an English.
man, he is ignorant and prejudiced, and is but re-
echoing the sentiments of the British aristocracy,
of whom he is doubtless a bribed agent. At all
events he is on enemy of " our great country," and
not trustworthy in any opinion he may form or any
assertion which he may make on an American
subject.
At the close of last week it was generally believed
that Mr. Lincoln, strong in the possession of rem
newel power, if not popularity, would make the
first overture to the South, by despatching a depu-
tation to Richmond of statesmen whose antecedents
were such as would not render them personally dis-
tasteful to the Confederate leaders, and whose
known attachment to the Union were such as to
assure the Northern people that the cause was safe
in their hands. Some went so far as to name the
gentlemen selected—names that it would serve no
purpose to repeat, but of which it may be noted as