Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-08-25
From the New York Tribune Aug. 90
The Abolition warfare upon the Press
Ideus-Ibe opening of hoststities-A
violent and scandaiOus assault.
rHE PRAYER oF rwENTY MILLIoNs-

THE PRAYER OF TWENTY MILLIONS.
To ABRAHAM LINCOLN, President OF United States:
DEAR SIR:-l do not intrude Ia tell yOu-iOr |
you must know already-that great proportion
of those who triumphed ia yOnr election, and OF
all who desire the unqualified suppression OF the
rebellion desolating our country, are sOrely 1
disappointed and deeply panied by the policy you
seem to be pursuing with regard TO the slaves OF
rebels. i write only to set succincty and unmis-
takably before you what we require, and what we
think We have right to expect and OF what We
complain.
L. We require of you, as the first servant of
the Republic, charged especially and pre- emin
emily with this duty that you EXECUTE THE LAWS.
Most emphaticaiy do demauu that such laws
have been recently enacted, which therefore
may fairly he presumed to embOdy the present
will and be dictated 10y the present needs of the
Republic, aId which, after due consideration have
tTeceNed your personal sanction, shall by you be
carried into full effect, and that you publicly and
decisvely instruct your subordnateS that such
laws exist aud that they are binding on all func
tionaries and citizens, and that they are to be
obeyed To the letter.
| H. We think you are strangely and disastrous
ly remiss in the discharge oi your official aud i'm
perative duty with regard to the emancipatng
| provisions OF the new ConfiscatiOn Act Those
provisions were designed TO fight slavery with
liberty. They prescribe that men loyal To the
| Union, and willing to shed their blOOd in her be
| half, shall no longer be held, with the nation
consent, in bondage to persistent, malignant trail
tors, who for twenty years have been plot
ting and for sixteen months have been lighting to
diyIde and destroy country. Why these trii
tors should lie treated with tenderness by you, TO
the prejudice OF the dearest ri hts OF loyal men,
We cannot conceive.
Ill. We think you are unduy influenced by
the cOunsels, the representations, the menaces OF
certain fossil politicians hailing from the border
slave States. Knowing we'll that the heartily,
Internationally loyal portion OF the white eli
zens vi those States do not expect nor desire that
slavery shall be upheld To the PREF udce OF the
| Union. Tor the trutii oI which we appeal not only
to every Republican residing in those States, but
to such eminent lOyalists as II. Winter DAVIS.
| ParSoa BsownlOw, the Union Central COmmittee
Of Baltimore, and 10 the Nashville Union; We
ask you TO consider that slavery is every where
| the melting cause and sustaining bare of treason;
the most siaveiuldIng sections of Maryland anu
Delaware being tins day, though under the Union
flag, in full sympathy with the reneiliOn, while
the Tree labor portions vi Tennessee and Texas,
though wrIthing under the blOO1y heel OF treason,
| are uIIcOnqueraDiy loyal to the Union. So EN-
phatIcaliy this The case, that most intelligent
Union banker OF Baltimore recently ayOwed his
confident belief that majority Of the present
| Legislature of Maryland, though elected anu
rous Of the triumph OF the Jef Davis cODSpira-
CT; and when asked how they could be won back
To loyalty, replied: Only by the complete abo.i-
iicn Ut slavery" ID seems TO Us the most Obvi
Gus truth, that whatever strengthens lortihes
slavery IN the bOrder States strengthens also
treason and drives home the wedge intended 10
divide the Union. ii al YOU from tile first refused
to recUguize in those States, here, ANY other
than unconditional iUyaiIl-that which stands for
the Union, whatever becomes OF slavery-thOse
States would have been, airl would he, tar more
helpful and less Troublesome to the defenders vi
the Union than they have been. or now are.
