Civilian & telegraph. [volume] (Cumberland, Md.) 1859-1875, 1861-09-05
The pCace' Party In Maryland.

The affect of those who are origina-
ting what they term peace purity in this
State, may be OWNED by looking at the
material of which that party is expected
to be composed. 1t is well known that
those who have just issued their mani
festo to their followers, dated from the
Legislative chambers of the temporary
capital of the State at Frederick, were,
at the commencement of our troubles,
the loudcst in their donunciations of Gov.
Hicks, because he refused to call them
together, to enable them to concoct their
schemes under some &how Of legality -
The only object they protested to have
in view in the assembling of the legis-
lature, was to give the people OF Mary
land an opportunity to decide for them
selves the position they would choose to
occupy in the anomalous condition of the
country, and The pledge was given and
reiterated, that to avoid the expense of
heightened session in the present cramp-
ed state cf the treasury, no other busi
ness should be transacted than the lc
Called call of Il convention to present
to the consideration of the people the
subject OF secession, which had been SO
hotly pressed upon us 6y the emissaricS
and missionaries of the States which
had taken the bold stand Of 'pposition
to the Government of the Federal Union.
Governor Hicks, satisfied that the vast
majority of the people of Maryland were
loyal to the Constitution, aud that no
public exigencv required such action as
that he was called ou TO perform. and
conscious that the leading men enlisted
in the call were aiming more at the ac-
compIshmcnt Of Il reasonable purpose.
similar to that which had been devrio-
ped in adjacent States, than for Il fair
and full expression of public semtir cmt.
resisted time and again the appeals made
to him to assemble the Legislature. AZ
ter the events Of the 18th of April. how
ever, he concluded on different course.
and the Legislature was accordingly as
senIblel to consider the aspect of the af-
fairs of the State The proceedings vi
that body are before the world. Not
withstandng the appeals which had been
made to secure their aSscmblagc, and in
default Of the assent Of the Governor TO
| authorize their meeting, Il revolutionary
call was issued by one Of its members
at the instigation, no doubt. of others,
for its asscmblagc. When they dill as
scmble under the cali Of the Executive,
and the demand was made upon them to
give the people an opportunity to vote
at the ballot box upon the momcntous
subject which bad been so urgently press
ed upon their attention. the very men
who had filled the State with their cries
for the dear peoples having the priviI-
eye to determine for themselves their
future destiny, in the momentous crisis
in which our country is found, have,
since their first organization, persistent
~ withheld their consent to the enjoy
ment OF any such opportunity; and in
stead Of combining themselves to the one
great object which alone they profcsscl
to have in view, they have continued in
session by adjournmonts from time to
time, and have, contrary to promise, en-
acted laws upon various other subjects.
and proposed others such as the tro
million loan and the military JW-with
revolutionary band at its head, one Of
whom, at least, is bow in the rebel army,
ana the whole Of them believed to be
fully identified IN tAir sympathi!s. If
not in their more active 60 T,:a'i'n
with the Confederate government. The
hypocrisy of these men is thus presented
to the public gaze They were afraid
to trust the people with discussion Of
the question. They knew, from the first,
that the popular voice was opposed to
their schemes; but the people at that
time were not aware of the object Of their
earnest desire for their assembage, and
it was only by the discovery of the means
by which other States were SO uncere-
mouousIy forced to change their ma
tionality and loyalty, that the true Oh
ject and intent of the conspirators were
manifested. When this discovery was
made, the people then became aroused,
and when the Infamous t,co million loan
bill was or the carpet, their indignation
was so far manifested as to deter the
conspirators from carrying out their rev.
dictionary scheme. The Congressional
election, however, presented the oppor-
tuni:y of testing the feelings of our State
upon the great issues of the day, and
the overwhelming defeat which the sym
pathizers with rebellion received on that
occasion, showed in unmistakeable terms
that the attempt was vain and futile to
hitch our proud old State, one of the or
iginal thirteen, to the car of the oligar-
chs and monarchists of South Carolina,
as poor old Virginia had done. The
tune ,cas no,U to be changed. Instead of
taxing the people with a debt which it
would have cost years of additional tax
alton to meet, to raise civil war in our
midst, and to oppose the constituted gov
eminent of our country, as no honest
aud intelligent man will deny. was the
object of that bold, bad measure, and
which would ere this have made our
State the battle ground Of contending
armies, as similar measures have secured
to some of the other border States,
whose people are now suffering all The
horrors of war in its worst forms by the
action of a similar class of men, we are
now suddenly startled with the cry of
peace! and those who were SO lately
for arming the State, and for rushing
US into fraternal strife, brother against
brother, and father against son, are now
suddenly changed into peace men ! Will
any sane mind believe that this change !
is produced by any other cause than
,hange of po icy! Had the govern
nent the power or the right to acknowl
EDGE the independence of the Southern
Ionfederacy, and the question was TO-