The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1863-02-18
Letter from Hon. James M. Ashley.
Correspondence of the Toledo Commercial
WASHINGTON Cry, u. c..
EphrnorV Il iSC0

EDIroRS COMMERCIAL: Doubtless every
one understands the fact that could not,
even though | gave all my timc and neg
leCtcd my legislative duties, answer and at
tend to onc-halt the wants and requests of
those who wlitc lne, aud then could not
answer at lcngth. | may, therefore. with
out, impropriety answer publicly, SO far as
| can, those who write me" What of the
rebellion? What of the future of parties,
the prospects of our cause, and the neccss
ity for maintaining an able, hold efficient
and consistent organ of anti.slavery opiu-
ion in the Tenth District"
! fear, from the tone of many letters am
receiving from different parts of my Dis
trict, that far too many of tho friends
Of the Union are beginning to ialtcr and
despond. | will not say that am
alarmed at this, but do say that in this
day OF our sore trial, every earnest mao and
woman ought TO keep faith. In this hour
of national peril and national glory. lot us
! cherish that faith which cannot bo shaken
by disaster or defeat. Above all, never for
! Il moment, let amy earnest friend of our
cause yield to that despoudeucy which the
tathless always exhibit when overtakou by
temporary rrvcrscs, Every thoughtful man
and woman believes there is an all-wise
and just God, Let those who Tins believe
never falter, or hy speaking or writing dis
COuraginglv, cause those who have less faith
to talter. If our cause is righteous one. we
shall triumph. On this point have never
permitted myself to doubt. Faith in God
and i'll the Justice OF or cause, have kept
me hopeful amid all the divisions and dis
couragemcnts which surround me here, and
| do not want to hear of divisions and dis.
ali
doubt and tater, we would be lost, lie
who doubts and falters IN such an hour rs
the presents is more than half conquered,
and has but one more step to take to find
himself in the ranks of the enemy, or, what
is tcOrSe, because more COwardly and inta.
NOUS in the ranks of Northern Traitors.
do not disguise the fact that we may have
to sacrifice more treasure, and peril the lives
of many more of our brave brothers, but
| in the cnd--let us never doubt it--success
will come. However mpropitious our
cause may now appear to many kind friends
| who are writing me- however dark the hour
to those OF little faith.
" The Right shall be vIc1 Or whatever may oppose,
Fresh through the darkness the wind of morning
blows"
And, see approaching the glad hour of
|
no friend of Liberty and Constitutional
Government be discouraged. In the Rev
ulution our fathers were at first practically
united in resisting the ten and stamp tmr.
When above the din of battle. the best
and bravest men in America demanded
"LibeHV 0aG Independence" they were at
once divided and compelled to fight the To-
| ries at home as well as the British invaders.
| But they triumphed.
| AT first they were SeemiHgiV as much uni-
ted in the North aS were Our fathers. But
when. in the Providence of God, it was
seen that we should fail, unles we inscribed
| upon our banner "Li6ertV AID JuStice' and
the Government, in its hour of extremity. at
| last yielded to the demands of Justice, we
| found ourselves divided as were our fathers,
in the Revolution. and the enemies of Free
dom, in the North, began to apologize for
and defend the Traitors, who were making
war on the Constitution and the Union.
But there is no cause of diSCouragement in
all this. The temporary triumph of the Sc
cret enemies Of Liberty and Constitutional
Government instead Of dscouraging, should
only serve to arouse and unite to II more
determined existence every loyal citizen in
the nation, If it shall moro fully arouse
every loyal man in the Republic, | shall not
regret our recent political reverses, for
these political sympathi2ers with tho re-
bellion, who remained so long and so cum
ningly silent from Gov. Seymour, down to
Olds, have shown their hands so plainly
that no man can mistake their secret pur
pose. Senator Douglas, in one of his last
great speeches, thus properly characterized
all such opponents of the Governments:
"1Here are only two sides 10 this question:,
Eoery maH muSt be Tor tie United States
on against il, There cGut be no neutrolS in
this pGp'-cNLY PATRIOTS AND TRAITORS" "
And any man is practically Traitor who
proposes to surrender to the rebels or to
compromise with them. On this point,
whatever may be the course Of other Rep
resentatives, my constituents need not be
assured, that by no vote or act of mine,
shall the loyal men of this nation be hui
inflated and dsgraced by cowardly com
promise with the Traitors now in arms
against the Government Let all loyal men
swear before God, and cause their sons to
swear, that, come what may, disaster defeat
division and betrayal by Northern Traitors,
all will stand immovable and firm, and that
in no event shall a cowardly Compromise
be made. Compromise now with the lrai-
tors means dishonor, and if made, will
)lONc llt uculIl Vi lil6
Since the outbreak, have, as all know,
discarded every consideration personal to
myself and with majority of my own
party at first against me, have advocated
without regard to It's popularity. that pol
icy, and the adoption of those measures by
the Government, which | believed, would
the most surely and speedily suppress this
rebellion, and give lis an enduring Union,
nd In iOtr lpV mi
taken in urging the policy of Emancipation
SO early, but, if SO, up TO this hour | have
not been made conscious OF il. When. in
the spring Of 1861, wrote a series of let.
ters ON the duty of all loyal men and the
government in this crisis demanded, as
the first necessary step, that our soldiers in
the army, and the loyal men at home, should
fight uhacr banner having inscribed upon
it the words. Liberty aud Justice and
warned my constituents then of the danger
of compromise | told thom that the best
interests OF the Republic demanded the de-
feat of all such Union men as Crittenden
and that class of man from the border slave
States. The journal which assumed to be
the organ and mouth piece OF all the loyal
men in Northwestern Ohio, attacked me and
the principles | advocated, and contributed
whatever of influence it possessed to divide
and demoralze the unconditional Union men
of my District, by denouncing the anti
slavery men of the country, condemning
Fremont, and defending all such pro-slavery,
do-nothing Generals, as Mcclellan, and by
holding up to the people for leaders such
| men as Crittenden, and the men who, at
| Columbus, forced the Crittenden resolutions
upon the loyal men of Ohio, as a platform
| of Drinciples upon which TO stand while