Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1863-07-17
Correspondents Of the Daily Journal.1
FROM WASHINGTON.

Correspondents Of the Daily Journal1
FROM WAsHINGTON.
The Fourth Of .July- Gettysburg Ncks-
bury-Phizips on Blair--etc., etc.
WARRINGTON, July 9Th; 1868.
This National metropolis was magnificent
ly mellow on the Fourth OF Bunker Hill."-
To tell the whole truth and nothing but the
truth, the town was beautifully drunk from
about II o'clock, A. n, till, say, early Sunday
morning. What with the exhilersting influ-
encos of the day itself, and the fact that all
business houses, except the liquor shops,
were closed, 1 cannot see how it could we'll
have been otherwise. And however sorrow
fully might have regretted the fact upon
any other day, or even upon any ordinary
Fourth of July, do not have it in my heart
to take the city seriously to task for the in
ebriety of that happy anniversary. More
over, there were no disturbances, no street
fights, no brawls of any kind. What if men
saluted the soidiery as they passed with a
little weakness in the knees and an unusual
sparkle in the eye? Whose corn.patch was
damaged because several hundred gentlemen
weren't as sedate as parsons, and took up a
little more room on the Avenue than would
have sufficed had they chosen to go straight
instead of zigzagwise? Nobody's. Hence,
pass over this part of the proceedings Of
the day with as much Christian charity and
forgiveness as ever Friar Tuck bestowed upon
brother monk who had tarried too long at the
wine cup. Before I joined the New School
Presbyterian church, l nigh: have gone in
myself .....
The moro know of the battle of Gettys-
burg the more fully am persuaded it was
the greatest battle of the century, and that
whether we consider the greatness Of the
issue at stake, the sublime heroism of the
combatants, the generalship, or the results
att aimed and likely to be attained, theissue
was UNNECESSARILY grand. 1t was the life of
the American Republic on the one hand, its
overthrow on the other. Had the Army of
| the Potomac been defeated as the rebel army
was defeated, jeff. Davis could to-day be die
| tating terms Of peace either at Washington,
Philadelphia, or New York, as he might pre-
fer. In that event, panic would have seized
the eastern cities in comparison of which the
Bull Run panic was zephyr to tornado
But by the sublime endurance and valor of
the Potomsc Army, handled with skill
which Napoleon might have envied, victory
was gained which throws Waterloo into the
shade, and which will speedily be followed, if
| it be followed up with only moderate vigor,
by the practical downfall of the rebellion and
the complete establishment of the Union.
| OF this grand result there could not be a
shadow of doubt, we're Halleck in an honored
grave, and Seward in the deep bosom Of the
ocean buried. And / shall expect it, not.
withstanding the shameless trickery of those
"deplorable and God-forsaken cowards."
And what shall l say Of Vicksburg? It'll
fact that even here in this capital, inhabited
for the most part by eastern and southern
men, there have been more rejoicings over
| the fall of that Sebastopol than over any event
of the war, not even excepting the battle of
Gettysburg. Serenadss were the order of the
evening last night. The telegraph will have
informed you of the speeches of the Presi
dent, Stanton, Halleck, Seward, and others.
Halleck thrust himself forward, against the
wishes and shouts of nine-tenths of the
crowd, but Seward was called out because, on
Yesterday, he had raised the stars-and- stripes
upon his Department. Remember It, We peo-
lp'e, reflect upon it yc soldiers of the Repub-
lie, the little villain. William H. Seward, neu-
er unfaried the flag Of the Union from his
Department, till this atrocious rebellion had
been in arms against the Cove nment for
more than too gears, and ,oas about to foil
to pieces of ats ossn decay. 1t is very sell
dom that use typographical emphasis, but
this occasion is worthy of it. The speech #
the Secretary of State last night, as your
readers will have seen, was shilly -shally af-
fair. If they did not expect anything truth
full from him, they certainly expected some
thing sensible. That they got monstrous
lie to start with, followed by SOME hfaluten
nonsense about being buried under these
pavements, is due to the fact that the Premier
was unusually intoxicated. 1t is my sad
duty as reporter to so state the fact. But,
barring Halleck and Seward, the jollification
last night was most splendid success, and
If the Western men held their heads little
| higher than others, who shall say they had
not ample cause for all their enthusiasm
The speech of Philips, cutting up Mr.
Montgomery Blair, was the universal theme
of conversation here yesterday till the news
of the fall Of Vicksburg swallowed up every
thing else. 1t is not little singular that it
was almost universally liked. am sorry to
say it, but the Postmaster General can count
upon precious few friends and no admirers
even here. The very clerks in his Depart
ment, such as are loyal, despise him. So the
cry was, lay on Macduff, and damned be he
who first cries hold, enough 1t is my
opinion that no man in America reioiced
more over Vicksburg than"M. Blair"
have discovered, since my last, that what
I then thought was the platform adopted by
the Union Convention at Des Moiues was
only part of tan omission on the part of
one of our best Iowa dailies which led me to
| think less of the resolutions than now do,
having seen them Officially" So having
good platform and tip-top ticket to fight
for, if you do not beat the Oopperheads to
the tune of 10000. it will not be the fault Of
your principles or your standard bearers.
..... LINKENsALE.