Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1862-07-30


in his hands:
GENTLEMEN - After the adjournment
Of Congress, now near, / shall have no OPP
portunity Of seeing you for several months.
Believing that you Of the Border States
| hold more power for good than eli; other
equal number Of members, feel ii duty
which / cannot justifably waive to make
this appeal to you.
! intend no reproach or complaint when
| / assure YOU that, in my opinion, II you all
had voted f the resolution in the gradual
emancipation message of last March, the
war would now he substantially ended.
And the plan therein proposed is yet one
Of the most potent and swift means Of end
inc it. Let the States which are in rebel
Hor see definitely and certainly that III no
event viii the States you represent ever
Join their proposed confederacy, and they
cannot much longer maintain the contest.
But you cannot diyest them Of their hope
10 ultimately have you with them so long
as YOU show a determination to perpetuats
the institution within your own States.
| Beat them at elections, as you have over
wheImingly done, and, nothing daunted,
they still claim you as their own. You and
know what the lever Of their power is.
Break that lever before their faces, and
they can shake you no more forever.
Most Of you have treated me with kind
ness and consideration, and ] trust you
will not now thi4k | improperly touch
what is exclusively your own, when, for the
sake Of YOUR whole country, | ask, scan
YOU, for your States, do better than to take
tie course | urge? Discarding pine
Glio and maxims adapted TO more man
ageable times, and looking only to the un-
pTecedently stern facts Of our case, can
YOU 40 better IN any possible eventl You
prefer that the constitutional relations Of
| the States to the nation should be practi-
cally restored without disturbance OF the
institution; aud, if this were done, my
whole duty, in this respect, under the Con.
sttution and my oath Of office would be
performed. But it is not done, and we
are irving to accomplish it BY war; The
incidents OF the war cannot be avoided.
1.-THE war continues long, as i must, the
Object be no sooner attained, the instlto-
f ton in your States viii be extinenished by
mere friction and abrasion-by the mere
= incidents the war. 1t will be gore, and
YOU will have nothing valuable in lieu q 1t.
Much Of its value is gone already. How
much better for you and your people to
take the step which at once sholtens The
war, and secures substantial compensation
for that which is sure to be lost in any
other event! How much better to do it
I'd while we can, lest the war ere long render
y us pecuniary unable to do il How much
., better for you, as a seller. and the nation,
d as buyerto sell out and buy out chat with
out which the wa. could never have been,
than TO sink both the thing to he sold and
3 the price Of it in cutting one anothofs
? throats
l do not speak Of emancipation at once.
but Of decision at once to emancipate
gradually. Room in South America for
colonization can be obtained cheapIy and
in abundance, and when numbers shall he
large enough TO be company and encour-
agement for one another the freed people
will not be reluctant to 90.
lam pressed with a difficulty not yet
mentioned-ono which threatens division
among those who, united, are none too
strong. An instance Of it is known to
You. Gen. Hunter is an honest man. lie
was, and hope still, my friend. | valued
him none the less for his agreeing with me
in the general wish that all men every
where could lie freed. He proclaimed all
men free within certain States, and | re-
pudiated the proclamation. He expected
more good and less harm from the meas
me than ! could believe would follow.
Yet, in repudiating it, gave dissatisfaction,
il not ofense, to many whose support the
country can't afford to lose. And this Is
not the end of it. The pressure IN this
direction is still upon me and is increasing.
| By conceding what | now ask, you can re-
heye me, and, much more, can relieve the
country in this important point.
Upon these considerations have again
begged your attention to the message Of
March last. Before leaving the capitol,
consider and discuss it among yourselves.
You are patriots and statesmen, ana 'is
Esuch pray you consider this proposition
and at The least commend it to the consld-
Grafton Of your States and people. as
you would perpetuate popular government
for the best peope in the world, ! beseech
you that you do in no wise omit this. Our
common country is in great peril, demand
ING the loftiest views and boldest action 70
bring a speedy relief. Once relieved, its
form of government is saved to the world
its beloved history aud cherished memo
RES ale vindicated. and lis happy future
fully assured and rendered Inconceivably
grand. Toyou, more than to any others,
the privilege is given to assure that happi-
ness swell that grandeur, and to link
your own names Herewith forever.
At the conclusion Of these remarks some
conversation was had between tho Presi-
dent and several members OF the slelega-
tons from the Border States, ia which i
ysas ra,rAsantaa that these States could