Daily Democrat and news. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1859-1864, 1862-02-28
democrat &Aews.
ID. N. RICHARDSON, Editor.
THE OBJECT or THE w AR. y

THE OBJ ECT OF TlAE WIZ. y
The following letter recently sppe6'
ed in the National Inteliigencer, and
has been, and will be, read with the
"a most unalloyed satisfaction by the true
men Of the country from center to cir
conference. 1t speaks the honest sen
timents Of five.sixths Of the Inhabitants
of the Northern States, as we verify De-
lieve, and will find hearty response IN
the hearts of at least one-half OF those
who live in the land of treason. Let
every person to whom it may come Pc
rnse it carefully, and hold within their
memory The doctrines which are there
set forth. We give the document the
prominence which it 70 richly deserves:
LETTER MOI.
"To Abraham Lincoln, President Of the United
States:
"REspKoTED R:-I do not address
you for the purpose Of censure or ad-
vice. From boy to old age have
belonged to the Democratic party ofthe
country. My political creed, in common
with that OF my party throughout the
North, has been and now is devotion to
the Constitution a. it came from the
hands OF Washington and his compa-
triots, aud to the rights Of the States
reserved by them on the adoption OF
that instrument.
Is hn Of conn
posed of the States and the Union as
our temple Of liberty,of which the States
are the pillars and the Union the ROOF.
Remove the pillars and the roof will fall;
remove tue root and the pillars will be
overthrow by the storms Of anarchy
and war, and our country will be strew-
cd with ruins more melancholy than
those which lie PROSTATE or stand shat
ter9d on the sites of ancient cities.
"Ruthless hands have seized upon
and are attempting to remove portion
Of the pillars Of our temple, at the haz-
ard Of crushing themselves and Us in its
fall, aud III the insane hope Of building
new temple for themselves ont of the
runs.
Though the Democratic party ofthe
North were always willing to make all
reasonable or even toerable concessions
to satisfy their allies IN the South, yet,
as u BODY, no party is more devoted to
the Constitution and the Union. 1t was
devotion 10 the Union winch induced
them TO make CONCESSION after conct.s-
SION TO quiet the apparent apprehensions
ot tneir Southern friends. SO vital In
thor Wow was the preservation of the
moo and the Cons tuition to the inter-
csts and safely II the Southern States in
particular, tnat many oil them could not,
until the assault Oh Fort Sumter, be
convinced & at the leaders Of Southern
agitation had anything in view beyond
iofther guarantees for their local insti-
tuflons. Under this deuslon some OF
them raised their voices against coer-
cion, and thereby unwlttingly rendered
material service to the cause Of rebel.
hon. Dut when convinced, by the
thunder OF rebel cannon and the flames
OF Fort Sumter, that revolution, and not
redress or security within the Union,
was the object of the Southern leaders,
they did all that honest men could do
to retrieve their error, and, notwith-
standing their political antagonsm on
minor points, the Democratic party of
the North rallied around your Admins
tratlon as he only means Of saving their
country. Your armies abound with
them; none are more ready to sacrifice
all that il dear, even life itself, for the
preservation of the Union and the Con-
stitution, and to them it is cheering,
though but Just, that you have recently
given them a representative in your
Cabinet.
"Be assured, sir, that the Democratic
party of the North, with the exception
OF few semi.trsitors whom they repu-
date, cordially approve the objects Of
yon in all Your public avowals. They
rally around You with a devotion to the
cause, not exceeded by any class of your
original supporters, and they will spare
no sacrifice to save the Union and the
Constitution. In this great object they
are already consolidated with the great
mass of the Republican party, and will
be among the last to despair. Indeed,
these two parties for all present purposes
constitute but one, which may be appro.
priately called the CoNsTIrUrloxAL
UNION PARTY. The object of this party
in the pending war is to preserve the
Union aud the Constitution as 1t Is. 1t
is the Constitution, and Mat only, which
make US q nation j. destroy 1t and the
nation will cease to exist, being resolved
into thirty-tour independent States. In
fighting 70. the Constitution, therefore,
We fight for the life Of the nation, for
all that can give us peace and security
at home and all that can make Us hon.
ored and respected abroad.
"The fundamental principle Of our
Government, that principle which has
enabled the Republic to extend itself
from the Atlantic 10 tho Pacific, and
endowed it with a capacity to embrace
Continents and chimes within its domin
Ion, is that everything which relates
exclusively or mainly to local affairs sha
DC let to tie regulated by local govern
meats, while the powers OF the General
Gosernment shall be only such as arc
requisite &c promote the peace, prosper
lily ana happiness of the people, what.
ever may DC their peculiar customs, laws.
or domestic Institutions. An attack
upon this principle is al assault upon
the Constitution it is undermining the
1OuDdsilon1 M tho Pan,ll,n. =: