Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1861-01-10
The Resurrection Of the Government
The First Step Towards Peace.

ry 81, an aOle artlcle un0er the ABOVE Deau,
from which we make the following extract:
eve pay all due honor to those Northern
men, and especially to those Northern Re-
publicans, who have insisted upon the paras
duty of saving the Union. even at the
sacrifice of something of party principle, and
much more of party feeling. We do not un-
derrate the courage nor the profound regard
for the pnblis good which has prompted Mr..
Thurlow Weed, in this State, to throw the
whole weight Of his poll tical influence into
che scale Of compromise and coneliation,-
nor do we doubt in the least that his effort
will do good. But for any distinct. practi.
cal compromise the time has not arrived. The
el,ments for such an adjustment as would
bring permanent peace to the country, land
neither section wants any ether do not yet
sxist. No man and no, ,bcdy of men has any
power to pledge the North, nor is there any
authority clothed with power to act for the
South. 1t is not for this Congress to say
whether the Missouri line shall be restored,
nor has any body the right to say that if
restored, the South would accept it as final
end of the 'irrepressible conflict" Allshsse
ques.iens, and all others growing out of
this em rgency, belong to the coming admin
istratson. The people have committed to
them the direction and control of their 'af-
fairs. They will be responsible for the peace
of the country,-and for that essential and
equal justice to every State and to every Sec
ton by which alone peace can be secured.
But men say this will be too late. The
South will not wait. The Border States will
be dragged into the maelstrom Of disunion
before sh at time arrives. Those States may
as ell understand. that they have duties to
perform in this matter as we'll as the North.
They have quite as much at stake as we have.
Their interest in the Uaion is as real and as
profound as ours. And they must under
take the control of their own conduct, at
least to this extent. if they have the slight
est desire for the preservation of their rights
or tho protection of their interests, in or cut
Of the Union. The dissolution Of this Union,
the overthrow Of this Government, is not a
thing to be accomplished in day or in a
month. 1t is not to be the hot achievement
Of momentary wrath, nor the instant result
of vote in Conventions or mass meetings.
The Soutbern States may plungo then selves
into fearful perils and greatly embarrass their
own freedom of action, by :he rash measures
they may adopt. But that is at least quite
as much their affair as ours, and they have
duties to perform in connection with it, quite
as imperative as any that dev,lve upon US.
We are in favor Of all just and proper
measures Of compromise made at the right
time, and on the right basis. But we dis
trust the wisdom of thrusting upon the hot
rage of the active Disunionists at the pres
ent moment, promises and pledges which we
have no right to give, and which they have
MT the slightest disposition to take. What
ever is to be done on either side, should be
done with dignity and deliberate weighing
of consequences. When this controversy is
settled we wish it to be finally and decisicely
settled. There never will be better time
for insisting upon such settlement than
now. The country is rich,-the hearts of
the people are prepared for is,-and all men
of all parties and all sections desire to know,
onoe for all. what are to be the permanent
relations of Slavery to the Federal Govern
ment. But let US have no patchwork, no
hasty, crude popping of the constitution al
fabric Let US have nothing rushed through
in the heat of panic, to be deplored and
execrated by either party when the clouds
shall have blown over. Whatever is done
must be done with deliberation. after full
study of the whole case and with close and
complets knowledge of the Iublic sentiment
in every section of the country.
In our judgement the present public senti-
ment in nearly all the Southern States is the
result of an utter misapprehension of the
principles and purposes of the Republican
Party. It has been brought about by the
most steady, relentless and infamous crusade
of falsehood that ever disgraced the history
Of any civilized country. So long as that
feeling prevails, no compromise can be made
which will be worth the paper on which it is
VII ter. That Misrepresentation must be Ie-
moved. as preliminary step to any adjust
ment which will last year, or give the
slightest satisfaction to either section. 1t
could be removed at once, if the intelligent
men of the Southern States had the courage
to tell what they know to be the truth about
the Republican Party. and the man who has
been chosen President of the United States.
But as long as they assent in silence to the
Infamous falsehoods by which both are SIAN
dered las long as they lend themselves to
the schemes of the conspirators by repeating
their Shibboleth, and tchoing their epithetr,
and countenancing their bald and shameless
perversions of truth as long as they join
in suppressing the real sentiments, and reit.
Grated declarations of Mr.. Lincoln, and per
NIT the most glaring forgeries to be palmed
off upon their people as the genuine express
sion of his opinions $50 long as they allow
even their slaves to bear the Republicans
spoken of as blacks,-an The President elect
as pledged to set them free,-they must not
expect. nor do they deserve. that we of the
North shall assume all the burden of pre-
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