The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1863-02-28
The Legislative Resolutions.

Il
our friend &C" on this subject. The dif-
| ference between IS is whitfield down to &
point. He declares the authors of these
resolutions mean that the Union is dis
solved gone, and therefore
propose a cessation of hostilities and a
convention to recon struct, or rather to so
divide up the old Union as to form several
now governments, of which the North
western and Southern States-with New
England and perhaps the Middle States
left out-shall constitute one We say
! the resolutions, whatever some of their au-
thors may have desired, admit OF no such
construction; but mean this lst, to COM
pei the President to change his present
war policy to one simply for the restora-
ton of the Union; or, failing in that, they
propose the experiment by conventions
and the ballot instead Of bullets and the
bayonet, to revive fraternal feeling be-
store the Union.
70 make our meaning clear, it is to be
! premised, that there are at present four
parties in this country, as to the proper
policy to be pursued.
| l. The abolition party, backed by Con
gress and the President Their policy, as
all know, is, first to destroy slavery, and
then to subjugate and crush the South, SO
that, all further hope of opposing resist
ence to the federal government being use
less, they will per force be obliged to ac-
cept whatever terms the federal authori-
| ties may graciously offer them: or, failing
in this, after having crippled the South as
! much as possible and stolen all the negroes
/ they can, Indignantly to let them 90.
| . A conservative party, in which is in
Guided our correspondent, and, up to
recently, probably the great mass of the
/ loyal men of the country outside OF the
railcal abolition party. This party find
! their proper opponents and representatives,
! 10 Gov. Seymour and John Van Buren,
whose recent speech is given on our out
side form. They protest against the radi-
| cal policy of the administration as imprac-
! ticable, hopeless, ruinous; yet acknowiedg-
! ing the paramount duty to obey the con
stituted authorities, .hey support the war,
hoping, begging, and praying at the same
time for such change of policy as shall
afferd glimmering prospect Of ultimate
success in crushing tho rebellion and re-
storing the Union.
g. A peace party, of which Vallanding-
ham, the Chicago Times, Cincinnati En-
gtirsr, &c, are the avowed exponents
This party, casting aside all hope that the
present policy, and believing that the
| longer the war is prosecuted Oh this pro-
| sramme the moro embittered both sides
will become Gnd the more hopeless the
task Of ever restoring that friendly feeling
essential to a reconstruction OF the Union,
propose 4 cessation of host!lities at once,
and then by offering such guarantees to
| the South that all their rights under the
constitution and in the Union as it was in
| the days of the fathers shall De rigidly and
sacredly respected, hope, by means OF con-
ventions and the ballot-box, relying on
the innate love Of the old Union that still
to win them back. As Vallandingham
says, it may take ten or thirty years, but
ultimate success is inevitable
f. A fourth party, made up Of the ex'
the open, avowed pro-slavery secession
sympathizers of the North. They advocate
an immediate separation between the
| Northern and Southern States, and the
| acknowledgment Of the Southern Confede-
racy. Conway and Pomeroy of Kansas,
our ewn Bassetts, Rees Morgans, &c, are
members of this party.
The Illinois Legislative Resolutions
were unquestionably prepared, engineered,
and are pervaded by the sentiments Of the
| third party we have described, although
| they retained enough of the o,lor Of the
second party to make it possible for most
I of the members of the legislature inclining
| to that party to swallow them.
Our opinion is, that it is still in the
power of the administration to unite the
whole country in support OF the war by
unreservedly throwing itself into the arms
of the second party we have described;
failing to do SO: We have no particle Of
doubt, unless some very extraordinary
victories or some other stupeneous event
now unlocked for and undreamed of oc-
ours, the voting. dominant power of this
nation will be in he hands of the third
party above described in less than nine
months.