Dayton daily empire. [volume] (Dayton [Ohio]) 1850-1865, 1863-01-06
WASHINGTON, Dec. 20.

WARRINGTON, Dec. 20.
1t is the impression here, among those mem
beers Of Congress who nave remained at Wash
ington during the holidays, that, on the re-
assembling Of that body, some notice will
have to be taken of the recent proclamation,
or order of retaliation, of JED. Davis. Mr..
Lincoln, on reading it, only laughed over IL,
and tried to make it the basis of a Joke $50
little does he comprehend the reality of the
horrors il portends Buta least one of the
members Of the Cabinet has declared that it
shall be discussed at the meeting Of that body
Tomorrow, and | know that a second member
lof the Cabinet will sustain him in the re-
solve. In the meantime, it brings up ques-
tons which the people will look squarely in
the face.
The war has now lasted two years. What
kind Of a war has il been? What result has
been accomplished by IT'D What prospects,
are there of successful results 10 the future ?
How much longer will the people be willing
to have their sons, their husbands and their
fathers sacrificed, ~massacred, butchered, in
what Mr.. Lincoln calls Accidents and
Burnside calls attempting impossibilities2'
How much longer will the money last that is
requisite to carry on this costly and unfruitiul
contest2
The people (the plain people" as Mr.. Lin
coin derisiveIy calls themD are not blind
They see that the Republican party never in
tended this war to be a war for the restoration
of the Union; but, on the contrary, that the
leaders of that party always intended to make
it assume such features that a restoration of
the Uuion would be impossible. 1t has been
steadily verging in that direction. Il has
nearly reached that complexion now. Let
but the President issue his contemplated pro-
elametion on New Years day, and that object
will have been fully accomplished. That pro
clamation will make a restoration of the
Union forever impossible. The war has be-
come simply awartor the abolition Of slavery,
and will be mark Cd afterth lstiof January,
By attempted negro insurrections all over the
South, which viii either be quenehed in rivers
of negro blood or else will be offended with
horrors too awful 10 contemplate.
Starting with Mr.. Lincoln's solemn declara.
ton that he had no purpose or intention Of
interfering with slavery in the States where II
exists, and passing through a 1.-The stages Of
Ost) forbidding officers Of the army to return
fugitive slaves, thus abolishing the fugitive
slave law (2d) abolishing slavery inthe Dis
trict Of Columbia (3d) passing the c%oniisca
ton bill; (4th) issuing the emancipation pro
81 nation OF September az, which declares
hit all slaves in the South shall be free OF
the lst OF January; and (5th) forbiding OH
cers 10 place guards around houses in III,
Southern States, thus exposing defenselesi
females to the brutal lusts Of the fsnds thaI
disgrace every ~army--passipgi | say through
all these stages, the war has now assumed {
complexion Of ferocity at which the worlC
may well stand appalled, 69ll4aJ .El04
And what results have been accomplished
by il, after it has desolated the land Tor i've
ysars2 Has the Union been restored ? Thi
sections are wider apart than ever, and recon
struetion seems now 10 be impossible lie the
rebellion at its last gasp2 1t is stronger to