The daily Evansville journal., 1863-09-15
Encouraging Desertion.

We find the following article in the
Vincennes Sun, under the head, "Break-
ing Agreements. Considering that a
misnomer, we copy it under the title
above, as more clearly setting forth the
object for which the article was written:
The letters from the army of the Poto-
mac give detailed and painful account
of the execution of five deserters at one
time The poor fellows were seated on
their collins and shot by their comrades,
the whole army, or a large portion of it,
viewing the sad and sorrowful spectacle.
These men had enlisted for three years,
and bolted their agreements by desert
ing, and thus forfeited their lives as pun
ishment for their broken faith In this
view of the case, we are not prepared to
say that their punishment, though Sc
we're, was not just These men enlisted
under the following resolution, as Jointly
passed by both houses of Congress-:
ResoEUed, That this war is not waged
on our part in any spirit of oppression,
nor for any purposes of conquest or sub
jugation, nor for the purpose of over
but to defend and sftsif tie tie sdphtagE sEdiphtf ar
cy of the Constitution, and preserve the
Union with all the dignity, equality, and
rights of the several States unimpaired;
and that as soon as these objects are ac-
compllshed the war ought to cease
C'-ittenden Resolution, July %, '62.
Here it is distinctly declared as one of
the objects of the war, 'that it is waged
to defend and maintain the rights of the
States unimpaired" This is point
. which we had heretofore overlooked in
this resolution. 1t will be noticed, on a
careful reading of it, the war is declared
TO be waged to maintain and defend
StateRights" justas much as to maintain
and defend the supremacy of the Consti-
tuition and to preserve the Union" Both
purposes are announced in the same SEN
tence, and yet everybody knows that the
war is waged now distinctly to overthrow
States Rights and nothing else. Webster
said that :" a bargain broken on one side
Is broken on the other If so, what lust
or moral right has the Administration to
shoot man for breaking his agreement
with them, after theyhave broken theirs
with him?
1t may be as well to state that the de-
serters who were shot were substitutes
for drafted men. They had received pay
as such. They appear to have made the
hiring of themselves as substitutes and
then deserting business, and have af-
torded heretofore great deal of amuse-
ment to the Copperbead papers on ac-
count of the success with which they have
eluded the vigilance of their officers, and
escaped from the army. Their apprehen-
sion and punishment pains the Editor of
the Sun, not because he has any sympa-
thy with their sufferings, but because it
toiH haze tendency to suppress deser-
aon. Had he set any value upon their
lives, he would not have labored so hard
to induce them to place their lives in
jeopardy. Now he comes forward and
says the soldiers had right to desert,
because they enlisted according to a res
oluion passed by Congress, as quoted
above
This will be jolly news to the soldiers.
Most, if not all, of them are under the
impression that they enlisted to put down
rebellion and punish traitors, whether
they find them North or South. This
they have been doing pretty effectually,
much 70 the sorrow and disgust of the
Sun. They do not think they have any
thing to do with States Rights or any
other kind of rights-other than the
rights oftraitors, which are to be despoiled
of property and be shot or hung as
circumstances may dictate No one
that we have heard of has interfered with
States rights, except the rebels They
have done SO pretty considerably, but the
President and Congress couldn't help
tbat, and they are now doing all they
can to enable States to regain their rights