Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-04-23


The gratifying uuanimity with which the people
of Tennessee are responding to the bloody prOcla-
nation of the tyrnal at Washington city, can alone
avert the threatened war, or, failing IN that, can
slene drive his presumptuOus invading army back
from our soil Nothing but our unfortunate divi-
sions hitherto have encouraged him in his designs
of coercion against the South.
These divisions naturally arose from the long
and heated party contests and preucices which had
distracted the Border States and from tile ncredul
ity existing in the minds OF many that any Admin
istraton could be so blind obstinate and remorse-
less as to attempt to subjugate, by force of arms
any number of the States, formerly belonging
to the old Union. This incredulity was art
fully and perfdiously increased by the PREACHER
Gus assurances of the President to the Southern
Commissioners at Washington, to Messrs. MAY
NARD and NELSON of this State, and to all South
cru men, who approached him, that his policy was
peaceful, that Fort Sumter would be evacuated and
that the Border Slave States need apprehend nc
danger of coercion from him. Such was the adroit,
ness with which these assurances were disseminated
by telegraph and through the newspapers, that it il
believed majority of the cabinet at Montgomery
were deceived, though the wary and determined
DAVIS was never for one instant thrown off hi
guard, nor did he relax his energies in preparing
for the conflict, in the least
We always distrusted these deceitful and danger
attempts to lu to sleep the people of the SO1th
knowing as we did that the men at the head of affair
at Washington were animated by boarded venom
and undying hatred of the South and Southern il
situations.
Yet it seems that even Messrs. CRAwFoRD, ROMAN
and FORSYTH, the Southern Commissioners, were de
ceivsd. 1t is by no means strange, then. that tn
people of Tennessee, Virginia and Kentucky, VIII
have ever been devOtedy attached TO the old Union
should fondy hug the deusion that LINCOLN would
not prove himself such bastard and mailman as t
endeavor, by bayonets and Canon to rivet the Unio
together. But his proclamation, presumptuously
and insutingy asking for a military quota from tn
Border Slave States, and his appearance befor,
Charleston with fleet have caused the scale
to fall from their eyes, and henceforth Tennessee
is glorious unit in resisting this tyranny
whilst the gallant old mother of States anC
statesmen has resumed her sovereign powers AM
withdrawn from Union in which usurpstion
tyranny and coercion are sanctioned by the senti
ment of the section which upholds the usurper
Nor will these betrayed people again trust to thu
punic faith of q Government whose peridy and
treschery have led them into the snares of bloody
war, and whose word of honor is only given to de
ceive and destroy They will accept the gage Of
battle, throw off their allegiance to Government
which has thus proven itself by covert acts OF
war, their deadly enemy, and will unite their for
tunes and their destiny with the gallant Confederacy
of the South, whose gallant sons have led the van
in destroying the sect nal authority attempted to
be fastened on them.