Smyrna times. [volume] (Smyrna, Del.) 1854-1987, 1861-09-12
The South Fighting for no Principle.

The rebel government at the South initiates
all our movements as closely as possible, there
by dong what it can to convince its own ad-
herents Of the hollowness of its complaints
against the administration of President Lin
coin, and avoiding the adoption of the new
policy, to obtain which the rebels revolted
Alter complaining for thirty years of our tariff
system, and demanding free trade as the pr
mary need of the south, no sooner did they
stand out alone than they began by adopting a
tariff for revenue and discarding free trade,
Notwithstanding that they knew their tariff
would be a dead letter in consequence Of the
blockade of their coast. CUntemporaneOusly
with this they set the seal of condemnation
upon the pet project of a revival Of the foreign
slave trade by making the most stringent provls-
ions against it. instead of constructing a mere
league of sovereign States,as proposed by the pol
ltlclans Of the South Carolina State rights school
they organized a strong consolidated national
government, sinking every vestage of State
independence even more comp etely than had
been the case with the original Union. Nor
were they more gngerly about State sovereign
ty IN the matter OF the army and navy, reg
ular force of both being established the same
as with US. There is no regular army of South
Carolina or Virginia, but of the confederate
States, and the same is the case with the
navy.
President Lincoln issued proclamation de-
clarng strict nonintercourse with the rebel
States. and authorizing the seizure OF vessels
and property engaged in intercourse. jeff.
Davis followed suit at once. The carrying OF
| letters to and from the rebel States by express
was arrested by order of Postmaster General
! Blair, and Immediately afterward the order
was echoed from Richmond. The transmission
Of hV FaIl tp0 .
was ordered by our government to be stopped,
! and at once the rebel authorities hustled about
and SYSTEMATICALLY did the same thing. When
/ we arrested the commerce of the Missss pp
/ they assumed to be doing it also. They have
| copied the exnct amount OF all our national
loans and lovies of troops in their own acts.
| They hove initiated our confiscatIon act, levied
| like US a direct war tax, contracted for gun
boats just as we did, issued Treasury notes,
repeated the teamwork Of our government,
organized the basis of army and navy in the
same style, taken into their service all our old
officers, civil and otherwise, that they could
obtain, paroded the routine of the White
| House and its assoc iaIions, and generally
shown a serve adherence to the forms Of the
great republic from which they essayed to sep
arate themselves The style of their govern
ment is as near to ours as they could get, and
| luGIT nag uIIto'
A more striking acknowledgment Of the
strength of southern feeling in favor Of the
Union could not be desired than is afforded by
these indications. They prove conclusively that
the conspira,oEs were so we'll aware of the love
of their people for the old national government
and all it's forms and traditions that they have
not yet dared TO shock the sentiment Of the
messes by rude departure Iherefrom. After
daring to speak and act in the Union against all
the things we have mentioned, no sooner do
they undertake TO carry into effect their long
: cherished scheme of a separate government
than all their idolized notions are abandoned
South Carolina and all her train of macontents
throughout Dixey's Land are bound hand and
foot, their tencts thrown overheard, their COM
plants silenced and their States sunk into
mere provinces. They cannot even complain
Of Fremonts proclamation Of enfranchisement
Of the slaves of REBEL since it is but carrying
into effect the law OF conisca tion adopted by
our government and copied Immediately by
the Richmend organization. If they enforce
their own law they must confisc tie the slaves
Of the Union, so that between the two they will
have no slaves remaining. In fact, they regis
ter all our doing as their own, and obey our
laws more implicitly in open rebellion than
ever they did while in professed loyalty -
What, then, are they fighting for Why
throw away the lives of their citizens in oppo
stion to q governmGn nj whose outlines they dare
not depart from. and whose laws they repeat
as their own NORTH American.