New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-08-20
Mr.. Greeley's Opinion OF the Peace Cause.
To Insr rnrrcRs OF rHR NEM-YoRK TRRUNR


To THE EDITORS OF rHs NEw-YoRS TRIBUNE
Nj Greeley, writing from Europe speaks OF
the late Peace Congress at London as follows
&" Not fully SympathlSng with the Peace Movement
IN the actual condition OF Europe | was not Dele
gate and dd not attend the FIRST TWO DAYS Gell5cea-
ions. see not how any one who does not hope 20
live and thrive by injustice. OPPRESSION and murder,
can be otherwise than ardently favorable 10 niseT-
sal Peace But suppose there Is portion OF the hu-
man family who r0n hare peace nor let others nave
It, what them ltyou say, Letus have II a> soon as
we cam | respond with all my heart would tol-
crate War even against pirates or murdercrS. no
longer than Is absolutely necessary 10 inspire Mem
with a love Of Peace or put them where they can no
longer invade the peace OF others But - long as
TyrannIes and AriStOcracleS shall say-aS they now
practically 10 say all over Europe, e. We too, are
for Peace. but It must be Peace With absolute sun
m sslon 10 our good pleaSue-peace Wltht"o-thTus
of the fruits OF Human Labor devoted 10 Tie pam
spsring of our luxurious appetEeS the maintenance
OF our pomp. the indulgence OF our unoounded de-
sIres-t must De 4 Peace which leaves The Millions
IN darkness IN HOPELESS degradation the slaves OF
superstition and the helpless victims of our ,uSS,
| answer, No, Sr>, on your conditions no Peace Is
possible but everlasting War rather. until your I'M
lust pretenSlonS are abandoned. until your power
OF enforcing them Is destroyed have felt pam
mi Apprehension that the prevalence OF the fedce
Movement confined as II Is 20 the Liberal party ana
acting on state OF things which secures almost I'M
bounded power 10 The DespotS Is calculated 10 break
The SpITt of dOvn-trOdGen Nations, and, by thus
poSiyOnng the inevitable struggle, pToIaCt 10 an m
definite penod the advent OF that Reign of Universal
Justice which alone can usher IN the glorious era OF
UnNessal Peace And. had been Delegate 10 this
Universal Peace Congress, should perhaps have
marrcd It's harmony and rs happiness by asking II
to consider and vote upon some such proposition as
this
cd" Hssoirfd That n commencing 20 all men everywhere
the duty OF seek and preserving Peace We bear IA mind
the Apostle gucou, tfS pure tlth ptactdut, ahi
DO not deny hui affirm The lisht Of Nation wantony N
vadsd ~ Fore army, or lu'oleIaby oppressed b ~
own rulers. 20 RESIST toEce by force ~
There Is 10 reason to doubt that these are Mr..
Greeley's honest convictions on the subject.
They are also the honest convictions of more
than nne.tenths Of our proiessed phllanthroPlsts
and reiormers And IN the vital principle OF
them-that Is, hc assumed righf y man 10 SH and
iniuvs filowpten ,pde lnieiy % MAINTAIN justice
they are the honest convictions of nearly the en-
TIE human race, from the monarch TO the slave,
from the Ponttt 10 the bandit, from the million
ARE 10 the paupeT, from the sage to the clown.
Large numbers OF protested Peace men, when
suited, drop quietly down 30 this platform as
their ultimate resting place. Jesus Christ and
a very meager handful of his professed disciples,
with here and there an euailc philosopher on his
own hook, who tomorrow NAV discover that the
world Is right after all, are the only dlssenters.
What a meager minority
IL not this, of itself, sufficient 70 warrant
presumption that We OF that minority are de-
We NAV be- m error advise all who are adj
dIcted to Utopdan lanceS, and what is called
"Iose-water philanthropy as well as those no
profess TO be well grounded Christian nOrsreslss'
ants 20 look these things IN the face. We have
got to meet them. We have got 70 Teiute and
explode these convictions, or renOunoe our own
And we have got 10 do this IN the open held OF
precficai demonstration. We have got TO do II
socially as well a. Individuality. e IN Conmu-
IA .arr.I.fl yn.tt IN
wisdom and compacted by hearty voluntary CO.
operation. Are we able to do this Is It prdc,
tca6l,2 PRACTIC,BLE is the great word nova
Cays. Practicable government, practicable poll
tics, practicable money-maAlng, practicable me-
chanlcal power, practicable morality, practicable
philanthropy, practicable religion WWH workf
VA II pau Can II be carried out These are
the test questions OF the age. Mere distractions,
theories and pictures on paper, have but phos
phOrescent popularity, and are soon regarded as
phantasms Shall We complain OF this No IL
Is night, notwithstanding the frequent BJudg
ments OF shallow and ignorant minds. What
ever has intrinsic merit Will ylndlcate itself
sooner or later IL Will demonstrate its own
practcablllty through the fidelity OF It's real
friends What has not viii ultimately be ex-
plOded SO be II
Mr. Greeley believes that the tyrannlcal des
potlsms and oppressive anstoCracles Of Europe
cannot he done away except by the sword OF re-
publican reyOlutlOnanes, vlct0nously bathed IN
the blood OF princes and mobiles The political
Socialists believe that they shall never De able
70 command a decent livelihood till they have
rebuilt the bauIcades, and put the capitalists
hors do combat
Some Of our abolltonlsts have become con.
WINGED that the bayonet may be turned 70 good
use IN the last resort against slavery Meantime,
emperors, kings, presidents, arlstocrats, and all
Of existing institutions, good and
evil have undlmlnlshed faith IL gunpOwder,
bomb-shells, grape-shot, cold lead and deadly
steel udIclOusly put IN motion by military shlli.
Glbbets, dungeons, chains and sc0urges follow
suit among the Indlspensables Of law and order
and .fO exc out tAe tram, boWle-knlFcs, nlrAs,
pistols and shlllalies are logged about by ndlsi-
duas for selfdefense. All are confident that
somebody must be slain, or justice will be tram
pied under foot and righteousness be ex,efnna-
led from the earth. So they have thought Tor
these five thousand years and 80 thcy have actsd
HayIngmurdered enough oitheiriellOw creatures
&c people some twenty such globes as our earth
they are now very sure thar few more bleed
irgs. bhstenngs, emetlcs and cathartcs Of the
same sort will restore mankind 10 moral health,
and usher n the reign Of universal peace. All
are Tor peace-unlyersai peace-Just as soon As
they can pun y human nature by letting out It's
tad blood and VICIOUS hlmors lneE iilh IN
the pracucaDlllty OF this great cure 10 certainly
astonishing, especially when we consider how
.cn- they have been cCctOnng their patient, and
how much disease obviously remains 10 be purged
out, Were Il q less popular faith, II would be
denounced by the censOnOus as mere mfatuatlOn.
But. a. public opinion now stands. dozen hu-
man races might be more safely killed of by this
suord-opathy. than 20 have the world experi.
mented on by the Yuqck1y OF the Sermon On the
Mount, VI Tessst.acs Of col 0slA good oaiy
Nevertheless, the minority venture 10 entertain
cutie a different view of the subject. They see
mat the advantages sometimes gaIned by de-
sIoyms human lie are speclOus and daZZlIng,
dependence, or individuals night n self-deiense;
tut they also see that those advantages prove
ceceiliul IN the long run, and have TO be earned
over again by labonous process. The only ab-
fo.u;c advantages gained and progress made,
whether by individuals or nations are the itults
Il patent, uprght. peacesble eforts-ehons