Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1863-03-26

is Ny FRIENDS: A few months prior t
the election Of 1861 l addressed lette
to you through the columns Of the Obi
Statesman, in which / appealed to yo
in behalf Of your country, then jus
involved in war with rebels, askin.
you TO lay aside, for a time at least
your peculiar party predictions, anc
unite with every Union-loviDg citizer
to rescue the country from impending
iuin. Many other true and tried Dem
ocrats united with me in that appeal
I was more than grati6ed at the re
sponse which you gave. In every coun
ty, IN every township, nay, in every
school district throughout the great
State, you focked to the banner of The
Union, and the cause which you sup
ported triumphed by majority of more
than $4,000 votes. Now, when the
danger is not less than it was too year,
ago, now, when your aid and the aid
of every patriot is imperatively demand
ed, to roll back the tide Of rebellion
and place the institutions Of our coun.
try on a sure and stable foundation,
presume again to address you.
You know me, with thousands oI
you Ihave spoken face to face. can
say honestly, l have never deceived
you. have not, Icannot have, any
interest separate or diverse from yours.
I beseech you to hear me patiently
You and l acted in the beginning ol
this contest, on the principle that this
war was commenced by the rebels oi
the South, for the purpose of overturn-
ing this Government, under which we
live. With this conviction deeply i'm
pressed on our minds, we called on our
friends, our neighbors, our brothers,
to fy to the field of battle, and, if nec-
essary, to lay down their lives in de-
fense OF the Government and the old
flag, which is loved by all but traitors.
IF this was true two years ago, it is
true now-your own hearts tell you it
Is true-the voice of your brothers in
arms, speaking from the blood-stained
fields of Tennessee, tells you it is true.
The philosophers and statesmen Of the
old world, who have looked on this
conflict, have said, and have said truly,
that 'to every impartial observer it is
now evident that the wrong lies who'll
ly with the South" Letter of NJ.
tabourdage.) Your brothers in the
army of the Cumberland ask you in
tones which must reach the heart, what
means this wild, shameless, party strife
at home? Why any opposition to this
war of self preservation Wherefore
foolish cry for cessation of hostili-
ties on our part, to give time to the
traitor rebels TO strengthen their defens-
es and discipline their armies? Why
should the brave, true men Of the great
army Of the United States, war-broken,
toll worn and battle stained, be left
without sympathy or aid from you men
Of Ohio, now enjoying the blessings of
peace-Only because We, your brothers
and sons, stand ''between your loved
homes and wars desolatioh." lad
dress of The Ohio soldiers in Tennessee.
That voice you must not, you dare not
refuse 10 hear. 1t comes to you from
the graves Of those whom you and
encouraged to go to the field and lay
down their lives to defend the privileges
which we enjoy here In our hoines-it
is the voice of blood-it Is the appeal
of the souls Of those whom we sent to
die far from home and friends that we
might live in peace and security. Will
you, dare you, by your actions, raise
a monument over their graves to tell
that they died in defense of lieF No,
my friends, you will not do that. This
is no abolition war--it is war to up
hold the Government, to preserve the
Union. If slavery falls, it falls by its
own act and its own sin-its fall is one
of the incidents of the war, not one Of
the principles for which the war is pros
ecuted. g
Let rs see how we stand. This wal
has continued for nearly two years; we
have placed mighty army in the field
we have covered our rivers and oul
sea coast with strong vessels of war
We have bemmed the enemy 10 on ev.
ery side; we have seized his seaports
and his fortified towns on the rivers
The armies of the Union occupy hun
dreds of his most important tswns, and
the flag of the Union floats In every
rebel State. On scores of battle6eld'
the armies of the Union have been tri
umphant; and if sometimes disasters
have crossed our path. it is but the
common fate of war. In all its turmoil
and military hustle, the material pros.
perity of the North has not been re-
tarded for a moment. False teachers
for partisan purposes, have preached
to you Of ruin; it is ruin Of which
they have dreamed, but which yol
have never felt. Sorrow has VISITED
many households, and hearts are sal
to-day for the loved ones who have fal
len in the conflict; but our homes ar
safe, and our hearthstones are undese
Grated; our temples and our alters hav,
not felt the polluting touch Of hostil'
hands. To what do you owe this safe
ty and proteciion7 You owe it TO you
Government, which is able, even in tb'
midst OF this terrible rebellion, to en-
fold you in its strong embrace. and Gov
er you from the storm. Look abrost
over your land; and see the rebellion
forced daily into more Strengthened Inn
its, while you know that. with the sin
Gle EXCEPTION Of hasty raid into Penn