Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1862-05-06
LAWS OF NATURE--NO. 3.
E1ilors IntelIiqencer::

Editors Inteliigencer:
I,believe it was Byron, who said that
man was an unfortunate poor devil, and al
ways would be. Our present national ca
lamities give assurance that we Amerl-
cans enjoy no exemption from the com.
mon lot. The truth is, that as nation
we are now suffering the punishment of
| our national crimes. We have violated the
laws of nature and those laws cannot be
violated with impunity. II was formerly
believed that the Deity accomplished the
punishment of crime by direct and lmme-
| diate iuterposition. The world has be.
come wiser; men now perceive that calam-
tiles come not only in consequence but by
means OF sin. Our present calamity is a
wasting war; war is the direct offspring OF
the bad passions OF men, but bad passions
can scarcely ever prevail extensively in a
nation or community except by means of
bad and atrOciOus institutions. l know
that these doctrines are scarcely denied
| The Columbus CTisis and Statssmdn and
the Cincinnati Enquirer, and their little
satellites, in almost every country town in
| Ohio, yehemently charge the aboiitionists
| with the guilt of the war. They, the
aforesaid wicked abolitionists, got up the
I agitation and commenced the QUARREL
/. Having expressed their disapprobalion of
| slavery, our s'SOnthern brethren" car
rfed their resentment to the last extremity,
for they dissolved the Government, seized
the forts, arscnRls and dock yards and
bOmbarded Sumpter. If this is the fact,
our Southern brethren" suffered them.
selves to be betrayed into n most uuseemly
passion by very inconsiderable body of
men, for the abolitionists never numbered
more than two or three per cent of the
Northern people. / speak GdvisedIy, Let
us appeal to facts. After the compromise
measures of 1850, the public mind in the
free States sunk down intO a state of tor
pOr on the slavery question, which was
perhaps a natural revulsion from the pre-
viOus agitation. Gorged with sop the
Cerebus Of slavery, for moment ceased
20 grOwl. Tue National Democratic Com
vention met at Baltimore in June 1862,
and passed strong resolution against the
RENEWAL of the agitation of the slavery
question, either sin Congress or out of ii, !"
under whatever color or shape the attempt
might be made. The Whig party, soon af-
ter assembled in Philadelphia and passed
similar resolution. The third party, who
nominated John P. Hale made no such
pledge. The numbers, who voted for
Franklin Pierce, the Democratic candidate,
were one million four hundred and niuty-
three Thousand one hundred and twenty
! Eve, for General Scott, the Whig candi-
date. one million three hundred and nine
ty-three thousand and eighty-nine, for
John P. Hale, one hundred and tWenty-
eight Thousand three hundred aud twenty
FIVE. state from memory only, but there
| is no fear Of my being substantially incor-
rect. Possibly l may be a little mistaken
as to Mr.. Pierce's vote; but the iuaccuracy,
even if have stated his vote little too
high, will not much vary the actual pro.
portions. The vote for Mr.. Hale, though
much greater than any previous vote of
the same party, certainly did not amount
to FIVE per cent Of the electors. The
very high, mental and moral. qualiica-
tiDhs Of. that gentleman probably See
cured him some votes out of his party;
but, certainly, no Abolitionist voted for
Pierce or Scott; and just as certainly the
Abolition vote never amounted TO Eve per
cent of the electors. In only this one in.
stance did it ever amount to more than
two. or three per CeuV Itis not pretended
that the majority Of tho Northern people ev-
er were pro.slayeFy men, They iudulged
the hope, perhaps too generous, that adEan-
cling light, increasing civilization and re-
fnement, and the spirit of progress, would
! gradually relax the chains of the bond
man, and finally strike them from his limbs
Thus hoping and thus wishing, they were
far indeed from any feeling of hostility
4 against our Southern kinsmen. They YER
| lily believed that gradual emancipation Af-
| f0ried to the Southern masters themselves
1.-THE only escape from enormons aud impend.
ling calamities. IN their circumstances, aud
especially, if familiar with the works oi
4 Jefferson and Madison, George Mason and
! EPatTtck d Heury, s4he adoption of such opin.
lions was inevitable. Whether these opin-
lions waee correct or incorrect, the men Whc
4 Siopt "a, them Il ere neither fanatics aorSiu.
terte entionists.~ Ifthe political calm, which
prevailed 50 1882 and 1853, came to sud.
den and disastrous Termination IL slavery
soon Afterwards contrfyed to lash the pop
uIar ocean into tempest, the cause must be
sought fOrsinl its own aggressive spirit, il
its own perfidy, in its breach of sacred an6
bofteu repeated pledges. Some readers may
| feel a curiosity to know something mort
about these Abolitionists, at whose dool
the enormous guilt Of our present wasting
|WRr' Is laid. Having been one of the mil
lion driven from the bosom of the Demo
cratic party, by the odiOus per6dy, which
repealed the Missouri Compromise, ant
having never had any political connection
With the Abolitionists, the subscriber be.
tlieVes that he can speak of them with per-
foct impartialitS Il Is said that On.
yier, the great French Naturalist. wa.
Ionee. In his cabinet, deeply engaged with /
fossil bone, trying to- determine, whether
A its former owner had been mastodon o.
a megatberi1m OF some other monster o
the pre.adamite world; when his sable
n1aiestS suddenly appeared and informed
1.-The philosopheF, of his So atanie design to pst
him fot hEs. dinner Cuvter, looking up q
an enormous pair of antlers, exclaimed
'horns, horns" /" then casting his eye dowI