Juliet signal. [volume] (Juliet [i.e. Joliet], Ill.) 1844-1???, 1862-09-30
The Presidential PrOclama-
fInmS


We give in this days paper two prccla
nations which have just been issued by
President Lincoln.
The first Of these documents will be
found on the first page. As will BIO seen,
it declares general emancipation to tie
slaves.
We were rover more surprised and morti-
fed in our lives than when this negro emau.
cipatien proclamation first made its appear
ance. The letters and speeches of the
President since his inauguration caused us
to hope for better things from hIu,. Indeed
we had commenced to look upon him as
conservative man and to congratulate the
country upon his hostility to ultra aboli-
tionism. His letter 20 Horace Greeley
certainly afforded us grounds for this
But how quickly were our hopes and ex-
pectations dispelled.
1t will do No good for Us to make var On
this emancipation proclamation now. 1t
has gone forth to the world, and whatever
we might say would not affect its operation
one way or the other. However, as pub
lie journalists, we fOcl called upon to ex-
press our views on the subject.
We Do not believe in the emancipation
| policy 10 any light in which it can be pre-
seuted. That it violates the constitution
does not require argument to establish.
| And as a war measure, there is no ques-
ton 10 our minds but that it will be of in
calculabe advantage to the cause of the
rebellion. The passage Of the confscatien
bill by the Abolition Congress, was the
means Of increasing the rebel army bund
reds of thousands. And the proclamation
of emancipation will make soldier Of
every Southern man who is capable o.
bearing arms. Thus these two measure:
will render the war a contest of far greater
magnitude than could be comprehended a
its commencement. The Southerners nov
sec that their all is at stako-life, property
and honor as they suppose, and rivers o
Northern blood will have to be spilled be,
fore they can be sutjugated.
Another strong objection against thu
emancipation proclamation is its despotit
tendency. we firmly believe that thu
President has no more right or power tt
issue proclamation declaring freedom II
the slaves, than he has to bject the whites
of the rebel States to slavery. If the Pres
ident has to aunul or to interfere with tn,
local laws and institutions of States at all
he verify can rule with more absolute des
potism than the Autocrat of Russia. W.
hold that the President has no more RICH
to abolish slavery than he has to abolish
the institution of marriage, or any othe
relation or institution created and regula-
ted By STATE laws.
The other proclamation in our columns
is also of extraordinary character. 1t de
clares martial law and suspeDds thu
ha6edS corpus throughout the land. Thi
also seems to US i'll timed. demonstrations
and uncalled for. Laying aside all consti.
tutional and Legal objections, we must sa.
that we cannot see the necessity of so ez.
trem a measure at this time.
1t is not necessary for US TO extend ou
objections to these prOelamations from ou
Executive As much as we regret and de
pl0re their appearance, we shall not relax
our efforts in behalf of the cause of the
Union aud the constitution. We shall con
tinua to sustain the Administrator in car
rying on the war as though no such edicts
had been sent out. Let US, as Democrats
contiue our aid in putting down the rebelled
and leave the corrections OF abuses of poY
er to the ballot box.