The weekly Butte record., 1863-08-08
LETTER FROM
HON. EMERSON ETHERIDGE,
Present Clerk of the Republican House OF
Representative, to the Citizens
OF Memphis, Tennessee.
LETTER FROM


Nh. ErHERIDGg, Clerk of the House o.
Representatives, and for several terms member
Of Congress from Tennessee, having been invi
ted to join in public celebration Of the ami
versary of the surrender Of Memphis to the
Federal arms, replies in an able and interesting
letter. It's just sarcasm upon the President
for bis broken VOWS and maladministratiou OF
Office, is very striking. Mr. Etherdge was
made Clerk of the Republican House of Rep
resentatives 10 July, 1861. He had labored
hard to keep Tennessee in the Union, and in
1862 visited bis State, where be was ins,ru-
mental 10 bringing hundreds into the Uuion
army, and persuading thousands to take the
oath of allegiance:
WAsHISGroS, D. c., May is, '63
! Genhemen-I have just received your letter
I of the 18th inst. inviting me, in behalf of the
Washington Union Club, of Memphis, TO join
in public celebration Of the anniversary OF
/ the surrender of that city to the Federal arms.
You also speak kindly of my past efforts to in,
duce the people Of West Tennessee TO consent
cheerfuly to the restoration of the National
authority throughout the South.
7 II ! believed that, By meeting you on the
/ occasion referred to- I could be Of service to q
/ single honest laT-abidiug citizen or truly re-
J pentant rebel, or that | could contribute TO
the ieast extent in ending the war and resto
ring the blessings OF peace under the Coustiia-
ton, would certainly attend but have no
such faith in myself and therefore shall not
go.
In your letter you express the opinion that.
by a direct personal appeal" might en-
courage the loyal or reclaim the disloyal"
confess my astonishment at such statement
and | can attribute this opinion of yours to
nothing but failure on your part to compre
/ bend the mastery policy of our great and good
President and the wise statesmen who aid him
in shaping and directing the civil policy of the
Government. When you have fully studied
and understood the grand purposes Of our most
God-fearing and law-abidlng President when
you are more familiar with the profound
military strategy which, as " Commander,in-
Chief of the Army and Navy Of the United
States" be is now displaying and when you
further remember the astonishing success we
have had in reclaiming our misguided coun-
trymen and in conqueriHg our wavward
sisters" | shall be amazed if YOU continue to
believe it necessary TO encourage the loyal =
or " reclaim the disloya." Why encourage
the loyal? Is it possible they need encourage
ment in Memphis, when for nearly q year. YOU
have been inside the Federal lines when eve.
~ night tattoo is substituted fer Hush. nv
baby, don't you cry" and at reve;lle Hail
Columbia arouses the people to conscious
ness OF the great security which is afforded to
the property of the loyal people in Memphis
and call the country round that (political)
Jordan?'' How can you or encourage the
loyal" when our matchless President, the late
Congress, his sage counsellors and his peerless
military subordinates have already done and
promised all which wisdom can suggest, which
our sacred Constitution authorizes. and which
the Christian religion tolerates or approves
There remains nothing for US to DO, unless il
be to obey our Incompatible President, in all
his wise measures to conquer glorious peace.
True. we have among US croakers and Copper
headS-silly, brainlesS men-who are so unwise
and unpatriotic as to question the wisdom of
our indefatigable President. II you have any
such IN Memphis you should at once denounce
them as in sympathy with the rebels you
should send them to their friends down South
or TO the Dry Tortugas, which is understood
by many to be place where everybody is
tortured with q thirst for rifle whisky. and not
drop can be obtained. No good Union man
can complain of the conduct of the wise men
who direct our pnblic affairs They should be
taught to remember that scGndGlum magaGfum
was formerly high crime-it is a most helm
Gus ottense now-and nothing saves such cop
rcolored wretcheS but the Christian charity
of our most pious President
At your proposed meeting you should so ar
range matters as TO secure list of all who fail
10 attend or omit to render suitable apology.
and you should adopt resolutions of the most
loyal kind. Allow me to suggest that the
committee on resolutions be selected from con-
tractors and Office holders. particularly sug-
sest one Cooper, who has recently been ap-
pointed Assessor for the large rich and popu-
lous district of West Tennessee He was
originally from New York. True. he was
never in West Tennessee until sent from this
city on his official errapd but be no doubt
knows, by intuition, the true value of the
goods aud chattelS. lands ard tenemeuts. etc.
OF people he never knew and a country in
which be never lived. But he is so loval-so
much 50, that | doubt not be is better fitted
for the office than any Of the native born sons.
brothers or fathers Of the thousands Of soldiers
whom, before the 22d Of last September.
West Tennessee had furnished to the Federal
army. Let the committee initiate the Loyal
Leagues " OF Baltimore, and resolve that YOU
not only approve all the present wise and pa
tTlotic Administration has done bat that YOU
will sustain and uphold it in everything it may
hereafter do. For instance, the last Congress
in July, 1862 passed a law 10 confScate the
property Of certain rebels That Congress
though a very wise body, did not possess as
much aggregate wisdom as our great and good
President In proof Of this. We need but refer
TO the fact that the Congress aforesaid p7oyl.
ded that, under this law, trisl should precede
conviction and forfeiture aud that guilt should
be proven, not presumed. Worse still. it offer
ed an amnesty to repentant rebels; it merci.
fully gave them sixty days il which to accent
it and provided, further. that our NOS. noble
President might suspend for 8 period the ope-
ration Of this law as our armies advanced
sonthwaFd, so as to afford an opportunity to
accept pardon Worse still, this law actually
applied to 10 one bG; the rebels. And is
+.,r,f-i, h :. T,-s -