The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1863-01-13
IFor the Press.l
The Late Rebel Gen. Rains.


lion The writer of this knew well number
of the younger rebel officers, as they were
few years ago fellow students in Yale College.
Among them was General James Edward
RAINS the son ola loyal clergyman still living
in Nashville. He was noble man and pos
sessed of much ability.
During his senior year at Yale College in
1854, he carried away in the Linonian society,
the LIST prize of his class for superiority in de-
bate upon the following question:
SIS the maxim, Our country right or wrong
worthy of our support" / not only remember
well the able manner in which he argued the
negative, but / also then obtained his article,
which have before me in full, showing what
Gen. Rains thought less than nine years ago. l
quote few sentences:
The maxim, "Our country right or wrong" is
not worthy Of our support, because
| 1st, From its intrinsic nature it is opposed
| to the law of right.
I'd, From its practical effect it is opposed to
the law of expediency.
| For example,a nation makes an enactment.
Suppose it declare war, the war then becomes
|
the same force as any other law of the land
There may be no doubt in the mind of the SUBJ
| ject that his country is going into a
war against an unoflending state to rob it of
its rights. The question is, should he render
assistance if called upon. Who would not say
that God would curse in his wrath the ma
ton that dared engage in such war as the
one have supposed, and if our Government
should engage in it how then could our Gov
eminent ask our support? = What
pious statesman could then appeal to the Su-
preme Judge ofthe world for the rectitude of
his intentions? What holy man OF God could
stand at the sacred desk and send up prayer
of faith for the success of our army? What
christian patriot he enters the battle field
could then turn his eyes towards Heaven and
ask his God to nerve his arm to strike the
btor, and if he fall TO receive his spirit to Him
self? And what christian ,couid peril his life
on battle field where he could not ask that
aid, and where death would be eternal destruc-
ton? The principles such a maxim involve
and the conduct it sanctions are opposed to
the law of God.
|
But ,rho then is to decide whether the
command of Government is opposed to the
moral law? Is the subject to judge of every
enactment of his government and obey if he
approve if disapprove, disobey? No. 1t is not
light thing to resist civil authority and may
not be done except our country be manJestly
or drowedly ,crong. But If it is clearly wrong
and actually in tcdr, what shall we do? We
ought to refuse our support. But suppose all
refuse, then the war win cease. as it ought. But
suppose the enemy is not willing for it to cease
Then it changes its character; we are now in
the right and can defend ourselves.
| But if we refuse to fight for our country,
the cry of treason is raised, and we are asked
if we will turn traitors to our country? But
our country has turned traitor to right and
tre cannot turn Nth her. But we will not
turn against our countryside riU remain
pdssire.
He closes thus, latter several suppositions)
Now in view of these facts what is the duty
not reject maxim so opposed to right, so cor
rpptve of private virtue, so subversive of ma
tional prosperity, so blighting to civilization
and religion. Our countrys glo,ring past, hal
lowed by thousand associations of heroic pa
triotism, mingled with Christian piety; her
happy present. crowding around us all the
blessings of peace, justice, and liberty, and her
brilliant future, stretching far drdy into dis
tdnt ages Of increasing promise, all call upon
us for patriotism true, enlightened and lib
eral.
''Shall we forget the high mission we are des-
tined to fulfil in the world? Shall we desert
the old landmarks of the republic?
Franklin said, where freedom is, there is
my country So the Christian says, where
right is, there is my country; where tcrong is,
have nothing to claim. The first man says
my country right forever; my country wrong
never The patriot says, my country's cause;
when tight, Ill shed the last dropof my blood
in ner defense; when wrong I'll set her right"
1t would seem strange that man who has
uttered some of these sentences quoted should
in less than nine years be killed in active re-
bellion against his country, in support of
system which has the curse of God upon it.
Whose own father, as "holy man of God"
does stand at the sacred desk to pray for the
success of our arms. Nine years ago | heard
him say, 'if my country was wrong we would
not turn against tive would remain passive"
And yet when the South declares war against
his government, fires into national vessels, at
tacks national forts, trails in dishonor the ma
tional flag, he is found against his country
But stranger things than this have happened
and one is-that when John c. Calhoun devel-
oped the aecursed and false doctrine called
Estates rights to which young Rains here al
ludes, and which led Gen. Rains and ten
thousand other sincere men astray. TO be so
blinded that they could not follow their own
logic, that John G. Calhoun was not hung for
treason. There are times when one death
may spare many lives. But now it will take
more blood to be the price of our country's re-
demption from such curse as such doc
trine.
RUNS DoINGs.-Last week a man in Free
dom, named Enos Briggs, aged about 45 years,
who had been living with a woman to whom
he had never been married, and by whom he
had had two children, gave SIS to the woman
and sent her to the house of neighbor and
I