New-York daily tribune., 1861-09-08
and although it is equally true that
THE CHARGE OF pRECIFITANCY.
{. Straight forward goes


plunged into il with less concern than would
" have been shown By any European State in
adopting diplomatic quarrel" In this little
| gem of malicious generalization there is lurk.
ing fallacy which diyests the thunder of all its
terrors; and which proves that newspaper may
be sufficiently pompous and at the same time in-
sufficiently philosophical. "The Americans -
one would like to inquire ciyilly what this news
paper means by "Americans 2 Who "plrnged"
frst-the United States or the Confederacy Or
did both plunge" simultaneously Can man
who finds thief in his chamber. and who jumps
quickly from his bed, be charged with immoral
"pluDging?" Were the measures of the Buchnn-
an dynasty Justly amenable to the censure OF
over.yelocty Did we not diplomatize debate
hold conventions and propose compromises? Was
not this continued long after the Charleston
batteries rendered the reinforcement OF Gen.
Anderson impossible 7 1t is shameful to libel us
in this way. No people ever shrunk from war
as we have shrunk from this. The seeding
States BY the very act of secession closed the
door Of adjustment in our faces The COnven-
ton of South Carolina passed the Ordinance OF
Secession on the Goth of December, 1860 at
fifteen minutes past one O'Clock in the afternoon;
and since that day and hour, there has not been
a moment when she would, nay, when she con-
sistenty coud dipomatize. Ii is true that she
sent her Commissioners to Washington afterwsrd;
but she sent them as the representatives OF an
independent State. Then. indeed, we were not
precpitate enough. We c0ntented ourselves with
declining to receive this absurd commission, but
We did not send its members instantly to prison,
as we should have done, and ss any other gov
ernment would have done. Imagine three Irish
men arriving at st. James's with information shat
On Irish republic had been established, OF which
they we're the representatives charged with ar
rapeements for the dismemberment OF the British
Empire They would be locked up as lunatics.
or worse; while We permitted men whose errand
was studied insult to our sovereignty to depart
in peace. Was there any plunge here If
60, it was a very mild one.
Tho attitude OF South Carolina from the first,
was declaration of war. The act which consum-
mated her treason afforded no basis of rcconcila-
ton II contained just eghty-two words twas
a naked defiance of the United States; and could
no more be explained away than blow can be eI-
planned away among men Of honor Ii was con-
cuson OF the pleadiDes. and an offer of the ordeal
of battle. Northern men, who had squandercd
their political fortunes in the service OF the South,
wept, persuaded dissuadcd, and exhorted. There
was luI Of fine speech, and an avalanche OF
propositions. AT oil this South Carolina laughed,
as, to be candid she had a right to laugh. OF
the wisdom or good taste Of these appeals, we
soy nothing; but we do say that they we're
made and that the public mind of the North
was at one time in a condition which made men
who while they loved peace well, loved honor
better, tremble Who, then, can fairly say that
We plunged into this contest with unconcern
But We committed still another oHense. South
Carolina merely INDUCED in treason-our crime
was ele.majesty against taste. Our news
papers "heaped every conceivable opprobrum
on the heads of Southerners. We did not
sufficiently bate our breath nor did We softly
enough whisper our humbleness. 1t was found
that Shylocks as we were, there was lower
depth of concession into which money could not
tempt us. To tell the truth, we were little
afraid Of the ssrcams Of our European critics,
and we shrunk from the insolent leading articles
wherewithal, If we had been false TO truth and
honor. The T,mes would have resaled US. We
thought that in the presence of such crimes, in
dpnation was virtue. Our catalogue of past
grievances was a long one and when the culmi-
nation of them came, people accustomed TO no
censorship Of speech, uttered its convictions with
rude energy which offended none but TRIM
mers. 70 our credit he it sad, we were little
out of patience. II was South Carolina that
halfmurdered our Senator in the Capitol; it was
South Carolina that rhed mail bags, impressed
our sailors, banished our citizens, aud always
! stood ready to den tho Federal Government.
We only lost our equanmity, when State which
for nearly century, had been receiving our
bounty with one hand and smiting us with the
other, abandoned the forms and shows OF loyalty,
aud placed herself in an attitude OF unmistaka-
bic high treason. We were called upon TO taste
the bitter fruit OF our latitudinarian pocy--of
our compromises and concessions-of pOtched.up
peace and hollow truces Then, We admit, we
did not measure our words. We were in a con-
diton too perilOus for polteuess Of parlance. We
became plain and downright, and called spade
a spade. 1t may have been wrong, but, for all
that, il was human
But this ready Jesuit of the London press,
having done the North oil the mischief of which
insnuated ceDsurc is capable, smilingly adds:
"Wo consider that the course of events in the
Union has been perfectly natural, aud that
Americans have only done what EDglishmen
:" or any other people, under the same con.
"ditons, would have done also" The world s