The Sun.
London, England, 1863-10-17 00:00:00

penditure ; they lay to their charge the choice of
inefficient generals, the removal of able leaders, in
obedience to paltry views of mean jealon cr blind
party predilection. They blame them fo he disas-
trous state of the national finances, for the reckless
tampering with the currency, by which the country
has been brought to the brink of bankruptcy. They
charge them with the most flagrant abase of powers
with numberless arbitrary arrests, utter disregard
of the most sacred rights of property, gagging of
the press, interference with the right of meeting,
violation of State rights, outrages against thalin
eCeorn-a
Con-
stitution. They expose them or their
for flagitious contracts, shameless embezzlement
dirt
the public money, every variety of dirty jobs and of
dishonest transactions.
Demo-
crats of every denomination,
the country, the first thing,
y
ithdraw it from
Waccording n toa the happen
st them inch by inch
thoiswassociates. The
ground must be
the power of AbfeouLginhctoaltigaainnids
most till the expiration of their term of power, and every
nervebe strained so as to secure their down-
fall at the next Presidential election.
agree tolerably well, and,
So far the Democrats
although a new set has sprung up, who go by the
name of War Democrats, and who are inclining to
theviews of the Moderate or Conservative Republi-
cans, it may be taken for granted that, under pre-
sent circumstances, the word Democrat in this part
of America is synonymous with Peace Man; only
there are some of these peace-men who think that
the blessings of peace may be obtained compatibly
with the preservation of the Union ; there are others
who think that the South has seceded past all re-
conciliation, and that all hopes of a restoration of
the old republic must be given up.
It would be vain to look for the utterance of these
opinions in the public press, vain to expect to bear
them broached before a popular meeting. There is
hardly a man in the whole country who dares to
walk about without a mask, hardly one who does
not seek his safety in a certain amount of reserve
and reticence. No one would dare to speak openly
of the dissolution of the Union. But ask privately
some of the Democratic leaders, who, I must con.
fess, command my respect by their character, and
enlist my sympathies in their behalf in preference
to their rabid and ranting radical adversaries. I
ask, what do they propose to do, whenever popu-
lar suffrage lays the supreme power in their
hands—nay, what would they advise and desire,
were any unexpected change to place them at once,
this very day, at the head of affairs? Some of them
declare themselves sincerely and intimately Union-
ists; they protest that nothing would induce them

to renounce the Union; they are peace men;
they would offer fair terms to the South, meet it
half way ; win it by liberal advances; they would
replace mattere on the old footing, go back to the
sta'us quo ante bellum, restore State rights in all
their integrity, deny the central power all inter-
ference with matters of mere local interest; allow
the Southerners as full an enjoyment of their " pe-
culiar institution" as the original compact on which
the Union was based clearly gave them. "Do you
think any such tender on your part would shake the
stern purpose of the South never again to be recon-
ciled to the North ?" I ask again, "Do you think
that the mare fact of the downfall of the present
Administration and of your accession to power
would melt the heath of your Southern brethren,
and incline them to come to terms and listen to
your plans of a compromise." " Not immediately,
perhaps," is the answer, " The South might per-
severe in its obstinacy, and we might be under the
necessity to fight on ; but we would speedily re-
move all grounds of offence; we would show our
readiness to do full justice; we would propose an
armistice, open negotiations, pave the way for a re-
conciliation, of which the only sine qua non condi-
tion would be the restoration or preservation of the
Union." These are the Unionist peace men ; but
there are are also the separatist peace men, less out-
spoken, more timid, but far more firm and consistent,
and I must say more plausible in their views. These

