The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1850-11-19
From the .Norfblk w .1rgus.

The PAST AND THE PREsENr-If five years
ago, prophet had risen up and lifted the veil of
the future, and drawn from its arena the scroll
upon which the history of these five eventful
years was written; if he had fortold to the South
you shall go into a bloody and expensive war;
victory shall perch on your banner every
held; vast territorial conquests; an Ophir Of gold
boundaries stretching to the Pacific shore, and a
country Of every varied soil and climate, shall be
the fruits of that war. In it your best blood shall
be spilled, the valor OF your shall be every
where slgnallzed, the cypress shall he freely
woven in the chaplets of victory. Your brethren
of the North shall be the partners of your tolls
| they too shall send their regiments, but not SO
many as yours by one-half; they too shall meet
with you the shock of the battle, but the graves oil
your slain shall twice outnumber theirs. BY and
by shall come peace-the enemy is chastised, and
within his conquered capital the terms are dictated
by you, the victors. The survivors Of the gallant
host that achieved these wonderful triumphs are
marched back to their native land-the Southern
regiments, to throw off the harness Of war and
reap in the soft pleasure Of home and country, the
rewards or toll and valor in the field; the Northern
troops to their cheerful reside and bright winter
skies. But 10! out Of this war will rise poten.
tous question Of domestic concernment! The
North and the South will be at variance about the
government of their common conquests, and as to
the manner Of use and disposition Of the soil.
The North will say to the South " brother thou
art not as good your customs and institutions
are oHeHSlVe 10 the pTeuulCeS OF my education ana
the habits of my life; we cannot live in common
on our dOmain''
"The South shall reply in an appeal to the reason
of the North, and argue that our rights should
not be sacrificed to your pre- udces; but, mas
much as you have these prejudices, let there be
no strife between thee and me, for are we not
brethren Let us divide our gans-draw line
through them-take even for yourself the longest
share; you go TO the RIG ht hand, will go to the
left; and SO there shall be peace between u.s." IT,
then, the prophet should 90 on to read from this
unwrltten history the sequel of this controversy,
and should relate how it was finally ad usted, and
should unfold to the astonshed South, that by a
series of artful delays, intrigues and frauds, the
North had contrived to appropriate to itself the
whole of this prncely conquest, not leaving one
foot to compensate for the seventy five millions of
treasure and ten thousand corpses contributed by
the South to the acquisition and should then
pause and ask, "men Of the South, shall go on
with this eventful story; or will your own hearts
finish out the page and tell me what the South did
on the contamination Of this mighty wrong' Did
you submit to it, or did you resistp'
We ask what would have been the answer Of the
South,
Would it not have been the answer the Hunga-
rlun Diet gave to Maria Theresa, when with her
infant child in her arms she presented herself u
refuge from her Austrian throne, and claimed the
protection of her noble Magyar ubjectss Every
sword leaped from it's scabbard, and those swords
were never sheathed until the sovereign of their
loyal affection was once again seated on her impe-
rial throne. Such would have been the answer Of
the South then-such is not the answer that the
craven voice of submission proposes to give now.