Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-10-27

THIS 10 De OF tuelf property
and treated as felons and traitors. An edict
more unjust never was issued by civilized Ruler,
be he Emperor, King or President. 1t struck
down thousands who-neFer sOiled their hands
with treason, and who are to day more devoted
to the Union than the Northern traitors who have
created the pressure" which forced this ill
starred Proclamation. 1t strikes down all alike
old age, helpless infancy. the traitor, the patriot
all who unable to restore Their States to the
Unon-a thing which the President himself has
been trying to do for eighteen months, with an
army and navy such rs no ruler of modern times
has had at his command, and yet no State has been
restored. Mr. Lincoln deprives Union men in
the revolted States of their property for failing
to overthrow Jefferson Davis's army, when he
himself has only been able to accomplish that
task to a partial extent. We deeply regret that
the President has deemed it duty to issue that
Proclamation. No good will come of it, and
those men who advised and clamored for it are
the worst foes of his administration and the drest
enemies to our country and her institutions.
The Democratic party of Indiana are now,
and have been. most willing to aid the President
in putting down the rebellion by force Of arms
They sought at first it is true, different mode
of settlement, consistent with the national honor
They accept his mode, however. as the only one
presented By himself and his advisers One half
the army of Indiana Democrats, good and
true, and we cherish them and the Republican
soldiers fellow citizens engaged in the
cause of the Union. We shall withhold from
these gallant men nothing which will add to
their comfort in the field, to their prosperity
when they return to the walks of private life.
But we have right to say that the has not
been conducted in a mode which is likely to re-
store the Union in the quickest way and with the
least possible loss of life. We believe that the
radical enactments of the present Congress,
well the Presidents proclamation, has made
the rebellion more compact, and has melted the
South to more determined resistance. We be-
lieve they will cost the nation thousands of lives
and millions of treasure. These measures are
direct and palpable violations OF the promises
and pledges of the President and Congress. and
being so, are calculated to divide the sentiment
OF the country at time when it should act as
unit. For this the Democratic and conservative
men OF Indiana are in no way responsible. Those
who have sought to change the character OF the
contest to an emancipation scheme are alone
chargeable with bad faith, and must be reSpOn
sble for its continuance and the waste which it
occasions. We believed year ago that the
would soon end by the triumph of the national
arms, if all measures looking TO the emancipa
ton Of the slaves were kept out of Congress
We think so to day. The Border State mem
bers of Congress, with the Democrats of the
House, steadily voted against all these runous
enactments, knowing that such violent disturb
ances of the industrial interests of the country
would bring wide spread ruin upon the land.
| These opinions entertained by the best
patriots in Congress, and their votes were given
against them. John j Crittenden and Governor
| Wickliffe resisted them to the last, as did the
other Border State Union members of the House,
with every Democrat from the North and West
The gallant and devoted band of Union members
had a right to be heard by the President and Con
gress. They had made great sacrifices, and were
emlnently entitled to respect Thew met with
nothing but neglect and reproach, and every
offensive measure of an Abolition majority were
carried over their votes and their protests.
Now that the Democratic party and its highly
priced conservative allies, have obtained power in
the State Governments, and IA majority of mem
bers in Congress, there are those malicious
enough to predict that will make bad use of
our victory. That will not be done to the detri-
ment OF our beloved country. One of the charges
already made is that mean to force the nation
into a dishOBOTGbLe peace with the South. Meier
ioilI that be done By The Democracy in Congress or
elseiohere The next charge is, that the members
OF Congress from Indiana will refuse to vote for
appropriations of money to pay the soldiers in the
field and the sailors ON the ocean This. like the
first charge, is eroundless and false. The
lutions of the Conventions which nominated our
candidates for Congress, without exception,
pledged to the Government its aid in putting down
the rebellion by arms, or in any other honorable
| llOue WHICH IL NOt one vi tHtSe
| Congressional Conventions ever intimated wish
or desire to have the supplies stopped, or the war
brought to a close by dish0n0rG6te compromise,
or BY submitting to any national degradation
Never-neverl Thousands of good men-thou-
/ sands of patriotic men-would be reioced to see
the war ended, and Whenever it can be done in
way consistent with the dignity of the United
States, either by the progress and success of our
arms, by accepting from the people of the
| tbo tI,rif
of the nation, with all the dignity, equality and
rights of the several States unimpaired,' we are
OF opinion that no time shOuldbe lost in securing
the peace of the country. Our members of Con
gress are known to the Democracy, and they will
be the first to advocate all constitutional meas
ures TO put down the rebellion. and the first to
hail every proposition for honorable adjust
ment of our lamentabe national troubles. Messrs.
Law, Cravens, VOORHEES, and Holman have voted
for all proper appropriations sustain the war, in
the present Congress, and they, in connection
with the new Democratic members, MesSrs. Har
rington, Mcdowell and Edgerton, will do the
same in the next, if the war should be unfortu-
nately protracted till December, 1863, when the
gentlemen just elected shall take their seats.
The Democratic party, as such. is eminently
conservative and patriotic, and will do no act TO
call in question its devotion to the Union. For
the army in the field IL has opposition oOfes TO
giUe IL has never given one in Congress against
the soldier in former wars and its record will not
now he dsgraced by vote against the gallant
men who have gone forth to preserve the Gov
ernment from overthrow. That sin and shame
must be left alone the legacy of those who, in
the war of 1912 and the Mexican war, refused
supplies to the soldiers of the Republic.
The Islander Of disloyalty upon the good name
OF the Democratic party had its echo in vndic-
tive and malignant party press, prompted, no
doubt, by renegades from that party. 1t was the
clear right of those gentlemen to attach them
selves to any party where their interests, their
connections or their ambition might prompt, but
they had no right to become either the maIigners
OF more patriotic men than themselves nor the
apologists for great public wrongs while claim
ing the hOnored name which conferred on them
all the dignity and chafncter they ever possessed.
Like all apOstates from the faith, they stopped
and banked at no degradation to win the ap.
pauSe of the Republican party. From day to
day they uttered the most revolving falsehoods
against the aims and objects of the Democratic
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES of pure and lofty
patriotism and tried integrity. Old gray headed
Democrats, who had long been the friends aud
supporters of these gentemen-who had taken
some of them up when in political and social or
ph mage and fought their early batt, before the
peope-were comoelled, in the assemblies of the
voters, to hear them deny the faith. and pour lava
falsehoods upon the grand old party which con
ferred upon them 1--WE fear in some cases) un-
merted hOnors. The spectacle was one by no
means calculated to elevate our opinions of hu-
man nature. These gentlemen, in some cases.
added To ingratitude and falseliood the most bu-
initiating debasement of all correct and manly
sentiment Ii was declared, on more than one
occasion. before the people, that the man who
would now speak OF the Constitution and its