The Ohio Democrat. [volume] (Canal Dover, Ohio) 1840-1900, 1863-04-17

motives, you must chast5n your own
ppiEin, you must
"Streioh every nerve
And ngeas with vigoI on"
70 the salvation ofyouf country. You
must Win public eoaldenee By youF pu-
rity, 5oF must challenge public respect
BY your intelligence, 46ovs all. and
before all, without one in6langa kssila-
tion, without pleading one soIilaiy OK
cuse, you must be true to the principles
of civil liberty. You must learn that
those principles are no chance prodnc-
tions of the piping times Of peaes;5,fbut
that they are the ruleS which 10 all timsS
Of tranquility and in ell times Of com.
motion have been enVolved out Of the
wisdom ofages, TO save US from the mad
thirst for arbitrary power that has again
and again seized upon highly civilized
nations and destroyed the hopes Of man.
kind. [Great applause.
PREPARE FOB THH GREAT TASK BEFoRH
YOU.
Preparing yourselves in this way fce
the great task that is before you, you
will be able to approach the dificnlt
problem Of this war with o firm and fear.
less step. You will see that this prob
lem presents to you the alternatives Of
consenting to Q dismemberment Of the
country or Of preventing that dismem-
berment by q reversal Of the popular and
governmental action which has made Il
so nearly an accomplished fact. You
will soon hear It said by those who have
urged on the war upon this most disas.
ferrous policy that it is.too late now; that
the breach can never be closed; that the
South must be permittedto goin peace.
Just here, then, precisely here, before ali
is given up to the control of the extre-
mists, North and South, you must inter-
pose. You have . right to have other
measures and other counsels tried. -
Cheers, You are, numerically, q ma
jority in at least four Of the largest States
In the Union You most rightfully de.
mand that the Consultation, with all its
guarantees, be rendered . the rsyolted
States; and you may rightfully do alE
that can assure the people cfthe South
Of its protection, without calling upon
our Government to change its military
attitude. Cheers. ] Iknow well enough
the insidious answer that is made to this
suggestion; how confidently We are told
that the South would reject our offer
with scorn. Bnt I tell you that history
has never seen q case Of war, foreign or
civil, In which o nation could absolVe
itself from the moral responsibility Of do
ing right, by asserting beforehand that
1t knew dts adversary would do wrong.
The elements of o moral Judgment do
not exist In advance. Of such an offer,
either In the controversies Of individu-
ais. Whatever Others may think, or say,
or do, you, l trust, will act upon o prin-
ciple which | am persuaded rests upon
o moral foundation that nosophistry and
no casuistry can successfully assail. II.
after such an offer, the war must still be
carried on, no language can overststs
the advantage that would be gained 10
the vigor Of its persecution.
And aere, gentlemen, I close. One
path Of duty is clearly open before us.--
/ can see no other now. Sufficient unto
the day is the evil, sufficient unto the
day is the duty thereof He who does
that one duty in q frm and humble faith
in the providence Of God, prepares him
self for clear PERCEPTION of the next
that NAV arise In the future.