Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-10-26
TIE AgraHIcAs Cassay IN uUmo2E.
Great ssritian Afraid OF the RcsPOnsibiI-
ny OF thc Fremont Proclamation.
From the London Times, Sept, 20.

g. From the London Times, sept 20.
] An important piece of Information reaches us
from America President Lincoln has requested
General Fremont TO Tnctify the proclamation By
which he declared that the slaves Of the insurgent
pTOprietors should be liberated The proclamation,
is said trsnsCeuds the powers given him by Con-
gress. ard therefore must not be acted upon. This
resolution of the President seems to have been fully
expected by the Washington politicians, although
one or two members of the Cabinet were in favor
of proceeding to extremities against the Confede
rates. The President, though elected By the Re
pubicans and AbOlitcnists has been sObered by
spoGsibl,ty, and now las the credit of being of
the most conservative men Of his own party
Aware that TO e;nGncipate the slaves even Of the
rebels wss to bring e-d fearful cause of AMI
mostly into the contest, he has administered some
thiog Ike rebuke % his setve and Jealous suboF
dinate and for time the North Will refrain from
using against its antagonist the most terrible weap
Oh IN Its armOry.
But there are not waning signs tha. the great
question of emancipation msy at some future time
be 0rCu h. into the field. BY some persons that
question has been thought 10 lie at the bottom Of
the strife from the very beginning; others have
held that the North should 81 least have openly pro
claimed Il as the otjsct Of the war as soon hos
tiiites broke out; while j third party appears TO
consider that the adoption Of the emancipation doe
trine by the Federal government wi J. at any rate,
co7dUce 70 tie speedy termination Of the struggle
We think ig highly probable that If tSe war cORtin
av0wed By the people Of The North. They could
hardly be expected 20 resist ATTY longer the consist
eBt advocates Of this principle or to fOFegO the EN-
pOymsEt Of so Cii5ctVe an engine against the cause
Of their adyeTsariss bU: We do not see that this
ms uautOus step Is Ike &c Be taken st present. aud
great SIS would be the intrinsic merits of the mea
sure we entertain serious doubts whether 1t would
really contri5ut under existing circumstances, TO
the conclusion OF the pending quarrel.
After discussing the various shades of opinion
at the North III, TINES continues:
l. is impossible. however. to blink the fact that
the adgPtiCn of this doctrine would make any pa
cifc agreement with the South utterly impractica
ble. would divide the great body Of UnIOnists
among themsStyC ard might dsplerably sggrs-
vste in all probability, The horrors OF this unfor
tunate war.
Even if we should assums-which would not be /
the whole of the Republican psrty /
desired the sboition Of slavery. that party would
not represent one half of the American people
perhaps not much more than one half of the people
Of the North. The democratic party. which, If il
had been everywhere united could have carried |
even the last Presidential election against Mr. Lin,
eOln IS willing aad anxious TO coHCede to the slave
States. all the guarantees they demand for the
security of their Institutions. condition only of
heir returning to the body Of the Union. ANY pol
cy, therefore, which would eXti8guisb this chance
f reconciliation would be viewed by this numerous
md Influential party with ulquTlHsd hostility ald
President Lincoln wCuld ii himself confronted in
lis prosecution Cf the war 0y a strong constitu-
ional opposition SO that his enemies would be exas-
3ersted ard his own supporters weakened at one
md t.e same m0msnt The South. after the procl4
nation OF abolition, would fight with the ferceness
If despair and It IS but too probable that servile
might lie added TO the cIlsmtes of the
var. Who. indeed. could expect that the liberation
# three millions Of siayrs-8 problem upon which
N but fanatics have ever looked with something ,
ike bewiIderment--cOuldb be solved without terri
lie convuIols in the heat Of internacine conflict:
The adoption of so extreme resolution would in |
Iced give the North wSJchwOri universally Unin
eligible. and it would induce very many 70 bid
hem God speed IN the enterprise on which they ,
we're bound Perhaps, iadeed, it would have the
usual efsct OF sl thorough going resolutions in in
-igoratiDg the policy OF the government; b1s it
would certainly split the North itself into two
amps, i would inspire the South with redoubled
and it would expose the slave pOfUla-
ion TO consequences which nobody can fOretel.-l
taGCing these obvious considerations, we
nc far from thinking that the ultimate adoption Of
he doctrine IS impossible It will. doubtless, be
Urged strongly. and perhaps successfully, on the
government If the strife goes on; but. alth lugh We
re ready with our u1GympFOmIsing aPpTJbluGn Of q
be principle itself. We can hardly persuade our
elves that lis sudden enforcement ii the midst Of
var would be likely to produce any such termila
ION Of the struggle tae friends Of hImlnity aul
rogTess universally desire. Z