The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1863-09-30

hold it SO far as I could consistently with my
duty, and endeavor to have it enter upon a
line Of policy demanded as we'll by its own
honor and interests as the honor and Interests
OF our common country. appealed to the
friends of the national Administrations .ap-
pealed to its agents, who repreach me with re-
| they have committed, to make them sec they
would not find strength but weakness, and
were destroying the public confidence and the
public regard for the national Administration.
| When that measure was passed, I attempted
J to save them from the odium which would at
| tach to the execution of a measure instrinsic-
tally harsh and Burd rdensome, if any fraud was
fperpetrated il putting it. in operation. I did
SO in no unfriendly spirit. Who had the deep
est interest IN having our armies filed by the
voluntary action Of the citizens? Wewho
/ are out of power, or the friends of the Govern
ment Could we render any service for
which they should have been SO grateful as the
very efforts we mode to save them from the
necessity of a course so much opposed to the
public will and sentiments Yet for all this
we were traduced and denounced. When it
was discovered by the leturns sent to the Ex-
ecutive Chamber IN July, and only then dis
covered, that monstrous egularity existed
| in the burdens which this act imposed OF the
different counties. deemed it not only duty
I to the citizens of this State, but I considered
| it my duty to the. national government, and
for which I. should receive its gratitude, to
point out the errors which have been commit
| ted. I appeal to the public if there were any
class of men in our land who had 50 deep an
interest in having the act fairly and justly car
ried out as the officers of the government
themselves. Was it to their interest to add
to the odium of an act necessarily unpopular,
by unfairness aud inequality appeal to the
public if he was not their best friend who at
tempted to warn them every wrong, and ma
king suggestions that would commend it to
popular favor and support. And, therefore,
deemed it my duty to send men to Washing
ton whom I supposed would be acceptable to
the national Administrator, and 1 addressed
a communication to that Administration, writ
ten with a sincere desire to save them and our
country and people from what I earnestly be-
lieyed to be great wrong. Yet this act was
stigmatized Us one of hostility to the general
Government, and calculated to embarrass it .ir
the execution of the law. And it has been
said tiat the publication Of those letters was
calculated to irritate the public feeling and
arouse popular resistance. IF this is true, why
did they publish the letters? daughter and
applause. For none of the communications
which have addressed to the general Gov
ernment have been laid before1the public by
me. Not only the communications which I
have addressed to the general Government
have been published, but those written to the h
comm andIng General Of the north eastern dis
trict. There are two COMMUNICATIONS which /
have never yet been published. do not com
plain of that, because of their form they were
not official, although they were not declared
to be private ard confidential. daughter )-II
In the desire to save this Governments from |
hot hrin n 49,,
letter to Mr.. Lincoln with the
most friendly purpose. Before had received
an answer, had discovered what / believed
to be great fraud in the enrolment for the |
draft. / advised him that, although I was po- |
ltically opposed 20 his Administration, and
might, unconsciously to myself, be !
influenced by my partizan views, nevertheless,
[ had that regard for the honor of our country
and the character of the Administration, that
felt compelled to write this private letter, in |
orc er that these charges might be fully inves- |
tigated. The letter was not official ]; it CON-
menced EaDear Sin, instead. of aSir,n but it |
was written in friendly spirit, for all my
.sfiends', are not in York. Laughter and
cheers.) But more than that I addressed /
letter to the general commanding the North
eastern District, with whom have ever been
on terms of friendship, and now maintain a
correspondence, and suggested to him that I
felt this enrolment was unequal, if not fraud |
ulent, and that if I had given way to my re-
sentiment I might allow it to be carried 9out,
and if it was it would bring shame and dis
grace its authors, and valued the charae-
ter of the administration too much to be will
ing to see it do any act that would bring it in
to discredit in the eyes of the world. / / felt
the embarrassment of his position, andsetold
him I wished to avoid seeing him in posi-
tion where he mig ht be impelled by sense of
military obligation on the one hand, and re-
PEELED by his aversion to fraud and wrong on
the other. Unfortunately, the letter disturb
ed his taste as to word, and not his sense of
injustice as to wrong. Now, with respect to
this wrong, / think any one who will look at
the conduct of the Democratic party, and look
at my own correspondence, will find that SO
far from being acfuated by desire to embar-
rass this administration, we have desire to
save it from plungipg into great, L viii say,
fatal errors. 5.ssS s 4ss..f
I ask you if it was just to stigmatize men
who only wished to have jutice done, as un-
friendly to the Union and the institutions of
our landf appeal to you if you have ever
found man yet care not what his political
sentiments were-who would say that it was
not right and just that the public should have
the names of the enrolled placed before it,
that all might see that it was a fair enrolment,
or who desired that those rolls should not be
fairly deposited in the box and drawn out un
der circumstances that would satisfy the whole |
community that the execution of the law was
fair, equal and just. And yet when, through
a member of my staff, / make the request |
that those steps should be taken, not only
was that request not complied with, but those |
who made it with a sincere and earnest desire
to avert the wrong, were stigmatized as men
who were willing to excite this community; to |