The Lansing state Republican. [volume] (Lansing, Mich.) 1855-1874, 1862-04-09

| With our reverent fathers, seldom vas An se
undertaken without IN invocatiou Of the DIVINE
blese'ng, and rarely vas any great sueceal
achieved without an humble aeEnovledemsst
70 the same Divine Being. We also have had
our days set apart for praise aad fasting, and
yet there 10 among our public men lamsatable
want Of the grave and serious spirit that char.
acserized our early struggle for Nasiseal Iads.
psndence.
When We take retrospect Of the past year,
bow many Circumstances partake peculiarly Of Q
providential character; Immediately before the
war, there vas . divided public sentiment con.
earning it, the greatest hostility being manifest
ed BY portion of enc Of our political par
ties when fnal dstesmisatien was arrived It to
| take up arms against the rebels, rather than
ballot had failed TO secure them. Il slasst
seemed that when the var should connescs,
We would have divided North-one part aid
ing those in rebellion. and united South in
arms But when the Gag Of the Unisn vas shot
down at Sumter, the cry Of me coercion" Vas
stilled forever, and the whole North rose q one
man in defence Of the constitution. The men
Who had denounced the war in advance, sosght
foremost places in the army. On no ordinary
rule Of human conduct can We account for the
marvellous transfornafiens and unaninity Of
that era. We consider il Q striking Providsn.
tial Intervention in hunan affairs, possibly for An
object not yet disclosed.
When We turn TO the incidents Of the var,
there are seine which particularly rivet atsen.
ton. Why wasis. thar in those almsst defence.
less days. when oil Washington went 70 bed and
arose in fear, the rebel army collected in Vir.
gina did not swoop down upon that city, and
possess it, with al the startling prestige such
L.. -. Al f..
the disastrous rout ct Bull Run, what was it
that 80 singularly restrained pursuit when the
capture of Washington was again possible
What restrained the rebel army frsm falling
upon our frontieri What madness made the
rebel rulers expend their chief military resources
in trying TO hold the Border States, which they
must now give up? If We consider the possible
answers to these questions, We shall be surprised
to see how out Of the natural and ordinary
course Of events, the facts the involve are.
On our own side there are peculiar pr0vidences
that mnst have impressed themselves upon eve
~ thoughtful man - such. Much - the rebel.
lion bad the start il ID yet true that oil the most
valuable Notifications for 10 to possess. Fort
Monroe, Fl. McHsnry, Fort Picksns-fell into
our hands. The rebellion began its armed -.
sault in April, and if We had been possessed Of
Southern forts. they could not At once have
been made, on account Of climate and other
causes, useful - bases Of operations, or menace
Of gathering treason, or awe, ~ those We held
at the North where the rebel army at once was
msssed. So il 10 true that there 10 scarcely
strategic position We could desire that We did no,
cOntrol.-Fortress Monroe, Cairo, St. Louis
Wsre ever naval expeditions favored BY such
gales and such success! So in the West the
rivers almost seemed 10 rise that eur gunboats
could achieve successes perhaps impossible IN
der other circumstances. And il We turn to our
foreign relations, We cannot fail to be astoUnded
at the wonderful manI or which We have drifted
through troubles and complications, our dGdcul
ties actually growing lee, at the point where
We would naturally anticipate their growing
greater. How much csuse for apprhension
there was in the allied designs upon Mexico,
and vet that coalition that il would seem We
we're impotent to overcome, ID falling apart Of its
own dissensions, and the possibility Of . foreign
nouarchy on our Ssuihw sstern frontier 10 almost
removed. This 10 . striking instance. We
need mention bat one more that must before
this have suggested itself, that i the opportune
completion and arrival at Fortress Monroe Of
the iron clad vessel Monitor.
More instances than the shove might be cited,
bat W nay conclude from them, that the same
watchfal Providence that helped, protected and
gave victory to eur Fathers, bends and brooda
over %. May NO stspendoss welcomes, nc
disregard Of justice, NO meeki.g Of humanity
tsrn away from 10 the Providential favor wish
which We have been blessed above all, let u
not. a. . people, fail 70 recognize the ways o.