The weekly north Iowa times. [volume] (McGregor, Iowa) 1857-1867, 1863-01-21
Where arc we ?--And Where
Driftin12
Frcm the Albany Evening journal.

Driftina?
Frcm the Albany Evening Journal.
4 In 1860, when only distant mutterings of
rebellion were heard, we were among the
few who recognized, in those threats, the
certainty of war; and who, in measure,
comprehended both its magnitude and its
horrors. 1t is always an offence, in an in
divdual, to loresee evils, and especially so
to avert, or even to be prepared for them,
For an article then written, asking the
President, congress, and our readers to
raise their eyes and thoughts above the
herizon of party, and contemplate a crisis
which would tax the energies Of the people,
and test the strength Of our government,
we incurred the denunciations Of many,
and the friendly ccnsure Of most Of the
republican journals. .--..-..-.-.. q.
Subsequently, when the rebellion was
rampant in the extreme southern states, q
question whether North Carolina and Ten
nessee should remain in the UBion, OF go
ont Of it, arose. We all remember the
''border state proposition" upon the adop-
tion of which, by congress, rebellion, from
the Mississippi to the Atlantic, would have
been bounded by tie southern lines Of Ten
nessee and North Carolina. With modi-
tication which the border state representa-
tvcs offered to accept, we advocated that
compromise" And for this, also, we
We're severely denounced.
In the peace Congress" where the leg
stature honored us with seat, which we
resigned in favor of a distinguished citizen,
the "border state proposition" was again
rejected; and consequently two states, a
ma jori,y OF whose citizens yearned to re-
main in the Union, were lost. With North
Carolina and Tennessee in the Union, Nir
ginia could not have gone out Of it. We
should therefore, instead Of sacrificing
hundreds of thousands of lives and hun
dreds of millions Of treasure in North Car
Dina, Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky,
have reserved those troops and that treas
ure to crush out rebellion in the cotton
states.
This rehellion-as wanton and wicked as
any that stains the pages of history-thus
embracing more states than was necessary
has been nearly two years in progress,
with what measure of success, and with
what promise of termination we can
judge, one as well as another. Its lesson
teaches us that it requires all the strength
Of a united north to preserve the Union
the commencement of the war, a united
north. The culmnation Of treason. in it's
attack on Ft. Sumter, kindled blaze Of
indignant patriotism over the whole north,
east and west All merely partisan feeling
was merged in higher and nohler impulses.
All good and true men, in imitation of their
ancestors at Concord and Lexington, in
l776, rushed to arms, or contributed mon
ey. Then we were, in the language of Mr..
Jefferson, "all republicanS--all federaiist>,
or in other language, "ail repubicans-ail
democrats For the first year the war
had. with few exceptions, the hearty sup
port of both and all political parties. 1t
was prosecuted earnestly, but with indif
ferent success with more heart than head
more Zeal than knowledge. We had
gallant troops c-mmanded by incapable
generals. made so, probably by newspaper
and other interference. At any rate, the i'll
success Of our armies caused popular impa-
t'ence of which those whose ultra anti
slavery views enabled the secession leaders
| to mass the sentiment Of the cotton states,
availcd themselves to impart an abolition
character to the war.
The evidence before us-n the rivers Of
hloodshed, and the millions of treasure ex-
penaed-that the preservation Of our Union
! and government demand the best and unit
ed energies and efforts of the whole people,
is valucless. What all, united, have so far
failed to accomplish, the abolition chiefs
and journals insist upon undertaking as
party. They demand that the war shall be
prosecuted under their auspices, and for
their purposes. They object to CO opera
ton, except upon their own terms. Mems
opinions, on the slavery question, must be
heightened or shortened, in accordance
with procrustean example.
These impracticable, one.idea lecturers
and journalists. aided by the unfortunate
"On to Richmond" military disasters, have
already withdrawn New York, New Jersey,
Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois from the poiiti-
cal support Of the Administration. Too
many of the Democratic leaders in these
Subsequently, in Ohio and Indiana
are Of the Vallandigham school, This
false, disloyal man, with shame be it con-
fessed, found sympathizing friends to vel.
come and feast him at a secession hotel in
the city of New York! Still the mas asscs of
the Democracy, and most Of their promi-
nent men, are truly devoted to the Union,
and remain willing to contribute their mon
ey and peril their lives to sustain the gov
ernment. But in this there is no merit,
unless they adopt the antl-slavery platform
and accept the dogmas Of the New York
Tribune.
Will those Of our old Wing friends. now
so impatient with, and differing so widely
from us, turn their minds few years back
wards. and remember what they then
thought of Abolition; and what its course
and action was? Was 1t not narrow, per-
verse and niSchievous Did it not exert a
vicious and malign political influence p
Did it not, for twenty years, at our cleo
tons, state and national, ever play into the
hands Of pr"-Sl"very dsmo.lat>. hlle
We were laboring for the right-doing al
that we could for the Union and the coun-
try-were not embarrassed and thwartcd
by this factions, impracticable third par
typ Who were it's leaders then? Messrs.
Garrison, Phillips, Sumner, Gerrit Smith,
&C., &c Did we trust to their judgment,
or follow their lead, or vote with thein,
then? Are not the same men, with Mr..
Gr' c.ey, fully developed, as a disciple, the
abolition leaders now? Have they grown
wiser, or is your own intellect dw.ricd, or
has your common sense collapsed? II the
north rejected abolition as mere Political
test, will it be accepted when the lives of
our sons and brothers, and the prescrya.
ton of our country, are involved? II we
refused to follow lone idea men, when it
only costs US votes. shall we commit all
that is sacred and precious to their leader
ship?
We ask these questions now III view OF
the concerted effort to narrow this mighty
struggle for national existence down to an
abolition crusade. We ask them in the
hope of arrestlng popular delusion which
is drawing tens Of thousands Of patriotic
devoted men into vortex which bode in