Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1861-11-30
For The Reporter.
What Of the War.

have shared the benefits wherein it has
exceeded all others. Whence then the
domestic war, sudden, unexpected,
which has convulsed it like an earth,
quake? Why, when the forces of the
loyal are SO immensely y superior to
those of the disloyal, does the war CON
tinue, and threaten to continue for
many years? Is there no way of bring
ing it to a speedy and desirable end ?
These are questions that crowd out al
most all others in the breasts of ALL
Are we any more to have the country
OF which we have been so proud, or
has the vision faded and gone with
yesterdays dreams?
Though the great rebellion is guild
ed by a few prominent leaders, it by
no means grew out Of the ambition of
those men. That ambition takes ad-
vantage Of q popular hatred which has
grown out Of certain state of facts
1t IS provcrbial that whom one Injuries
he hates. Whether or not the proy-
erb tells the exact truth of human ma
tare, this certainly is tine. IF any one
Injuries another, he hates all those who
sympathisc with his victim. 1t is
probably true that q strong man may
use weak one with great injustice,
and not be conscious Of hating him.
On the contrary, he may fondle him as
a pet, and think he loves him. But let
somebody else call attention to the in
justice and take the p4rt OF the injured,
and then the hatred will blaze out
The strong man will be bitter as death
towards the sympathizer with his pet
victim, and bitter, jHst in proportion
as he IS con&i4ced of his own injustice.
This hatred will swallow up all saint
ship that does not rise to the point Of
repenting of the injustice. Of all the
odiums that ever inhamed and poison
cd poor human nature, this is the most
virulcnt.
In the infancy of the worId-out of
which it has hardly emerged-stEong
men used weak ones very much rs they
would other animals. The wealthier
made slaves of the poorer, even Of the
same race This fault Of internal poll
tv, in spite OF great advance in arts,
carried nations to their tombs. OF
more mQdcrn civilization, founded on
law that does not permit the strong to
| ensla&c the weak Of the same race, the
pest has been that men nave still been
allowed to use, as domestic animals,
men of uncivilized races. Supposirg
these unciyilizcd men not to differ ma
terially from animals, either in charge
ter or capacity, it would not be easy to
show the injustice of treating them as
such. But from first TO last, however
much they may differ from more civil
lied men, they differ infinitely more
from the beasts of the field. Hence
slavery is unjust at first, and grows
more SO as it grows older.
The great quarrel between Great
Britain .and her American colonies,
found all of the latter more e. Jess IN
yolved with lAfllcan slavery. Their
first act, as the basis of their indep en-
dence, was solemn resolution to have
done with it, as unjust and inconsistent
with the free government which they
desired. This popular resolution was
as strong IN one part Of the country as
another, or if any thing, strongest
where the proportion of slaves was
greatest. But where the slaves were
fewest, private interest most easily
| gave way to the public good, and
hence the Northern part of the Union
grew up free from slavery, while the
Southern retained it, in spite of all res
buttons, declara+ions, bills of right
&C., which ought to have made an enc
Of It. Nobody hates the Southern
slave holders, for the mere fact Of hold
ing slaves. Few fail to make all due
allowances for the circumstances which
have led them into such Injustice
Many have admired them for that ca
sy generosity of disposition which nat