Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1861-09-20
NEW ENGLAND AND THE WAR.

q" ". hare not gel 6egun 10 Fight.' " Some
Of the papers are charging New EnyIand
with "a want OF enthusiasm in the war. 1t
is said that she docs not contribute her prop
CT share of men to the army, and cOmparl-
sons are instituted between Massachusetts,
and Illinois, to the discredt ct the former.
Now while we glory in the patriotism and
selfsacl itice Of the Prairie State and would
not pluck leaf from the Northwest, 1t Is no
more than lust that we should bear IN mind
the following facts First, the one hundred
thousand men, or more, under General Ere
mont's command, are, to great extent, emf
grants from New England while not 4 man
of Western birth can be found in an Eastern
rerlmcat The truta i, tue West has been
for the last twenty years drainlng with Won
deriul rapidity the East OF its young men,
until now the population of New England
consists largely OF persons who are either too
Young or too old for military service. Sec
ond, il is safe to affirm that at least two
thirds Of the naval force Of the country are
drawn from New England. The twenty or
thirty thousand men who are manning our
war steamers and gunbolts, d, not make
much show in our public prints. And yet
1t needed not the recent brilliant exploits at
l u
teilIgence that our men must play an imror-
tant part in the bloody drama. upon whose
first act the curtain has scarcely fallen.
Third, Il very large proportion OF all the
material necessary for conducting the war
with efficiency and success, Is manufactured
in New England. Probably not less than
$4,000 men are employed IN Massachusetts
alone, most OF them night and day, IN max
ing every variety OF articles required by the
troops IRON q havel1ck 10 a rid cannon.-
The Illinois soldier marches in Lynn StocS.
wears a coat of Lawrence cloth, ami shoots
secession traitors with Springfield muSket.
We might mentIIu some other cOnsldera-
tions pertinent 10 this subject, not forgetting
the liberal outpourtHg Of money : but these
are sufficient for our purpose. The TACT,
however. is not to be disguised, that neither
New ENGLAND nor any Of the other loyal
States has vet seemed to realize illy the
magnitude Of the interests involved IN tins
gigantic rebellion Of the slaveholdlnS oil
garchv The rebuff at Manassas, and the
melancholy. not to say needless, slaughter OF
tho heroic Lyon, have served to quicken the
pulse Of the War Department; but as might
have been expected from the crippled and ex-
posed condition in which the Government
was left ly the perjured traitor Floyd, all
that has been thus tar done l. only lrepafa-
tory. w hare not get bcgln 10 fight.
Probably the bloodlest naval battle during
the revolutionary war was fought near the
English coast off Flamborough Head, be-
tween the British ship Scraps, and the Amer
lean ship Bon Homme Richard, commanded
by John Paul Jones. Early in the engage
ment the vessels became entangled 20 that
the Bon Ilommc Richard was exposed to
the deadly broadsidc OF its powerful enemy
without being able to do any damage Ia re-
turn. At length after hours OF murderou9
slaughter, when the American vessel had
been riddlcd through and through by cannon
balls, its masts shiyercd into sPIlnters, AMI
the "Stars and stripes, under which Jones
and his brave seamen had won many VIC
tory, had all been shot away, the British
commander supposing that the Americans
bad struck their flag, shouted through ms
trumpet and asked if they intended to sur
render The thunder Of battle was hushed
tor moment, while Jones covered with
blood and smcarrd with powder stains, ap-
peared on the slippery deck IN the midst OF
the CHASTITY heaps of his dead and wounded,
and answered the interrogatory in voice
which had in its imperial tones no tremor,nO
qulver Of fear or doubt: "SUToadcr? No
ihdre not yst Jeg,m 10 fght." The tide of
battle soon turned, the guns Of the Scraps
were silenced one by one, the red cross OF
England was lowered to tie obstinate valor
of republican patriots fighting for freedom,
and the expiring hopes of American lode
pendence were rekinIled in the bosoms OF
liberty loving men all over the world.
1t requires no prophets eye to see IN the
conflict Of the scraps aud Bon Homme Rich
ard, symbol of the conflict now raging be
tween the loyal and rebelliOus States OF the
Union. The traitors. flushed with their
slight temporary successes, may shout $40
trtu,nphe - and in their infatuation expect
the Federal troops to sue for peace and par
don at the knees Of the august Davis, nut
the shadow of inevitable doom Is already be-
ginning to darken their camps and hearth
stones. Thousands upon thousands are
rushing from every valley and hillside OF the
North as If summoned by the ancient Fiery
Cross, to the support of the government; and
it is not more certain that Justice and Right
sit enthroned in Heaven, than that the grand
old flag of our fathers shall again float IN
triumph from the Aroostook TO the RIO
Crando - N,seo,ri De,nocroy 5fb INST