The daily Green Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1861-1865, 1861-06-08
G. M. Claws Letter to the London Times

States of America, which, am surprised to find,
are 80 little understood this side of The Atlantic
l. What are zoe fighting for?" "We the
people of the United States of America Ito
use the language of our Constitution) are fight
ing to maintain our nationality, and the p'1nc'-
pies of liberty upon which 1t was founded that
nationality which Great Britain has pledged her.
self, both by past comfy and the sacred obliga-
tons of treaty to respect those great principles
of liberty, that all power is derived from the con-
sent of the governed trial by jury, freedom of
speech and the press that 'without law there is
no liberty which we inherited from Great
Britain, and which, having been found to lie at
the base of all progress and civilization, we de-
sire to perpetuate for ourselves and the future of
all the nations. The so-called ' Confederate
States of America" rebelagainst us-againstour
nationality, and against all the principles of its
structure. Citizens of the United States, of the
one government, (not of Confederated States, as
they would have the world believe, but of "us
the people they propose. not by common legal
consent but by arms, to sever our nation into
separate independences Claiming to be L" let
alone they conspre against US seize our forts,
stores and arms; appropriate to themselves our
minis, moneys, and vessels at sea ; capture our
armies, and threaten even the capital at Wash
lngton.
Inc W0ru ~ SeCcSslOH ID uSeu 70 COVeI up
treason and delude the nations. They stand to
us in the relation of one "peoplc.' The idea Of
i" State sovereignty is utterly delusive. We
gave up the old " COME leraton' to avoid such
complications as have now occurred. The States
are deprived of all the rights ofindependent SOW
ereigns, and the National Government acts d.
rectly upon the citizens of the States themselves,
10 that highest power the right of life and death.
The States cannot keep an army or navy or even
repel invasion except when necessity will not al
low time for action can make no treaty, nor
coin money, nor exercise any of the great powers
of sovereignty" In word, they can no more
''secede' from the Union than Scotland or Ire
land can secedc from England,
The professed friends of the independence Of
nations, and popular rights, they have not only
overthrow the Constitution of the United
States, but the Constitu ton of the " Confeder
ate States themselves, refusing in every case
to refer their new usurpations to the votes of
the people, thus making themselves doubly
traitors to both the States and the nation. The
despotic rulers over 1900, 900 Of enslaved AT
ricans, they presume to extend over us, the white
races Of all nations, the same dcspotism, by ig-
noring the political rights of all but their own
class, by restrictions upon the popular fran
chise, by the suppression of the freedom of
speech and of the press, by the terrorism of
Lynch law" or crush out the independence
of thought, the ineradIcable Instincts Of our
world wide humanity-with the attractions dog
ma that negro slavery is the only basis of real
conservatism and progressive civilization, and
that capital should ovn the laborer, whether
WhUe or black
The success Of such demands would send the
tide of baybarism not only over the millions of
the New World and the isles of the Western
oceans, but roll it back over England and eman-
cipated Europe, and blot out from history this,
the greatest glory of our times.
2. " But can you subdue the reuolted States?
OF course we can. The whole seven reyolted
States (2,l73 000) have not as much white
1851 ,563) by 100000. If all the slave
only 1907 1874 whites, with 1000 900 slaves,
while the Union has 10000, 600 Of homogene-
Gus people, as powerful in peace and war as the
world has seen. Intelligent, hardy and many
sided, their late apparent lethargy and weak
ness was the self possession Unconscious strength
hen they had made up their minds that force
was necessary, they moved upon Washington
with such speed, numbers and steadiness as is
not surpassed in history. We have the money
(at IL lower rate of interest than ever before),
the men, and the command Of the seas and the
internal waters. We can blockade them by
sea- and invade them by land, and close up the
rebellion in single year, if we are 80 let alone!"
tor the population Of the slave States is divided
perhaps equally for and against the Union the
loyal citizens being for the time overawed by
the organized conspiracy of the traitors, while
the North Is united to II man-the late allies Of
the South, the Democratic party, being now
more in earnest for the subiugaton of the rebels
than the Republicans
3 g. But can you govern a 8 subjugated people
and reconstruct the Union?" We do not pro-
pose to put down simply the rebel citizens We
60 to the rescue eff the loyal Unlonsls Of all the
States. We carry safety, and peace, and liber-
ty to the Union loving people of the South, who
will OF themselves (the tyranny overthrown,,
serd back their Representatives to Congress, and
the Union will be &C reconStructed' without the
change of single letter in the Constitution Of
the United States. Did England subjugate Ire.
land and Scotland Are the United Kingdoms
less homogeneous than Of old, before the wars
against rebellion? So will the United States
rise from the smoke of battle with renewed sta
bility and power. In turn, now let US ask the
British public some questions
l. Where should British honor place her n,
This contest? We overthrow that political ele-
ment in America which has an through our
history been the studied denouncor and real
hatcr of the British nation, while we have beon
always from the beg ginning the friends of Eng.
land. Because, though under different forms
of Government, we had common sympathies
and u common cause, and therefore common
interest. England WAS the conseryator of lib
erty In Europe-tho old world we in the new.
If the Confederate States are right, then is Eng
land wrong IT Slavery must be extended in
America, then must England restore If in the