latter are in great numbers Southerners by their
connections, sympathies, or inclinations ; they are
well conversant with the South, and hold that the
South can no more be propitiated than it can be
overrun or subdued. They feel confident that the
Confederates will either conquer their indepen-
dence or perish to a man. The project of the
subjugation of so vast a continent as the Con-
federacy still occupies strikes them as the most
absurd chimera. The mere thought of such an en-
terprise they set down as a most egregious folly.
As the Southerners are, in their opinion, invincible,
so are they also implacable. Separation is safer for
them, more conducive to their interests, more in
keeping with their aspirations, than re-union on the
most advantageous terms. On the other hand, were
it even possible to bring them to terms, could it even
be managed to lead back these stray sheep into the
fold, and to soothe their hostile passions by giving
up to them the sore point of negro slavery, is it to
be supposed that peace on such terms could be any-
thing but flimsy and hollow? Were the Southern
dlaveowners to acquiesce in the compact, would the
Northern abolitionists equally accede to it? Can real
solid peace be established where the cause of the war
is not removed? Talkof bringing the sheep back into
the fold ! Let the wolf devour it while it is at large,
if he is swift and strong enough for it; but do not
expect the fugitive voluntarily to come back into
his jaws, so long as there are breezy downs and
rocky hills for it to fly to. Separation, in short,
appears to these men no less desirable than it ie in-
evitable; it is the only possible plausible solution
of the great problem; and not by any means less
irresistible because people struggle, and close their
eyes, and harden their hearts against it.
Such being, as far as long contemplation of the
subject enables me to make out, the state of men's
minds in this country with respect to the great crisis
through which it is now passing, it may not be diffi-
cult to forecast the chances of the forthcoming
election for the State of Ohio. Democrats and
Republicans are of course equally confident as to its
results; but there is little doubt that the lat-
ter are far more sanguine and more boast-
fully sure of their game than the former. Ad-
mitting for one moment that the two antago-
nistic parties are as near as possible balanced,
the Republicans would still have all the engines of
power and of Government patronage on their side.
The country at large is weary of the war, doubtless,
and the lower classes, upon whom mainly fall the
tribute of blood, are out of sorts and mutinous, and
flatly refuse to "be driven like bullocks into the
slaughter pen." But among the well-to-do classes,
especiallyenormous in the cities, the war has been the source of
fortunes. The State of
the signaloh ifoe,rltikh ris
e oothfeprr Westernodigiou
States, as I s
hope to be able to prove in another let-
ter, has suffered
and is suffering grievously—it is
paying with its beat blood the expenses of the ruin-
onei war. But Cincin •
The few Cincinnati, Cleveland, and other
towns have had the lion's
who have share in the people's spoils.
enriched
been
wecti the by
prolongation,th e spoliation
of the many see no oor
)n to
even perpetuation, of the war; the real gainers by
this great calamity
are not
pendants are legion, and
th
eir
means extensive.
numerous, but their de-
Half a dozen stump orators, a
principled papers are easily e°°Ple of ranting, un,
lead the vast multitude propitiated,Wheree and these
Union is an idol, exercising a wherever they list. The
prestige over h mass of Americans, which seems to t egreat
ueprive he
all reasoning powers, making them deaf to all am of
ments, blind to all interests. The G argu.
overnraent is
Union. All opposition is sheer mewed° n• for
isei, rank
copperhead treason, ciiminal disloyalty.
Were the election conducted agreeably to fair play
principles, however, it is possible that the upshot
might be considered
doubtful. The check Rof
- osen.
cranz on the frontier of Georgia, the forced
inaction
of Gilmore at Charleston, the ill success of the Fede-
ral
arms in Arkansas and Texas, have greatly sobered
down some of the most
furious Republicans; the
invasion of the various Southern region seems even
-s practicable undertaking;
to them evcry day a •et,
the war which Mr. Seward promised to conclude in
three months will certainly stretch far beyond the
limits of the third year; there is no reason why it
may not reach the thirtieth. The beginning of the
end is no nearer than at the outset, and men are not
forthcoming to fill the ranks, and gold is up at
1484 e and the pecuni •
ary resources of the country
areith_ waning
lower and lower. Discontent, vague
4 unspoken, is ere •
eping amorg the lower orders,