The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1861-07-16

SN''SS titC tSS0oi7'
He took pains not only to keep this de
claration good, but also to keep the cas-
SO far from ingenious sophistry as thai
the world should not misunderstood it
BY the affair at Fort Sumter, with ii,
surrounding circumstances, that poin
was reached. Then AID thereby The as
sailants of the government began the
conflict of arms without a gun in sigh
or in expectancy To return their fire. save
only the few in the fort sent TO that har,
! bor years before, for their own protec.
tlon, and still ready to give that protec-
ton in whatever was lawful. In this
act, discarding all else, they have forced
upon the country the di4incl issue-im-
mediate dissolution OF btpod And this
issue embraces more lhan the fate of the
United States. Il presents to the whole
family of man the question whether a
constitutional republic or democracy, a
government of the people, by the same
people, can or cannot maintain its terri
torial integrity against its own domestic
! foes. 1t presents the question whether
DISCONTINUED individuals, too few in num-
bers to control the administration accord
ing to the organic law in any case, can
always, upon the pretenses made in this
case or any other pretenses. or albirari-
y without any pretense, break up THEN
government, and thus practically put an
end to free government upon the earth
1t forces us 10 ask, " Is there in all re
publics this inhercutand fatal weakuess?'
Must government Of necessity be too
strong for the liberties o 4 its own people,
or TO weak to maintain its own exis istence?
50 viewing tie issue, 10 choice was
left but 70 call out the war policy Of the
government, aal 50 to resist the force
employed for lis destruction by force for
its preservation. The call was made and
the response of the country was most
gratifying, surprising in uuanimity and
spirit tie most sanguine exrectations.-
Yet none Of the States, commonly called
Slave States, except Delaware. gave Il
regiment through tie regular Safe or
yanzaiion. a few regiments have been
organized within some others of those
States by individual enterprise and re
ceived into the government service.
OF course the seeded States. 81 called
and 70 which Texas bad been ioiuea
about the time Of tie Inauguration, gave
40 troops to tie cause OF tie Union. The
Border States, So called, were not UNI
form in their action. some of them, being
almost lor tle Union. while, in others
such as in Virginia North Carolina, Ar,
kansas, and Tennessee. the Union scnti-
men, was nearly reprt-sel and silenced
Tie course taken ii Virginia was the
most remarkable, perhaps the most i'm
portaut.
4 convention elected by the people Of
that State TO consider this very question
of disrupting the Federal Union. was in
session At the capital Of Virginia when
Fort Sumpter fell To this body the
people had chosen a large majority OF
pro.essed Union men. Almost immedi.
ately after the fall of Sumter, many mem
bers ot that majority went over to the
original Disunion minority, aud with
them adopted an ordinance for withdraw
ing the Safe from the Union.
Whether this change was wrought by
their great approval OF the assault upon
Sumter. or their great resentment az the
Governments resistance 10 that assault,
IS not definitely known. Although they
submitted the ordinance for ratification
to a vote OF the people 70 be taken on a
day then somewhat more than a month
distant, the Convention aud the Legisa-
ture which was also in session at the
same time and place, with leading men
OF the State, not members Of either. i'm
mediateIy commenced acting rs If the
State was already ont OF tie Union.
They pushed military preparations
vigorously forward all over the Stale
They seized the United States Armory,
llarper's Ferry. and the Navy Yard al
Gosport near Norfolk They received,
perhaps invited, into their state large
bodies of troops with their warlike ap
pointments from the so-callcd Conieder-
ate States, and sent members 10 their
Congress at Montgomery, and finally
they permitted the insurreelionary gov
ernment TO be transferred to their Capt.
tol at Richmond
The people Of Virginia have thus al.
lowed this giant insurrection 10 make is
nest within her borders, aud this gov
ernmcnt has no choice left but to deal
with il where it finds il, and il has the
less TO regret as the loyal citizens have
in due form claimed It's projections
Those loyal citizens this Government is
bound 10 recognize and protect as being
in Virginia In the Border States. so
called. in fact the Middle States, there
are those who favor policy which they
call an armed neutrality. That IS an
arming Of those States TO prevent the
Union forces passing ono way or the dis
union the other over their soil. This
would be disuniou completed
Figuratiyely speaking, il would be tie
building Of IN impossible wall along the
line Of separation. and yet not quite an
impa sible one, tor under the guize ot
neutrality, it would tie the hands oi the
Union men, and freely pass supplies from
among them "a tlelusauecuonjs's s.which
itceuii not 40 as an open enemy Alta
stroke, il would take al the uopb,e c n
Tie bands Vi secession, except only What
proceeds from the external blockade
l. Nould do tor the Disuuionsls that
l.. L a a