Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1863-12-11
o. For the Journal.
The People and the GOverEmeat t
p Slavery and the Rebellion.

l
Slavery and the Rebellion.
In Republican Government, in its purity,
the people are alike the source and support
Of it. Hence the Government must derive
al it has Of power and influence direct from
the people, and Is accountable to them for all
its conduct in civil, political and military af-
fairs and it is the prerogative of every citi-
zen of such Government to denounce palpa-
BILE errors Of even the highest officer of the
Government. .r..., ;..,..
The strength and stability Of a Republic
depends on the ability and faithfulness Of the
people to look after their own affairs, and we
are now in the midst Of civil war simply be-
cause the people were not faithful and vigi-
liant; for we have often heard that eternal
vigilance is the price Of liberty This vigi.
lance has not been maintained by the people.
Party spirit, Of which Washington forewarned
u.s. has made sad havoc in our country. 1t
has demoralized and debased us as nation,
until it was no longer inquired Of a candidate
for the highest Office in the Government, "Is
he honest? Is he capable ?" but, "Can We
elect him? Is he the man we can make use
of to advance our own party interestsT' Such
has been the wretched condition of our polit-
ical affairs for many years, and such the rea-
son of our present national disgrace and
trouble, and we are now learning from war
what Is the price Of liberty and peace. May
it be so learned as to be long remembered.
For want of faithfulness and vigilance in
the people, the slave interest was allowed to
assume gigantic proportions. At first it was
more modest, and only asked or claimed
protection in States where it already existed,
but being sustained and protected under the
American flag and Government, like a hot bed
plant, it rapidly grew into self Importance,
and with bold impudence claimed and
assumed the ruling power in, the Govern
ment, and held that power up to the close of
James Buchanan's admin st,ation.
In the nomination and election Of nearly
every President, the slave interest either had
a direct choice or suffered other interests to
have voice through some degrading CON-
promise or concession; and fiually it no
longer asked but demanded what it wished,
and its demands were not very modest and
when, with all these advantages, 81 .vehoiders
discoyerd that free institutions were more
prosperous than theirs, they seeded out Of
mere jealousy of the North from the very
Government wherein slavery was the ruling
power as far as it's own interests were con-
cerned. Such, then, was the cause of seces-
sion, while its object was to establish gov
ernnent wherein slavery should not only be
tolerated and protected and have ruling.
power as Of old, but should actually be, in
and of ITSELF the corner stone and super
structure-a wild scheme, which in the end
would have destroyed that which it wa
designed to perpetuate; for slavery is not a
self sustaining institution, but was sustained
as long as it was by shameful compromises
and concessions from the North and not
only this, but even after shareholders had
assumed the attitude of open rebellion against
the Government, and when that rebellion had
assumed its, most threatening attitude, the
right of slaveholding rebels to hold slaves was
still protected by our Government and by
our army, Gen. Curtis told US 10 the Court
House square that he had seen our soldiers
guarding rebel property while the owners of
said property were in the rebel army destroy
ing both the lives and property OF loyal men"
This was the kind Of warfare that suited Cop
perheads, and they were loud in their praise
of the Presid, mt, which indicated unmistake-
ably that there was " something rotten in
Denmark" The President has learned from
the recent elections, if not before, that the
Copperheads are not the people, nor thepeople
Copperheads. The whole management of
the war up to the time of the proclamation
of freedom, was mere trf1ing with the rebel-
lion" throwing grass instead Of stones"
If the President had the right and power to
issue proclamation Of freedom to the slaves
after prosecuting war year and half, and
if it was then lis duty to do so, he had the
right and power, and it was his duty 10 have
doneso at the beginning. The cry comes up,it
would not have been sustained by the people.
Not so fast; you mean by Copperheads. Let
me ask you, is it sustained by Copperheads
now, after they have had time to organize
and concentrate their forces? scorn and
denounee such an objection, and if it had a
feathers weight of influence with the Presi-
dent, then he was not Napoleon or Andrew
jackson. A pretty libel on the people, that
after having their "noses held to the grind
stone " by slavery fifty years, they would
the Government by the throat with one hand
and pressed the muzzle of loaded musket
against its very temples with the other
The people would not have sustained such
a proclamation" Look at the elections
those of one year ago and ofthis fall. What
is their verdict, uttered in thunder tones p
The election Of 1862 said to Abraham Lin
coin, tive, the people, are disgusted with
your management of the war, and unless you
change your policy and use our armies to
strike down slavery, standing, as it does, Fl st
and foremost in the rebellion, we will not
sustain your administraton."@ The President
needed therebuke and adopted the policy, to
a great extent, which the people urged land
the elections this fall endorse that change
with an Almighty voice, fer the /" voice of the
people is the voice of God :" in this matter,
and the shrieks of the Copperheads show of
what spirit they are possessed. w .z-z ....
A distinguished gentleman ard Judge. de-
clared before the assembled multitude On the
fourth of July last i'll Muscatine, that 'the
people were alone responsible for the slow
progress of the war, and that the government
had done as much as the people would en-
dorse." He must have dug that opinion out
of law books-he never obtained it from a
sensible observation of men and things. The
slow coach of he government, drawn by slow
oxen, has scarcely yet driven up within hail.
ing DISTANCE of enlightened public sentiment,
which sentiment the people have shown in
the late cleo ions, is capable Of guiding the
Ship of State" in time of war as we'll as
peace. .gvtv ~
Coming up to the present stage Of the, war,
let us test farther the relative position Of the
people and the government. There was an
editorial article in the JOURNAL, of last week,
in regard to officers efficient fighting officers
who are removed from service, ard are