Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1863-05-14
Che Morale AT Home ana I'm rho
Army.


How Is it must human creature
smell powder to become a man &? Is there
indeed such virtue in "villainous saline
ire Z Surely there must be something
strange 10 account for the strange differ.
enee between the manly spirit of the SOL
dlers and the unmanly spirit of civilians
Al accounts agree that the troops on the
happahannock came out of their late
ploody night game 10 the backbon Their
SUBMISSION IN retreating was as steady
ana heroic as was their courage in adyanc-
ing. 1t did not take from them one iot NJ
confidence, either in themselves or their
leader. But the news of the retreat no
sooner came to the people, than thousands
OF tnem began 10 ctrse, and other thon-
SANDS to whlmper and whine. Hooker
was denounced as braggart, blunder-
head and-a humbug; and. the cause itself
was besnlveled and bemoaned as sacr;-
feed, ruined and lost. We do not saw
hese feelings We're universal They were
not-tar from it. There were men whose
hearts We're trrner set, and whose faces
were more like flint that dav than
ever, But that the general feeling
was depsondent, the public pulse low. was
shown beyond all doubt by that unerring
index, the price of gold, which under the
news, went from seven to nine ner cent
higher than it was before, or is now.
1t is certainly extraordinary. The SOL
dlers fresh from all the horrors of the bat
tie held, with ranks decimated, and almost
exhausted with exposure and fatigue. vet
undannted and erect, composed and ready
10 turn on the instant and follow their
Leaders back into the fray civilians hun
dreds OF miles away, not hair of whose
head has been injured, nor fibre sub
Jected to discomfort, yet raving like luna
Qcs or willing and plning like sick girls
1t VIII not do to say that this comes from
any superior capacity for thought or free
dom CT thought in the civilian. The off,
GERS and soldiers in that army of the poto-
mac are men, to say the least, of as much
mteihgence, of as much ability to compre-
memo the real situation, as the average of
men IN this city, and they do their think
ing quite as originally and quite as freely.
I ID difference is not in mind.
The difference is IN heart. 1t is NOR
al result on.v. 1t comes from the deyel-
opment of man rood through he bracing
and ennobling infu> snoes of personal mill
tarF service in the ca, use of the country.
A soldiers life is one constant subsection
OF all the wilder impulses TO the perform
ance of duty. 1t IS a constant appeal
ana stlmuloas TO undying devotion 70 the
nag, doubly glorifed by every new victc.
ny, doubly hallowed by every new ban
tsm OF blood. By its hardy discipline it
toughens the will as well as the muscle.
gives steadiness to the temper as well as
to the step. By the suffering it involves
It lntuses patience and fortitude; while by
the grand achievement it promises, if all
Its duties are complied with, it keeps the
soul aglow with hope and enthusiasm
There Is no such school for the develop
ment Of moral stamina, for y, vic culrlvauon
" %. .ne mgner qualities of manhood, as
an army in active service.
This Is not the first time that we have
had occasion to note the superior staunch-
ness of our brothers and sons under arms.
It has, in fact, long ago, become notorious.
The ringing appeals and circumstances
that came up last Winter from all the
camps around Port Royal to the Western
borders of Arkansas, against the peace
of Northern politicians. still
echo in the public ear. They probably
mad more influence than all other things
combined to lay the traitorous spirit which |
was fast becoming rampantand uncontroll- |
able The single heartedness, the frmness. |
and the intensity of the patriotism of the |
soldiers have been displayed more and |
more pre-eminently as the war has ad |
vanced; and it is hard to say for w ich of
the two the army is now most valuable
Its physical prowess against the Southern
rebels, or its moral influence over the
Northern malignants and dependents
N. Y, Times.