Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1859-03-11
EIONOR.

There is very much perversc and wry-
necked logic ahoat, but the logic Of honor
seems to rs the hardest Of comprehension.
For instance:
A bully, cxaspcrated by some fancied in
suit to himself, or his friend. or his PARTY,
assails you and beats you with club or
with his fist. Honor says you must chal-
lenge hirI to fight with pistols, or with
some sort Of weapons which will place you
on an equality, despite his overwhelming
physical strength, aud do your best to put
a bullet through him. But whyi Let us
understand the rationale Of the process
II shooting him would rid the world Of that
breed Of dogs, it might be an act Of philan-
thropy to do it. Unhappily, we know that
such is not the case. Ruffians and black
guards would still abound, though this one
were dead; your shooting him would at
best diminish the number by one, while IL
would swell 1t by another through the ad-
dition of yourself to the remaining number.
Why is not the dictate Of true honor to
leave butchery TO natural nssassins, and
keep yourself clearly apart from the disgust
ing wretcbcs as possiblel Suppose we ad-
NIT that the brute ought TO be killed, are
you an executioneri
Take another case:
A villain seduees your sister, daughter or
wife. Honor says, Kill himl But whyl-
because he has dishonored me-" How dis
honored you! That he has dishonored him
self, if that were possible we might admit
that he has dishonored the poor victim Ct
his artifces, is also not incredible. But
how has he dishonored you, who had no
part in his baseness, were no wise privy to
it, never promoted nor countenanced it in
any wayi Unfortunate you may be, like
the sufferer by the other brutality we have
contemplated, but not dishonored, any moro
than he was. You can only be dishonored
BY some dishonorable act or purpose Of your
own: you may be dishonored by killing
him, not by spurning him and stunning
bis lcprous presence. Let him bear the
mark of Cain whthersosver he will, but
do not pollute your hands with his blood
How should you be dishonored by simply
loathing and avoiding the scoundrel Il
honor is not ostcntatiously at war with
Christianity, why should it not revise its
code on this pointl
The above remarks from the n. Y. TriJ.
tine are sensible and como up to the stand
ard which we think is nearer right thar
settling the matter with the knife or pistol
! Another page Of the character of Mr.
Sickles, is given in the Albany Evenin!
Statesman, Of March lst, which says:
} "The career of the individual who s.
pompously enacts the character of the ain
jured husband" in this domestic turmoil, i
} familiar TO our citizens, as indeed it is know
to the people of tho entire state. He ha
} a reputation for everything but integrity
, honor, morality and manhood. If there i
a moral vice with which he is not conver
sant-practicaly familiar-we think i
} must be indeed modern. Those who are
familiar with the libertine career which
first gave him possession of the unfortunate
woman he calls wife, will not be surprised
at the denouenaent of his married life. How
she could so long preserve her purity
through such an example is matter for con
lecture. In misfortune which ordinarily
commands for man so injured the sympa
thy of every human creature, he seems les,
entitled to the consolation to be derived
from the coincidence OF his fellow-citizeni
than any man we ever knew. We can rec
ollect no one act of his life that should
bring him even the we'll wishes Of an,
mortal.
Some years ago-we think about six
he married his wife, then young, volatile
. wayward girl, but already. il common ru
NOR be true, hiding her shame in a tard,
marriage.
; The party to which allusion is made il
, the report, and at the breaking up of whcl
} Mr.. Sickles received the anonymous com
munication which led to this exposure an,
murder-was dinner given By Mr. AM
Mrs. Sickles to Mrs. Bennett, at whicl
President Buchanan assisted. So brillian
a combination Of frst-class stars shoul'
, have secured from the gods more auspic
} ious upbreaking. An anonymous letter
the exposure of wanton wife-a dishon
ored husband, and cold deliberate murder
: could hardly have been anticipated to b
! impending over such host and hostess an,
such guests. But the world moves NOR
, rapidly than of old, and they frequentl
, compress the incidents of tragedy in
/ weeks existence at Washington"