Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1861-06-20
THE RICHMOND WING.
MOTIVES OF THE NORTH IN THIS CONTEST-IS
SHE BOUND IN CONS0lENCE Or BY POLITICAL
NECESSITY. TO AWAR OF RECONSTRUCTION.

Pear he imnatent NAVY end q rust OF our Norther

noehbor as he ganccs the heading of these letteIs
"Ths hardly the question naturally suggested by the
cris:s-certainy not the most likely the
strife by its discussion. Tne South is the party who has
violently broken away from old and sacred relations,
We hurI back then her uabecOmpg challenge. is The
finally committed to a wG of stparaticaI'
The re,ort is fi made and in the end shall he fair
" met Oay let me premise two thirgs: As yor's is
no. the question Just now uLder consideration must,
of course content ourselves With simple categorical
ply to it. Furthermore We guided neither By
chance nor Dr. udce in the choice of the form in which
the subject has been proposed. IL is celebrate
yc,iou that discussion is more likely to shed new light
upon the relations Of the North to the war; than upon
these of the South, and for these simple reasont:
The North never anticipated that secession would be
actually copsummated. According 10 the repeated deca
ratons Of her press and public men, she YVES but half
convinced Of the earnetness of the South by the success
sive Withdrawal OF the Cotton States, and was only
shocked into appreciation of the existing crss by the
roar Of the batteries at Charleston Yet again, the Ad
mios,rsion that represents tho Northern people,
and has given them policy received this issue from
lis predecessor as an existing fact Of indeGite proper
lions, to be measured and met it almost at a
ure Did not lis wsvcring policy with regard to sum
ter and it. own attempted explanation Of itdd not The
wentytw days dallyng with thckConede-ate Commis-
sonera indicate something like this! On the other hand
the great issue long cont mpated by the South ncu-
de1 every phase ofthe question you would have
her reconsider. For months, while you secuted
us as de.picable players at the low game Of poht-
cal bluster we were seriously capvas;ing these
three points before the people, the Grounds
The Constitutional Right Prospects Of seces.on-
whether, indeed, with cur len thousand able to
meet you should you against US with your twenty
thousand Aud surely the Southern Government has ad
varced with consistent rmness at least suggestive
such preGc bsration Would it be strange if the i'm
pulse If people acredulous of an issue until forced &c
meet it, and the policy of an administration assuming
contrcl Of revolution already more than hsF eccot
plsbed ought i, 10 surprise us, | ask, il such action
and policy he less carefully digested ard more open to
after modification ;han the determination OF that people
who have l0rca1d auxicusly contemplated movement
involving their liberties and lives? In consonance With
these pcsi'ous, put it to you, my Northern Neigh
Dor, is rc, the reflection, iiually committed
appropriate to You than to NE
IN gisug the promised answer for my section, lave
one favor TO ask s that you receive H. believing that
my soul is lifted above the pahe liltlenoss of oravGd0
by the felt solemnity OF the crisis And now dispa7
sonatey, but urhest.tingly tell you the South is con
scientiously and fully committed 20 ? Of sepsre-
ticn; for her the resul. viii be Independence annh
laon Do you say if thus fclrltssly resolved Wheuce
soling, this effort to avoid the issue tell you, without
shame from hearts not dcsiroas OF such corde Eor
even Indifferent It's approach, bat which yet trust
vii not shrink from your invading steel and noh
,L, C,tJ
nothing shall deter US from bs as; a:temp, to convince
you Of your error before we meet lAoIe.
Would you know tie fpri: in which VIC Of Yirgli.
have resolved? When he failure Of tie last prol=e,pd
compromise lcb5ed the oil State Of the good hope, that
the mother Of the Union might prove its preseryer -
when TIE proclamation oi yOuc President at last con.
vinced her that she could be mediator OF peace be-
tween the two par;es put o the evil day when
the only motive urged against secession the bastard
plss that By remaining loyal to the President she might
avert the from her own soilIhan history witnessed
a scene which she viii yet record Of the submest
outurss OF tae human heart; men Wcp: over a Gov
srnment whose allegiance they cast Cf. am dealing
in no figures, for when tue proclamation OF Gr. Lincoln
was read in the Conyenon, aud nsircvely the vote
the Ofdauce was called for the usual hum of that BODY
died away into hush OF the deepest soleuuity and
vote after vote steadily wore away tie tic that bad
lorg bound 10 yOu the impressive silence broken
only by the s1bbings cf the voerp whoso hearts in that
grand moment were taking leave Of the paat and the
dead before turning to the living aud the future de.
cson thus made in demands reconsideration;
il will never be reversed. Do not understand that
are desperate aud cas-: away reasonthst The South has
resolved and therefore will never more reflect rather,
that the South hes so resolved that for her. a'con
will beget irresou;ion. Is so with ycus Dare
ycu test it by these few reflections!
"7he hds actually begun IL IS too lGis to in.
dnge in this insane tca9dl; G5Oat peaceful Adjustment
Such is the one grand obstacle TO proposed dis.
cussonsuch the readiest plea with which break the
force Of such the ssddet weight that lies on pa
triot hearts today TOO lstethe tRcit agreement, among
usto consider ineTIable, and the attemp. 10
avert it. We have just exercised this spirit vet ana
lyZe your eonsciorsness it is si there one Of the
des forces pressing you steadily into the jaws of
death. 1t exists primarily as constant though almost
unconscious inertia in the miEds Of the people, bearing
them heavily onward 10 the execution of any purpose
however cEudey formed and disincinng them TO yield
any suggestion Of reconsideration, however welmed
or wise Wculd not the ultimate triumph OF such ndif
ference in crisis so VITAL evince lack Of intellectual
and moral seusbilty deeply humiatng? 1t operates
too, false PRIDE binding with all the stolen force
OF honor to any decision made. Though its rAd
eLce be almost omnipotent | surely need expose no
further the low and runous principle which has hrrrec
and nations to destruction that might have been
avoided cheating thm with the seeming consciousness
of lofty resolution. AZ false principle an the phRo,
ophy Of successful Gction it deludes men, ever sugse,t
ing that he who reflects after decision must of neCes-
sity be an rresoiute weGklng, moving Gmly end
vigorously to the accomplishment of purpose But |
mus. action be unrelsctve insure vgor aud success
Eow, then, should it be modified when should we
cease to act' Evidently not until arrested by outside
circumstances snd thus, by yielding to the plausible
error that resolution must bansh reflection men would
lose the priceless prerogat;ve Cf rational sedirscion
end control. Is it practical necessity that the wal
once naugura.ed should run lis courseg True, ur |
versal and intense war spirit has been reused among
lie pesple; immense armies have been levied equipped
and marched upon the field by beth parties, at vas
expense every ferocious passion has been fred ano
every shrpkng of our better nature deedened by actual
bloc dy collision; both governments even now involved
in labyrinth of contracts dependent on the war null |
udes Of the people personally interested in these
arrangements, and in all this there is practical pro-
digious force pressing onward 10 the co1iict No
one will deny the actual difficulty Of duie,irg he war
spr-recalhng the embsttied armies disbsndng them
and merging them again among the people, no one VII |
assume that il is easy thing to eIircae two govern
and their contractors frem the M