The Union. [volume] (Georgetown, Del.) 1863-1866, 1863-09-11
WASHINGTON, August 26, 1868.

Non. james u OOfhtTtJs-rhh ObAh oAH
Your letter inviting me to attend mass
meeting Of unconditional Union men, to be
held at the capital of Illinois, on the Sd day
of September, has been received.
1t would be very agreeable to me thus to
meet my old friends at my own home, but
cannot just now be absent from this city SO
long as a visit there would require. The
meeting is to be of all those who maintain
unconditional devotion to the Union, and
am sure that my old political friends will
thank me for rendering, as / do, the nations
gratitude to those other noble men whom no
partisan malice or partisan hope can make
false to the nations life.
There are those who are dissatisfied with
me. To such I would say, You desire
peace, and you blame me that we do not have
it. But how can I'VE attain il? There are
but three conceivable ways: First. To sup
press the rebellion by force of arms This
am trying to do Are you for itS If you
are, SO far we are agreed. If you are not for
it, we are not agreed. A second way is to
give up the Union. | am against this. Ii
YOU are, you should say SO plainly. If you
are not for force, nor yet for dissolution, there
only remains some imaginary compromise. l
do not believe that any compromise embracing
the maintenance of the Union is now possible.
All that learn leads to directly opposite
belief. The strength of the rebellion is its
military-its army That army denominates
the country and all the people within its
range. ANY offer of terms made by any
man or men within that range, in opposition
to that army, is simply nothing for the pre-
sent, because such man or men have power
whatever to enforce their side of a compro-
mise, if one were made with them. To illus
trate-suppose refugee from the South and
the peace men of the North get together in
Convention, and frame and proclaim COM
promise embracing a restoration of the Union,
in what way can that compromise be used to
keep General Lee army out of Pennsylvania?
Gen. Meade's army can keep Lees army out
of Pennsylvania, and think can ultimately
drive it out of existence; but no paper COM
promise, to which the controllers of General
Lees army are not agreed can at all effect
that army In an effort at such compromise
we would waste the time which the enemy
would improve to our disadvantage and that
would be all.
A compromise, to be effective, must be
made either with those who control the rebel
army, or with the people, first liberated from
the domination of, that army by the success
of our army.
No,c, allo,c me to assure you that no aoord
on inttimdtioa from the rebel army or from any
of the men controlling it, in relation to any
peace compromise, has erer come to mig kno,c-
ledge or belief All charges and intimationS
to the contrary are deceptive and groundless,
and promise you, that if any such PROPOSE
ton shall hereafter come it shall not be re-
.iected and kept secret from, you. freely
acknowledge myself to be the servant of the
people, according to the bond of service, the
United States Constitution, and that as such
am responsible to them.
But, to be. plain you are dissatisfied with
me about the negro. Quite likely there is a
difference of opinion between you and myself
opon that subject. 1 certainly wish that all
could be free, while you, suppose, do not
Yet have neither adopted nor proposed any
measure which is not consistent with ever
your views provided you are for the Union
suggested compensated emancipation tC
which you replied that you wished not to bt
taxed to buy negroes. But had not asked
you to be taxed to buy negroes, except il
such way as to save you from greater taxa
ton to save the Union exclusively by Other
means. You dislike the emancipation proc
lamation, and perhaps you want to have il
retracted. You say it is unconstitutional.
think differently think that the Constitu
ton invests its Commander-in-chief with tn,
law of war in time of war. The most tina
can be said, if SO much is, that slaves ar
property.
Is there, has there ever been, any ques
ton that by the law of war the prop
erty, both of enemies and friends, may b
taken when needed, and is it not neede'
whenever taken it helps us or hurts the enemy
Armies, the world over, destroy enemies
property when they cannot use it, an
devon estroy their own to keep it iron
the enemy. Civilized belligerents do all il
their power to help themselves Or hurt tn
enemy, except few things regarded as ban
barous or cruel. Among the exceptions ar
the massacre of vanquished foes and nor
combatants, male and female. But tn
proclamation, as law, is valid'or not valit
If it is not valid, it needs no retraction; if
it is valid, it cannot be retracted any NOR
than the dead can be brought to life. Som
of you profess to think that its retractio
would operate favorably for the Union. VIII
better after retraction than before the issue
There was more than year and half ft
trial to suppress the rebellion before Ii
proclamation was issued; the last one hun
bred days of which passed under an explic
notice that it was coming unless averted B
those in revolt returning to their allegianc
The war has certainly progressed as favo
ably for us since the issue of the proclamatic
as before. / know as fully as one can kno
the opinions of others, that some of the cor
manders of our armies in the field who ha'