Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1863-10-02
The BOrMbariinemt OF Charleston
Illegal!

NJ. Todd, the Secretary of the Democr,lit
State Central Committee We have hereto
fore given MIR. Todd the credit of being a
very decent kind Of Copperhead- if man
can be decent and Tory at the same time
Before the assembling of the State Conven.
ton of his party, he was the persistent advo
cate Of Gen. Tuttle's claims for nomination.
| In the Convention he was Tuttle's earnest
supporter. When Fisher declined Todd
barked at the heels of Byingon until the la.-
ter called another Convention of five Demo-
Gratis, at Burlington, and there nominated
General Tuttle. No editor of that party in
Iowa is laboring more assiduously for Tuttle' $
election. Tutt.e claims 1T as his organ With
this preface we Will proceed. A few days
ago the Argus contained an editorial on the
"Bombardment of Charleston" from which
we quote few choice paragraphs:
"Not many years since the ex-King of
Naples acquired for himself somew hat infa-
nous notoriety by bombarding a rebel city
because it refnsed to return to it's duty 1t
SEEMS TO Us IMPOSSIBLE to draw any clear line
of distinction between the sct of KING
BOMBA and that of GEN GILMORE. We
shall be obliged to some of those who JUSTIFY
THE LATTER if they wi enlighten US on this
subject"
Again: "If by the laws of war the bonn
bardment Of a city was permissible in such
cases, BoMBA WAS RIGHT if not permissible
GILMORE WAS WRONG"
"We do not wish to offer any justification
to such atrocities as the destruction Of Law
renee and murder of its inhabitants by Guam
trel and his gang Even if he were COM
missioned officer in the Confederate army and
his followers were all regular soldiers, it would
not justify the coptiagration of the city and
the massacre of its inhabitants. Is II ANY
MORE JUSTIFIA LIABLE AT TCHARLESTON? ?"
In referring to Gillmoro's notice to clear
Charleston of non-combattants the Argus
continues Regarding solely in that point of
view the freebooter (QuantreD ,es not COM
pare D1sADvANrAGEousLY with the General
(Gillmore.J' But again-"It is true these
messengers of death and conhasration are not
directed to any particular building or indi-
vidual, but this makes no diff renee in reason
or in law. The MAN WHO CAUSES DEATH BY
FIRING HIS MUsKET INTO A
CROWD WITHOUT sINGLING OUT ANY PARTICULAR
OBJECT, is AS MUCH A MURDERER as
though he had deliberately aimed at some
particular individual Itis general in one
case, particular IN the other, lbnt IN EITHER it
satisfies the legal definition of MURDER IN
THE FIRST DEGREE"
If there be one disloyal Democratic paper in
Iowa the Argus is that one. And yet. while
boldly and enthusiastically advocating the
election Of Gen. Tuttle whose participation in
the bombardment and assault upon Fort Don
el'on-who played a conspicuous part in the
bombardment ard fall of Vicksburg, when
the batteries of Grants army "hurled fire
and murderous missiles into the midst of old
men, women and children who had no means
whatever to retaliate," this man Todd, mouth
piece of Tuttle and Secretary Of the State
Central Committee, denounces Gillmore's
bombardment Of the very nestegg of treason.
When the news spread over the land that
Sumter had fallen, under a murderous and
destructive fire from the traitors at Charles
ton, prayer went up from every patriots
heart that dire vengeance might be speedily
visited upon that city-that its destruction
might be so complete, as that not one stone
might be left upon another to mark its exist
ence. Since then our heroic troops have
bombarded cities, towns and villages, laid
their buildings in ruins, and incidental to
bloody war, caused the death of innocent
women and children, as well as men, and
none but traitors have condemned the deeds.
But now that brave and competent officer,
in obedience to orders, proceeds in the most
effective manner to reduce that very nest.egg
of treason, the most detested spot on the
continent, to the possession Of that Govern
ment against which it rebelled, 10 ! here in
Iowa, Democratic editor advocating the
election of General in the field who has as
sisted in like work, denounces the act as
Infamous places the gallant Gilmore on a
par with the Freebooter Quantrell'' and those
who cooperate yith him, as ''guilty of murder
in the first degree" The bombardment of
Charleston, filled with thousands of armed
rebels, as every school boy knows, the Argus
says, can no more be justified than the burn
ing of defenceless town in Kansas, and the
murder of it's citizens with not soldier near
to- protect them. 1t is true that Gilmore
threw his missiles indiscriminately, without
aimirg at any particular individual. But has
any loyal man ever condemned the battle of
Pittsburg Landing because innocent women
and children were killed by the bursting
shells of the enemy? What loyal man ever
found fault with Burnside at his lombard
ment of Fredericksburg, to protect our men
from the sharpshooters? What patriot has
found fault with Gen. Grants bombardment
of Vicksburg, causing the death Of its de-
fenceless women and children Is there any
difference between the latter bombardment
and that of Charleston If the latter is con-
demned, then the other must be. Let every
man read thcsefextracts and remember that it is
a Democratic Tuttle organ that indirectly yes,
DIRECTLY, charges the brave men of Iowa and
of this country, who freely offered up their
lives to the+work, and who now sleep the pa
triot's last, long sleep, with being "murder-
ers in the first degree" And the brave men
who have toiled, and marched, and fought,
enduring every privaticn and hardship for the
hope Of victory, ere charged with being "mur-
derers in the first degree" And their gal
liant commanders are compared to free hooters
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