Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1863-10-07
"EEKL Y STA NDARD

80 y u I . = MRA 4 u =
From the Progress -,
THE RALEIGH MOBS. I'D.
Lac attempt Of the Fayetteville O5sesper to palli
sne conduct of the Georgia troops astonishes the
puonc 1t rests that palation on the alleged fact
tnAt some Of the friends Of Mr. Holden had got into
"A atercstion with the soldiers at the depot AS
no rumor of this sort ever heard of in Raleigh
till il reached here in the 'Obseroer it was mani
testify fabricated as the basis for the Observers apo
iogy Tor an act which ought to excite the deepest
indignation OF every man, who has sense enough to
understand the value of the freedom of the press
and the Importance of keeping the military in sub
oroinataen to the civil power, or pride enough to
resent an insult to the State. t,. : -
The tendency Of the Observer articles is to make
the public believe this was the act of thouehtiess
soldiers reused TO patriotic passion by an alterca
non with friends Of Mr.. Holden. who went out, of
their way at an unreasonable hour and got into a
i, dispute with these soldiers at their quarters OF
course the Observer does not justify outright the se
ton of this mob much less that Of the citizens but
artfoliy shows its leaning between them by 'de-
scribing the action of the former as deliberate"
and that OF the latter as Curious -
a. Did this act Of the soldiers spring from tempo
rary ebulti0n of passion or did they act in obe-
dience to their superiors =,
. Was the office Of the State Printer attacked by
soldiers melted to the act by authorityp shall an
desvor to pursue this inquiry with candor. II the
affirmative be true it should arouse every freeman
hope for the honor Of our country that the mega
81 tiEe is true. Ts.a - .1-'sH
What are the we'll known facts bearing on the
question The Standard was very popular
journal in this State and for months past has had
rapidly increasing circulation 1t had longago taken
ground against the original secessionsts and con-
sequently became odious to the powers that be-. 1t
*Nad fu1-n kknl l.c-l o. =
slshng that q ticket should be got up 1T the last
State elections to change the councils Of the State
had zeaously advocated the election Of Gov. Vance
and the party who constituted the majority in the
last General Assembly. For this the Editor was
,babitualy denounced by the Richmond Enquirer,
State Journal, ct i'd omne genus as wanting in pa
tr'otsm. An immense majority Of the State con-
CURED with the Standard. In this he exhibited
another proof of his remarkable sagacty in under
standing the popular voice in North, Carolina. He
continued zealously to advocate the measures Of
Gov. Vance, and of the General Assembly which
cooperated with the Governor No jar existed
under this new order of things: the Bastle at Sail
bury was evacuated; the Rev. Mr.. Graves who had
been wickedly and in defiance of law deprived of
his liberty, was restored to the rights of freeman;
the decisions of our Independent judiciary were
sustained and the military compelled to respect
the civil authority.
Thus far tie Observer CO operated with the Stand
ard
In July last the Standard took ground that this
State ought to take steps looking to peace-tha the
appointment of the chief Tithingman from another
State was reflection on North-O Carolina and that
North Carolina ought not to send more conscripts
to the field until other States furnished as many in
proportion to population as North Carolina had fur
nished. He maintained that these were the views
of the people, and that they ought to hold public
meetings and give expression to their wishes. In
some of these views the Governor did not concur
He objected to the e1pediency, not to the rlqht of
holding these meetings This difference of opin-
ion showed only that neither was in leading strings
to the other that each exercised the right to think
and act for himself; there were never two indepen-
dent minds which did not differ on something; and
it would be unjust to suppose that this difference of
opinion produced any alienation between them. 1t
is not pretended that it did. But the party out of
power seized on this difference of opinion with
avidity and sought to widen the breach to oring
about unfriendly alienation; their mouhpieces, the
Journal and Register kept it constantly before their
readers that Holden was traitor. Holden insisted
that he still wished the war prosecuted with vgor:
denied that he was for reconstruction unless in the
progress of the war, plan of reconstruction should
be practicable, which mi ght seem preferable tobeng
vanquished The minority press now wed with
each other in extoling Gov Vance and tue Observer
and denouncing Mr.. Holden. Holden published the
proceedings of the popular meetings. The Observer
and many other papers refused to publish them,
whether fer or against peace unless paid for as ad
vertisements. The officers of the regiments, as
delegates appointed for the purpose by our North
Carolina regiments, held Convention at Orange
Court House, Va, in August last at which meeting
they resolved, among other things as follows:
THAT in q struggle of the character of the one
in which we are engaged, involving as it does the
preservation or destruction of all our rights as
freemen the freedom of the press does not demand
Il
uttered with impunity, aud that that inesimable
right, in every. well regulated government is, and
should be restricted within such limits as to forbid
this; and if it should beound that true patriotism
in North Carolina has so far lost its hold upon the
minds and hearts of her people as to be unable to
check the course of the Standard and other papers
which giving utterance to such sentiments then
the public authorities would be recreant to the cause
of the country if they should fail to take measures
for their suppression"
By these resolutions, drawn up by delegates pro-
Tossing to represent the opinions of our soldiers in
the army, they are made, in effect to declare that
the editor of the Standard is traitor and that if
public opinion sustains him. the authorities ought
to suppress his paper. What authorities ~ If
he was guilty of any crime, the Courts were OPEN
1t is hoped these officers well informed as it
is certain they brave. To suppose they did not
know the paper could not be suppressed according
to law, would be to impute to them degree Of
ignorance which would be humiliating to the State
whose troops they command In the fergor of
their patriotism, they determined to supply what
they deemed defective in the law, by the employ
ment of the mob. If l misinterpret, hope somebody
will give an explanation. At present, 1 hope our
brave soldiers exhibited more zeal than Judgment
and in their martial fervor, forgot their duty as
citizens. 49,,
These resolutions attracted the attention of the
whole nation. They could not have escaped the
attention of the President and Secretary Of War.
Their appreciation is to be inferred from their oms
sion to make known to the army and the country
their disapprobation of this bold attempt on the
part of the army to control the press The 0bser
Ger, notwithstanding its rule of excluding the pro-
ceedings of political meetings. published the sub
stance of these proceedings, and osrbati, believe,
the norton denouncing the Unreasonable senti.