~. We think timid couuseis in such crisis
calculated to prove perlOus, and probably disas
trous. 1t i, the duty of government So wan
tony, wiekedy assaIIed by rebellion ours has
been. TO oppose force to force in defiant, dauut-
less spirit Ii can not afford TO tempOriZe with
traitors nor with semi traitors. 1t must not bIibe
them TO behave themselves, nor make them fair
promises in the hope of disarmng their causelesS
hostility. Representing brave and high spirited
people. it can afford to forfeit anything else bet
ter than its own sell respect, OF their admring
confidence. For our Government even To seek,
after mas been made Oh 1t, 70 diSlel the al
iected apprehensions cot armed traitors that their
cherished privileges may be assaied hy IT, Is to
invite insult and encourage hopes OF It's own
downfall The rush to arms OF Ono, Indiana,
Illinois, is the tue answer at once to the rebel
raids OF John Morgan, and the traitoIous sophs-
tries OF Bsiah Magollin.
| V. We complain that the Union cause has suf
tered, and is now suffering immensely, from mis-
taken Difference To rebel slavery. Had you, sir,
in your lnaugurt Address, takaby gwen
notice Iilat, in case the rebellion already com
meneel were persisted IN, ana your efforts TO PIE
serve the Union and enforce the laws should be
resisted by armed force, you would recognize no
loyal person as rishtiully held in slavery 10y a
traitor, we believe the rebellion would therein
have received Il staggering II not fatal blow At
that moment, accounting 10 the returns OF tue
most recent elections, the UniOniSts were large
majority OF the voters OF the slave States But
they were composed in good part of the aged,
the feeble, the wealthy, the timid-ihe young,
the reck less, the aspiring, tue adventurous, had
already been largely lured by the gamblers and
nesro-traders, the politicians by trade and the
consprator> by instinct. into the tolls OF treason.
Had you then proclaimed that rebellion would
strike the shackleS from the slaves oi every tra
tor, the wealthy and the cautious would have
been supplied with powerful inducement to re
main loyal. As IL was, every coward IN the South
soon became Il traitor from fear; for loyalty Was
perous. whine treason seemed comparatively
sale Hence the boosted unanmiy OF the South
"a unanimity based on rebel terrorism and the
fact that immunity and safety were found on that
side, danger and probable death on ours. The
cate. imprison, scourge, and kill; we have fought
wolves with the devices of sheep. The result Is
Just what might have been expected Tens of
thousands fighting IN the rebel ranks To day
whose original bias and natural leaning would
have led them into ours
VI. We complain that the confiscation act
which YOU approve is habituilly disreSarded by
your Generals, and that no word OF rebuke FOR
them from you has yet reached the public ear.
FTemOnt's proclamation and Hunters order favor
inc emancipation were promptly annulled by you;
while H4lleck No. 3. iorbidiing tugitives IRON
slavery To rebels 20 come within his lines-an or
der rs unmilitarv inhuman and which rece, ed
the hearty approx ton OF every traitor in Amer
ica-with scores of like tendency. have never
provoked even your Iemonsirance: We complain
that the officers of your armies have habiiually
repealed rather than invited the approach of
slaves who would have gladly taken the risks OF
escaping from their rebel masters to our camps.
bringing intelligence often of ine>timable value
to the Union We complain that those
who have thus escaped to Us, ayOwing willing
ness TO do for MS whatever might be required,
have been brutality and madly repnlsed, and often
surrendered to be scoursed, MANNED and tortured
by the ruifiah traitors who pretend to own them.
We complain that "a large proportion of our regu-
lar army officers, with many of the volunteers,
eynce far more socitude to uphold slavery than
10 put down the rebellion. And finally, we com
plain that YOU, Mr.. President, elected Re
publican. knowing we'll what an abominatiOn
slavery is, and how emphatically it is the core
and essence of this atrOcous rebellion, seem
never to interfere with these atrocities. and
never give direction to your military subor
dinates, which does not appear to have been con
ceived in the interest OF slavery rather than of