The daily Green Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1861-1865, 1862-08-29
retaliation.

Z Retaliation.
1t is not altogether possible to carry on wa
successfully Oh humaneand Christian principles
There must he killing, and burning, ami vast
ing, and 1t is impossible in ali cases to save th
innocent from the late Of the guilty. Property
and life must be destroyed, and the destruction
general rule, the shortest War lniilcts The leas
injury and tins Is certainly true where it IL
waged on 50 gigantic scale dc now IN thu
country. Our Government has within the last
month deter mined on"makIng a IL re vigorous
effort to crush treason. To this end it has put
d stop, by general ORDER, to much OF The undue
tenderness that has been hitherto shown TO REEFS.
Ii hes also, in some portions Of the country, viz
tied with sudden punishment maaading bands
! Of piunJer,rs. Ii has done this, NOS Tor revenge,
but as warning, AID 70 prevent such murder
and pliiago III future, and as q measure Of ne
cessary severity Ia surprising treason. 1t is
! authorized TO do il by The ueages Of war as be-
tween heihgeFent la tons, ana still more by the
right that nation has to }uy down, by the
strong arm, all !nsuTectIOn aainst its authur-
| 10y. THIS exhibition of force and severity is,
however, exceedingly disFastriul 10 the exQuis-
+ l,ei, Tine moral Seuse of jeff Da, and his con-
feder4tc t!v Hols and he has caused an order to
be is>ccd, directing the officers Of Gen, Pope S
army, who nigh, be aiken pglsonsre 70 be thrust
into dungeons, and treated rs common tel0nh.
lie las alSv issued another order as follows;
ADJUrANT AND INSPECTOR GtNERAL's OFFICE, J
Richmond. August 20, 1862
GENERAL ORDERS, No. SO. i. Whereas. h.
formation has been received that certain peace
able citzcns OF the Confederate States have
been seized and put to death by order Of GEM
RAJ Fltc', Commanding the Army of the United
States WHICH had invaded the State OF Arkau.
sas, upon he ground shat one OF the said lnya.
1irg army had been 6ho; ny some unknown
person. whn, whatever bis condition.. bad an
uuQuasiiO;.ube right to defend his home 4nd
,ohereaS, inquiry has been made Of the Govern
ment OF the United States as to The correctness
OF such information, and whether -he action OF
Gen. Fitch has tie sanction OF tic I'D Govern
LbHlip " Nil'il VIC duLtOt iIFc bl lne
| United States have refused to answer, and
10hereaS, our Government is thereby driven TO
retaliatory measures as the only mcaus to pro-
tect the lives Of the peaceable citizens Of the
Confederate States who may fall into the hands
Of General Fitch, or any person: acting Under
I his authority
1t is hereby ordered that General officers
commanding troops Of the Confederate States
! Gh IL forthwith -, md a.
President whether such acts have been commit
ted, and upon being certified thereof, shall forth
! with set apart, by lot, from among any Prison
ers taken from tile command Of Gen. Fitch. :
number Of officers equal IN number to the per-
sons who have been put to death IS AZORES id,
and place them in close confinement for execu-
tim. at such time thereafter as may be ordered
by the President. and shall regard the said Gen
Fitch. If captured, not as a prisoner of war.
but place him in confinement as d felon. until
further orders of the President Bv order.
1t IS evident, from this course of the rebel au-
thorltles, that they expect, by such retaiatory
measures as the above, to dictate the policy
which our Government shall pursue in suppress
ing rebellion. They know the value and in1u-
ence OF the severest measures at home for thew
have employed those agencies until thew have
made their people unit in opposition to the
United States authorities They now are t,y.
ing The same treatment upon our Government
Hitherto they have successfully accomplished
their purposes by these threats of retaliation
and through fear of them, our authorize,
have abandoned one after another the measures
OF vigor threatened against rebels 1t remains
to be seen whether rebellion can still successful,
play this game, committing every imaginabl,
crime against our Government with IMMUNITY
and avertng from their own heads every blow
OF just punishment by interposng some unfor
tunate Union prisoner.
We submit that in this direction the tender
nesSot Government has already gone far enough
1t is time that the sword of avenging iustic,
was made bare to the hilt, and the lust iude
ment CT outraged and defied law was visited
unsparingly upon the guilty uphodcrs of tn,
greatest crime of the 18Th century. More thar
twenty millions Of people are suffering ever,
day this war IS prolonged, and the burden of az
immense debt is every day swelling to weigt
down our shoulders land the shoulders of ou
children. Hundreds are dying every week O
the diseases OF the camp and the field and hun
dreds moro tall through the casualties of battle
bringing mourning to thousands of he,rts